Fwd: [Biodemocracy]Organic Bytes #16

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[biodemocracy]Organic Bytes #16

 

 

 

ORGANIC BYTES ~~~ Organic news tidbits with an edge!

 

Issue 16: June 27, 2003

 

By Organic Consumers Association

 

IN THIS ISSUE:

PROTEST IN SACRAMENTO

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

FIXIN' FOR SUGAR

McDONALD'S RUNNING SCARED ON ANTIBIOTICS ISSUE

WHACKY GEFOOD

CONGRESS FINALLY DOES SOMETHING ORGANIC

BUSH CRACKS BAD JOKE

A WEIRD FOOD STORY, JUST FOR THE FUN OF IT

NEW STUDY: SEWER SLUDGE STINKS

EUROPE IS SO COOL

COMING CLEAN UPDATE

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FAMILY FARMERS & ORGANIC CONSUMERS PROTEST IN SACRAMENTO

 

Standing up to what can only be described as a army of riot police, highway

patrol, and county sheriffs, representatives of US family farm groups

symbolically dumped bushels of genetically engineered corn at last week's

World Conference on Agricultural Science and Technology in Sacramento, CA .

Joined by approximately 3,000 spirited consumer, environmental, and Fair

Trade activists, members of the National Family Farm Coalition marched and

participated in rallies and teach-ins in Sacramento, denouncing genetically

engineered crops and USDA policies that promote the corporate takeover of

our food supply. According to California dairy farmer Walter Kessler,

" Family farmers have suffered significant economic losses from the use of GE

products, but the truth about GE crops and their impacts on family farmers

is being buried in the slick multi-million dollar public relations campaign

being waged by the biotechnology industry and promoted by the USDA. " The

Organic Consumers Association was in the thick of the action at Sacramento,

staging a colorful protest and press conference outside a Safeway

supermarket on June 24, featuring costumed performers including Dr.

Monsanto, Captain Organic, and George Bush. Before a bank of TV cameras and

news photographers, under the watchful eyes of a dozen police patrol cars,

the OCA demonstrated, with both science and satire, that neither humans nor

canines will willingly consume Frankenfoods. The Sacramento teach-ins and

protests were a warm up for the September WTO meetings in Cancun Mexico,

where 150,000 people are expected to rally against worldwide GMO

contamination and corporate-powered globalization. Attend the WTO teach-ins

and protests in Cancun on an escorted delegation with Ronnie Cummins and the

OCA:

http://www.organicconsumers.org/corp/0624_wto.cfm

 

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QUOTE OF THE WEEK

 

" Agricultural biotechnology in its present form is a vast scientific and

commercial error. The people who have invested their money, time and

reputations in it cannot afford to admit this. Unfortunately, they will not

be the ones that end up paying the heaviest price for their incompetence,

greed and hubris. As usual, the bill will be met by those least able to

afford it, and the currency in which it will be denominated will not be

dollars or euros alone, but the health and livelihoods of human beings and

the environment in which we live. " " Planting Lies " by Steve McGiffen, an

environmental adviser to members of the European Parliament

http://www.spectrezine.org/environment/GMO2.htm

 

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FIXIN' FOR SUGAR

 

New York City school officials are getting rid of junk food machines and

many cafeteria menu items, in response to an obesity epidemic among youth.

In addition, sugar, fat and salt will be trimmed from the city's 800,000

daily lunches. A U.S. Center for Disease Control study showed that 20

percent of elementary kids are unhealthily overweight. In poor

neighborhoods, 15 percent of the total population has diabetes, which can be

caused by poor diet.

http://www.organicconsumers.org/Toxic/062603_junk_food.cfm

 

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McDONALD'S RUNNING SCARED ON ANTIBIOTICS ISSUE

 

The McDonald's chain, responding to pressure from public interest groups

such as the Union of Concerned Scientists, announced last week that they

will begin to phase-out the purchase of meat products laced with

growth-promoting antibiotics (a standard practice on non-organic farms). The

announcement is in response to warnings of how the routine feeding of

antibiotics to livestock is leading to antibiotic resistance in humans,

whereby meat eaters and dairy consumers are developing resistance to

important antibiotics such as penicillin and tetracycline. According to the

USDA, McDonald's move could lead to a significant shift in livestock

management practices, given that McDonald's is one of the largest

purchasers of beef, chicken and pork in the U.S. Seventy percent of all

antibiotics in America are used in animal feeds, but of course this practice

is prohibited on organic farms.

http://www.organicconsumers.org/foodsafety/antibiotics062303.cfm

 

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WHACKY GENETICALLY ENGINEERED FOOD

 

Anthony Trewavas and his colleagues at Cambridge University have mixed the

genes of a jellyfish and potato, creating a new potato that they say can

help conserve water. Apparently a farmer can hold a black light up to the

plant, and if it glows, it means it needs water.

http://www.organicconsumers.org/ge/jellyfish_potato.cfm

 

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CONGRESS FINALLY DOES SOMETHING ORGANIC

 

