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Monday, September 19, 2016
U VA STUDY: #GMO CROPS INCREASE #HERBICIDE USE, DESTROY ECOSYSTEMS
Wednesday, September 14, 2016
MR SEED BRINGS FOOD & SEED MATTERS TO WASHINGTON
Mr. SeedGOES TO WASHINGTON
You’ve watched the video, and here’s the thing….Giant agrichemical companies are continuing to consolidate their ownership of seed. During this election year candidates aren’t talking about food and farming…if they won’t represent us, who will? Mr. Seed will take your voice to Washington. Join us in this sign-on letter. Please read the letter, sign, and share on social media.
To: US Department of Justice
CC: USDA and POTUS Candidates
CC: USDA and POTUS Candidates
We – the undersigned organizations, businesses, and individuals – are concerned about ongoing consolidation trends in the seed sector. Already the seed needs of many farmers are not being met due to consolidation stifling innovation in plant breeding and a decades-long decline in federal funding for public plant breeding. US agriculture has become overly reliant on crops bred for pesticides and synthetic fertilizers while ignoring the greater agricultural need and consumer demand for crops that have less of a negative impact on our soil, water, and health. We must take a more diversified approach to crop improvement to develop cultivars that reduce agricultural impact on natural resources, reduce risks of chemical exposure for rural communities, and improve the nutritional quality of our food.
Seed is the foundation of food, and thus food security and food quality. More than ever, we need to invest in seed development that adds diversity and resiliency to American agriculture. The investments made in plant breeding today determine our food future. Placing that future in the hands of a few agrichemical-seed companies is a risky venture. Instead, we should invest in strategies that support future generations of farmers and the communities they feed, and establish a fair and open marketplace for seed.
To do so, we need the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) to act. Specifically, we ask for the following:
1. The DOJ should block the proposed merger of Dow Chemical and DuPont, the potential merger of Bayer and Monsanto, and any subsequent merger attempts between the Big Six agrichemical-seed companies (Syngenta, Bayer, BASF, DuPont, Monsanto, and Dow Chemical).
2. We strongly urge state attorneys general to hold hearings on this critical merger and any other potential major agribusiness consolidation mergers so that stakeholders (farmers and other citizens in their states) can fully engage and express their concerns regarding major impacts on the future structure of agriculture, impacts on their livelihoods, and fairness and farmer access to seed choices prior to any such merger agreements.
Please act to ensure that farmers of all kinds have the seed they need. Thousands of farmers spoke out at the 2010 workshops on competition in agriculture hosted by the DOJ and USDA. They expressed frustration with seed choices and prices, and spoke to the loss of regional seed companies and trends in consolidation. Further mergers among the Big Six will not lead to more innovation for these farmers and will instead further narrow seed options and genetic diversity in their fields.
Without your action we risk food insecurity, endanger the future economic success of American agriculture, and ignore consumer demand for a healthier, more just, and sustainable food system.
[Signature]
Friday, September 9, 2016
HOW TO STOP US ALLOWING POISONS IN ICE CREAM?
Would you feed your child yogurt or ice cream contaminated with an herbicide so bad it was banned in Europe more than a decade ago?
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Not knowingly, of course. But unknowingly, you may be doing just that.
Can you make a donation today to help us expose the poisons in our food and start a #ConsumerRevolution to clean up our food supply? You can donate online, by check or by mail, details here.
A few weeks ago, we ran an article at the top of our weekly newsletter that should have alarmed everyone who read it.
In case you missed it, the gist of the story was this: Dairy cows in Vermont eat a diet of GMO corn sprayed with, among other poisons, atrazine—a chemical the EPA says is unsafe at any level.
We're not talking small amounts here. Between 1999 to 2012, Vermont’s dairy farmers applied more than 2,533,329 pounds of metolachlor, atrazine and simazine to their cornfields.
All three of these chemicals are classified as “probable” human carcinogens, known endocrine disruptors, and birth defect progenitors.
All three of these chemicals are poisoning Vermont’s waterways.
Are these dangerous chemicals also poisoning the milk, cheese, ice cream and yogurt made from cows fed GMO corn?
With your help, we aim to find out.
We've started testing dairy products made not only in Vermont, but in other states where atrazine is sprayed on GMO crops.
