Organic Standards in Jeopardy

[Guest guest]

With the distraction of the next hurricane disaster, this may have been

overlooked. FYI - Anna

 

 

> Now, large corporations such as Kraft, Wal-Mart, & Dean Foods--aided

> and

> abetted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) are moving to

> lower

> organic standards by allowing a Bush appointee to create a list of

> synthetic

> ingredients that would be allowed and approved for organic production.

> Even

> worse these proposed regulatory changes will reduce future public

> discussion

> and input and take away the National Organic Standards Board's (NOSB)

> traditional lead jurisdiction in setting standards. What this means, in

> blunt terms. is that USDA bureaucrats and industry lobbyists, not

> consumers,

> will now have more control over what can go into organic foods and

> products.

>

> TODAY - Tuesday, Sept. 20, acting in haste and near-total secrecy, the

> U.S.

> Senate will vote on a " rider " to the 2006 Agriculture Appropriations

> Bill

> that will reduce control over organic standards from the National

> Standards

> Board and put this control in the hands of federal bureaucrats in the

> USDA

> (remember the USDA proposal in 1997-98 that said that genetic

> engineering,

> toxic sludge, and food irradiation would be OK on organic farms, or

> USDA

> suggestions in 2004 that heretofore banned pesticides, hormones,

> tainted

> feeds, and animal drugs would be OK?).

>

> For the past week in Washington, OCA has been urging members of the

> Senate

> not to reopen and subvert the federal statute that governs U.S. Organic

> standards (the Organic Food Production Act - OFPA), but rather to let

> the

> organic community and the National Organic Standards resolve our

> differences

> over issues like synthetics and animal feed internally, and then

> proceed to

> an open public comment period. Unfortunately most Senators seem to be

> listening to industry lobbyists more closely than to us. WE NEED TO

> RAISE

> OUR VOICES NOW.

>

> In the past, grassroots mobilization and mass pressure by organic

> consumers

> have been able to stop the USDA and Congress from degrading organic

> standards. This time Washington insiders tell us that the " fix is is

> already

> in. " So we must take decisive action now. We need you to call your U.S.

> Senators today. We need you to sign the following petition and send it

> to

> everyone you know. We also desperately need funds to head off this

> attack in

> the weeks and months to come. Thank you for your support. Together we

> will

> take back citizen control over organic standards and preserve organic

> integrity.

>

> Take action here:

> http://www.demaction.org/dia/organizations/oca/campaign.jsp?

> campaign_KEY=124

> 2

>

> Take action now at

> http://www.democracyinaction.org/oca/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=1242