Last week, a bipartisan (yes, that means both Republicans and Democrats)

legislative gathering proved that Congress can occasionally do something

right, in this case forming a new U.S. Congressional Organic Agriculture

Caucus. " The formation of this Caucus is a major step towards getting

organic farmers their fair share of federal agricultural resources, " said

Bob Scowcroft, Executive Director of the Organic Farming Research Foundation

.. " Organic farmers and their supporters should call their representatives

and ask them to join the Caucus. When it comes to Capitol Hill, there is

strength in numbers. "

Get Involved: http://www.organicconsumers.org/organic/organic_caucus.cfm

 

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BUSH CRACKS BAD JOKE

 

As you know, last month, the Bush Administration filed a complaint against

the EU, based on the fact that he doesn't think it's fair that European

consumers don't want to eat genetically engineered foods. This has caused

tremendous friction between European leaders and the U.S. To make matters

worse, Bush cracked a sarcastic joke while visiting European leaders this

week. According to ABC News, while leaders were leaving the conference hall

for a break, Bush added insult to injury by sneering " Let's go eat some

genetically modified food for lunch! " More info: ABC News Online 6/26/2003

 

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A WEIRD FOOD STORY, JUST FOR THE FUN OF IT

 

In the process of transporting honeybees from Iowa to Wisconsin, a truck

driver lost control of his vehicle and rolled his trailer. The driver was

not hurt, but over 25 million honeybees escaped into the area, forcing

residents to strongly consider adjusting the amount of time they plan on

spending outdoors this summer. Source: KMBC- TV9 6/12/2003

 

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NEW STUDY: SEWER SLUDGE STINKS

 

According to the New York Times, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

has finally decided to research the toxicity issues associated with the

common practice of using sewer sludge as fertilizer on conventional farms.

The decision was sparked by a recent catastrophe on a family farm in

Georgia, where hundreds of cows died from eating hay that was fertilized by

sewer sludge. Andy McElmurray, the owner of the farm said the cows wasted

away, due to toxic pollutants within the sludge that ultimately ended up in

the plants. " They wouldn't respond to antibiotics. They wouldn't respond to

IV fluids. They wouldn't respond to anything. They just ended up dying. " he

said. EPA scientists, including Dr. David Lewis, who won the agency's top

science award in 2000, are gravely concerned about sewer sludge

contaminating the nation's food supply. " To me, of all the environmental

issues, this is Mount Everest, " said Dr. Lewis. Unfortunately, the otherwise

excellent Times story incorrectly stated that sewage sludge was used by

organic farmers. Although the USDA tried to degrade organic standards in

1998, by allowing sewage sludge to be used on organic farms, a mass consumer

backlash forced the USDA to back off on this issue.

Read all about it: http://www.organicconsumers.org/Toxic/062603_sludge.cfm

 

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EUROPE IS SO COOL

 

Switzerland may be the first nation in the world to ban genetically modified

crops and foods by popular vote. A petition with well over 100,000

signatures was recently submitted to the Swiss government, thereby mandating

that the issue be placed on the general election ballots. Although Syngenta,

a Swiss based biotech corporation has promised to sway the vote in its

favor, with a heavily financed pro-GMO campaign, polls show that over 70% of

Swiss citizens refuse to eat genetically engineered foods.

http://www.organicconsumers.org/ge/swiss_moratorium.cfm

 

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ORGANIC CONSUMERS FORCING BODY CARE COMPANIES TO COME CLEAN

 

The OCA recently launched a massive media and advertising campaign to

educate consumers about an organic labeling scam a few major bodycare

product companies have been messing around with. Companies like Avalon, Kiss

My Face, Jason's, and Nature's Gate are advertising their bodycare products

to be at least 70% organic, when the vast majority of " organic " ingredients

are nothing more than tap water, collected from recaptured steam in diluted

floral waters and hydrosols. In regards to this issue, the OCA will be

submitting reports to the National Organic Standards Board in the coming

weeks. Look for OCA's " Sham-Poo " ads in the current issues of magazines such

as Mother Jones, Utne Reader, E Magazine, Mothering, and the Coop Grocer.

Stay Tuned:

http://www.organicconsumers.org/bodycare/oca_organic_bodycare.cfm

 

 

 

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FOR MANY MORE FOOD ISSUE DAILY HEADLINES:

http://www.organicconsumers.org/log.html

 

ORGANIC BYTES is a publication of:

 

ORGANIC CONSUMERS ASSOCIATION

 

6101 Cliff Estate Road Little Marais, MN

 

55614 Phone: (218) 226-4164, Fax: (218) 353-7652

 

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NOTE TO CO-OP AND NATURAL FOOD STORE SUBSCRIBERS: Organic Bytes is a great

tool for keeping you staff and customers up to date on the latest issues.

Feel free to forward this email to your staff and print for posting on

bulletin boards and staff break tables. You are also welcome to use this

material for your newsletters. There's a super pretty print-friendly PDF

version of this available for free download at

http://www.organicconsumers.org/organicbytes.htm

 

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