Can you make a donation today to help us expose the poisons in our food and start a #ConsumerRevolution to clean up our food supply? You can donate online, by check or by mail, details here.
It’s high time you knew the truth about the poisons in your food. Once you do, we believe you’ll join the growing army of consumers who will ultimately force food corporations to clean up their acts.
That’s why OCA is now involved in five lawsuits against companies that falsely label their products “organic” or “100% natural,” when in fact they aren’t.
And it’s why we are now testing a wide variety of foods for not just glyphosate, but also for atrazine, metolachlor, simazine, growth hormones, antibiotics and other chemicals and substances that humans were never intended to eat.
Let’s not kid ourselves. The battle for labels on GMO foods was as much about getting cancer-causing chemicals like glyphosate out of our food, as it was about labeling GMOs.
If the GMO labeling fight taught us anything, it’s that politicians and U.S. regulatory agencies work to protect corporate profits, not us.
We will lobby hard to get glyphosate, atrazine and other chemicals banned.
But I believe that ultimately, it will take a #ConsumerRevolution to get these poisons off the market. We must first identify the foods that are contaminated. Then educate the public and mass media. Then mobilize boycotts.
Over the coming months, as we test foods for poisons like glyphosate and atrazine, we'll need your help to launch massive boycotts.
Right now, we need your help to fund this work.
We still need to raise about $165,000 to reach our goal of $200,000 bymidnight September 16. Can you make a donation today? You can donate online, by check or by mail, details here.
Thank you!
In solidarity,
Ronnie Cummins
International Director
International Director
P.S. Atrazine is the second most commonly used herbicide in the U.S. It’s widely used to combat weeds on golf courses, residential lawns and Christmas tree farms. It’s also used on half of all corn grown in the U.S. That means it's in our food. Donate online here.
Sunday, September 4, 2016
SUING THE LYING LIARS WHO SELL US "NATURAL FOODS"
"100% Natural" Weed Killer?
Dear K,
You’ve heard a lot in the past few years about consumers’ right to know about GMOs. And believe me when I say that battle is not over yet.
But what about your "right to know" about irradiated synthetic ingredients in “organic” baby formula? Or about Monsanto’s glyphosate in “100% Whole Grain” Shredded Wheat and “100% Natural” Nature Valley granola bars?
And shouldn't you have the "right to know" if the eggs you bought that had a "pasture-raised" label on them actually came from chickens that never spent a day outdoors, much less on a pasture?
Food manufacturers are lying to you. Every day.
That’s why the OCA is behind five lawsuits against food companies—and why we will soon announce several more.
Can you help support this work by donating to our fall online fundraising campaign? We need to raise $200,000 by midnight,September 16, to meet our budget and keep these, and future, lawsuits going. You can donate online, by check or by mail, details here.
Junk food makers spend millions of dollars studying consumer preferences. They know what you want—and what you don't want.
They know you don’t want food full of pesticides and hormones and other toxic chemicals. They know you care about the environment, about the welfare of farmers, and about the way animals raised for food are treated.
But rather than produce the food consumers want, companies like General Mills, Post, Earth’s Best, Handsome Brook—even a company that calls itself The Honest Co.!—use false and misleading labels to trick you into thinking you’re buying the food you want.
And then they charge you a premium for it!
On Monday this week, we announced our latest lawsuit, against Handsome Brook Farm. This egg producer was started by a husband and wife, on a “bucolic” farm in New York, according to a recent article in Forbes. When the company started out, its eggs probably came from “pasture-raised” chickens.
But like a lot of small companies, Handsome Brook has grown. According to Forbes, the company has contracts with 75 farms in six states, and its eggs are sold in more than 4500 stores—including Kroger, Publix, Wegmans and Sprouts Farmers Market.
Handsome Brook still labels its eggs “pasture-raised.” But it’s not true. And by lying about it, Handsome Brook is cheating you, and its competitors—those companies that are doing the right thing.
We’ve also recently sued Post Holdings (maker of Shredded Wheat), and General Mills and its subsidiary, Nature Valley, for claiming that their products that test positive for Monsanto’s glyphosate are “100% natural.”
