Bills 875 and 425

[Guest guest]

Hi Everyone,

 

Someone from the San Francisco Raw list sent this out (I think they wrote it

after reading a few articles - they didn't give their name so I am not able to

give them the proper due).  I've posted to San Diego groups, but I guess I

should send it everywhere.  A friend of mine commented that the Senator who

introduced the bill is married to a guy that works for Monsanto and stands to

make a lot of money on this deal.  I haven't had time to verify this yet.  

 

This is pretty important information.  The call to action is to contact your

Representatives to tell them how you feel about this bill.  Find out who your

representatives are here:  https://writerep.house.gov/writerep/welcome.shtml 

 

(http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7943560.stm) 

 

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OBAMA WARNS OF US FOOD 'HAZARD

 

President Barack Obama has said the US food safety system is a " public health

hazard " and in need of an overhaul.

 

He sounded the warning during his weekly radio and video address, as he

appointed a new head of the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

 

New York Health Commissioner Margaret Hamburg has been named for the post.

 

Mr Obama cited a string of recent food safety scandals including a salmonella

outbreak in peanut products this year that has been linked to nine deaths.

 

The president said recent underfunding and understaffing at the FDA had left the

agency unable to conduct annual inspections of more than a fraction of America's

150,000 food processing premises.

 

" That is a hazard to public health. It is unacceptable. And it will change under

the leadership of Dr Margaret Hamburg, " Mr Obama pledged. The president also

announced he was creating a working group to co-ordinate food safety laws

throughout government and advise him on how to update the legislation, which he

said had not been touched since it was drafted a century ago. The president

noted contaminated food outbreaks had more than tripled to nearly 350 a year

since the early 1990s.

 

The appointment of 53-year-old Dr Hamburg, a bioterrorism expert who was an

assistant health secretary under President Bill Clinton, must be approved by the

Senate. Mr Obama also named Baltimore Health Commissioner Joshua Sharfstein as

her deputy.

 

This part is from an article written by Henry Lamb:

 

In the guise of ensuring " FOOD SAFETY " , President Obama is pushing through a law

that will make the only " Federally-sanction ed " as 'safe' food, or seeds, those

supplied by large commercial agricultural outfits like Monsanto.. Nowhere in the

text of the law are any exceptions made for small backyard vegetable gardens or

small farms. Under the provisions of this law, as written, you could not,

legally, buy heirloom seed and then harvest and re-use your own seed; you could

only legally purchase " government - approved " seed. You could not under this

law, raise your own vegetables and fruits and then sell -- or even give--them to

your neighbor. You would no longer be able to take your kids down to the local

" pick-your-own " blueberry or strawberry farms, or buy from the roadside backyard

grower of garden vegetables, or even grow your own vegetable plants, fruit

trees, or nut trees, for your own consumption. Under this new law, any of these

acts would be

illegal without first having obtained " government approval " that your product

is " safe " --but, the legal red tape and paperwork and inspections required, to

obtain this " approval " , would make the expense so great that only the largest

agricultural monopolies would be able to meet the costs.

 

 

PLEASE GET ACQUAINTED WITH HR 875 (THE FOOD SAFETY MODERNIZATION ACT OF 2009),

which is currently under consideration by Congress. The proposed bill is in

response to the many recent episodes of contaminated food problems (i.e.

salmonella and peanuts). Like many laws, it is well intended, but will have

disastrous outcomes:

 

http://www.govtrack .us/congress/ bill.xpd? bill=h111- 875 –House bill

 

http://www.govtrack .us/congress/ bill.xpd? bill=s111- 425 – Senate bill

 

House sponsor is Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) and Senate sponsor is Sherrod Brown (D-OH).

 

• Please contact your representative to the House and your two senators that

you want this bill killed now!