In April, we sued two baby formula makers—The Honest Co. and Earth’s Best—for stating that some of their infant formula brands are “organic” when they in fact contain ingredients not allowed under federal organic standards.
Last month, we forced Colgate-Palmolive to take down a webpage that intentionally misled consumers into thinking Tom’s of Maine toothpaste, owned by Colgate, was organic. Fortunately, we didn’t need to sue—one letter from our attorney was enough to end the deception.
I’m not personally a big fan of lawyers and courts. But I believe you deserve the truth about what you’re buying.
If Big Food companies refuse to label properly, OCA will sue them.
These lawsuits won’t bring in money for OCA, that’s not why we’re doing this. Our goal is to force companies to stop lying to you. And we need your help to do it.
Please help support this work by donating to our fall online fundraising campaign. We need to raise $200,000 by midnight, September 16, to meet our budget and keep these, and future, lawsuits going. You can donate online, by check or by mail, details here.
Thank you!
In solidarity,
Ronnie Cummins
International Director
International Director
P.S. We must bring down the factory farm system. Less than 25 percent of GMO crops go into non-organic processed food. The overwhelming majority are used to make animal feed and ethanol. Factory farms are polluting our water and air, abusing animals, treating workers unfairly, creating an antibiotic-resistant public health crisis and producing food that makes us sick. Please support this important work! Donate online here.
Friday, September 2, 2016
LEAVING HAWAI'IAN ISLANDS AFTER RELENTLESS #SEEDSOVEREIGNTY LEGAL BATTLES
Swiss seed giant to sell Hawaii operations
HONOLULU (AP) — A Swiss agrochemicals company caught up in legal battles over its farming of genetically modified crops in Hawaii is planning to sell its operations in the state.
Syngenta announced Tuesday that it is looking for a buyer for nearly 6,000 acres of land it leases or owns on Oahu and Kauai. The company says it will continue to operate in Hawaii, but under a contract with a new owner.
Angus Kelly, a Syngenta spokesman, declined to say why the company has chosen to sell other than it being “a change of approach to the business model.”
The company has 105 full-time employees and an unspecified number of contract workers in Hawaii.
Syngenta said the impact of the sale on its operations or employees won’t be felt until a transaction is completed, which is anticipated to happen by June 2017.
The announcement comes as the company is in the midst of a $43 billion acquisition by China National Chemical Corp. Kelly declined to say whether the Hawaii sale effort is related to the pending deal.
“We will not comment on any aspect of the ChemChina review to respect the confidentiality of the process,” he said via email.
Syngenta and four other companies — BASF, Dow AgroSciences, DuPont Pioneer and Monsanto — operate 10 seed farms on Oahu, Maui, Molokai and Kauai.
The companies produce plants using traditional breeding and genetic modification, and send the seeds to the mainland for mass reproduction and sale to farmers.
In recent years, the companies have sued Kauai, Maui and Hawaii counties over restrictive laws they imposed on their operations in 2013 and 2014. The seed firms won their case in federal court, arguing that the regulation of agricultural crops and pesticides should be left up to state and federal authorities.
The counties along with environmental groups and opponents of genetically modified crops appealed the cases to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The appeals court heard arguments in June but has yet to issue a decision.
Source: http://hawaiitribune-herald.com/news/state/swiss-seed-giant-sell-hawaii-operations
Monday, August 22, 2016
CA CHILDHOOD LEUKEMIA STUDY ON #GLYPHOSATE
Analysis of glyphosate in residential dust samples and risk of childhood leukemia in the California Childhood Leukemia Study
Solicitation Number: N02RC62644-24
Agency: Department of Health and Human Services
Office: National Institutes of Health
Location: National Cancer Institute, Office of Acquisitions
Office: National Institutes of Health
Location: National Cancer Institute, Office of Acquisitions
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EPA ADMITS #GLYPHOSATE #ROUNDUP USE IS OUT OF CONTROL
Press Release:
Widespread Misuse of Roundup
For
Immediate Release: April 19, 2016
Contact:
Blair Fitzgibbon, 202-503-6141
EPA
Admits Widespread Misuse of Roundup Herbicide Must Stop
Confirms
that Label Says People & Pets Must Be Kept Away Until Spray is Dried
Groups
Demand Immediate National Street Closures & Barriers for Safety
Washington,
DC - The EPA’s recent review of the labeling of the herbicide Roundup has major
implications nationwide. Announced by Mom Across America activist Anne Temple
at the January Monsanto shareholder meeting as a point of concern, the
widespread misuse of glyphosate based herbicides is practiced in nearly every
town of America. On December 29th, 2015, the federal EPA Office of Pesticides Program
in Washington DC confirmed that they expect all applicators of Roundup, which
contains glyphosate, and any other herbicides to adhere to labels which
requires them to take all necessary measures to "keep people and pets away
until the solution dries." Since then, reports of spring spraying and misuse
have been cited across the country. Moms Across America and Hawai’i Opposition
to Pesticide Exposure (HOPE) are asking county Ag Commissioners to discontinue
the use of glyphosate based herbicides, but until those steps are taken, they
are demanding immediate street closures & caution tape barriers in public
areas that have been sprayed with Roundup.
This
landmark determination means that city road workers, school maintenance,
homeowner associations, university landscapers and individual homeowners, need
to comply with the label directions or risk fines and/or lawsuits. To comply
with the law accurately they need to barricade off areas sprayed with these
chemicals until they dry, which could be 45 minutes to 4-6 hours, according to
professional pesticide applicators and the EPA, depending on weather conditions
such as humidity and rain. Signs are not sufficient for pets, children and
people who do not read English. States like Hawaii have fines and criminal
penalties which apply to anybody who knowingly violates Section 191A-41 of the
Hawaii Pesticides Law. Nationally and internationally, citizens and regulators
should now be looking to enforce compliance with product directions.
Brad
Edwards, with the group Hawai’i Opposition to Pesticide Exposure (HOPE),
expressed cautious optimism in regards to the recent EPA determination.
"With the large amount of Roundup/Glyphosate used for roadside spraying
across all of our islands, this is amazing news! For years, residents in Hawaii
have been begging the Hawaii Department of Agriculture to properly regulate the
widespread misuse of glyphosate, but so far the Department has refused to take
action against both government and private applicators. With this recent EPA
ruling, the State of Hawaii will finally be forced to step in and protect
members of our community from repeated exposure to this harmful chemical.”
"The
fact is that cities simply cannot afford the risk of using Roundup any longer,”
said Zen Honeycutt, Director of Moms Across America. “We have found glyphosate
in our tap water, children’s urine, breast milk and others have found it in
cereal, cotton products, beer, and wine which comes from the excessive use of
Roundup on our food crops and in public areas. Internationally, the spraying of
this herbicide, which has been deemed a probable carcinogen, is inhaled by
people driving or walking by, and gets on the feet of pets and shoes or ankles
of people walking through these areas. Chemical residues from shoes get on
carpets and can then poison babies who crawl on the floor. Glyphosate has been
linked to birth defects, neurotoxicity, non Hodgkin's Lymphoma etc, and mothers
call for immediate action to protect our communities. We expect our officials
to protect the health of our pets, citizens, city workers and our cities from
harm and from lawsuits.”
We call
for citizens around the world to report, file complaints with the County Ag
Commissioner and file lawsuits as necessary to require public space compliance
with herbicide application instructions. We also call upon city councils,
schools, churches, community centers, universities and homeowners to
discontinue the use of Roundup/glyphosate and toxic chemical sprays altogether
and use organic, steam or mowing alternatives instead. Until these steps are
taken we insist that the law and directions of the label, confirmed by the EPA,
are complied with and caution tape barriers are placed around all areas sprayed
with glyphosate based herbicides.
###
Moms
Across America is a National Coalition of Unstoppable Moms raising awareness
about GMOs and toxins in our food and environment. Their motto is
"Empowered Moms, Healthy Kids."
Hawai’i
Opposition to Pesticide Exposure (HOPE) is a community group focused on
regulatory, legislative and legal pathways to fix the broken system and protect
the health of the residents of Hawai’i.
Source: https://www.facebook.com/notes/moms-across-america/press-release-widespread-misuse-of-roundup/586668318166376
Source: https://www.facebook.com/notes/moms-across-america/press-release-widespread-misuse-of-roundup/586668318166376
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