Tell the Senate committee not to threaten quality organic and local food production Act now! Contact your senator before November 18. Our food safety system is broken. Industrialized food production gives rise to serious food safety problems, and our government's ability to regulate corporate agribusiness must be strengthened -- without harming small-scale and organic family farmers. Bills in Congress propose to give more authority to the Food and Drug Administration to regulate for food safety, inspect food processing facilities, and order mandatory recalls. The House passed its own food safety bill in July. The Senate's bill is in committee and scheduled for a mark-up (committee vote) this coming Wednesday, November 18.

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A National Leafy Greens Marketing Agreement could harm family-scale farmers—disadvantaging some of the safest local and organic growers in the nation The USDA has announced a series of hearing sessions in September and October across the country to allow members of the public—especially fresh vegetable growers and handlers—to comment on a proposed agreement that would authorize the development and implementation of production and handling regulations for a long list of fresh vegetables, primarily leafy greens. The proposed marketing agreement would allow corporate leafy green handlers to attach a USDA-backed "food safety seal" to lettuce, spinach, cabbage and other vegetables while prohibiting organic and local farmers at farmers markets, CSAs and roadside stands, and those selling directly to retailers, from using the same seal. This corporate-backed marketing ploy may lead many consumers to assume that vegetables from industrial-scale monoculture farms in, primarily, California are safer than the leafy greens at local farmers markets. As if this weren’t bad enough,the industry proponents that are pushing this initiative have not been able to show that any set of standards would actually prevent food borne illness.

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USDA Schedules Public Hearings to Obtain Citizens' Concerns and Suggestions The "Leafy Green Marketing Agreement," which requires producers to follow a set of rules (metrics) in the name of food safety, has already shown to be injurious for the environment, biodiversity, and organic growers in California. The USDA is now considering a similar "Leafy Green Marketing Agreement" that would extend beyond California and Arizona to cover the entire United States—let's help make this rule work for growers of all sizes! The USDA has scheduled a series of hearing sessions, around the country, inviting you to this perfect opportunity to share your concerns and suggestions. Click here to view the USDA announcement in the Federal Register.

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Infant Formula Warning Labels Needed "How traumatic for my child to have to experience a time that should be of comfort and closeness to me, to be so disturbing and painful," a mother wrote to the FDA. Her 4-month old infant daughter experienced severe gastrointestinal distress and stomach cramping from infant formula supplemented with DHA and ARA oils. This mother learned that DHA/ARA may cause side effects, and her baby's symptoms disappeared as soon as she switched to a non-DHA/ARA-supplemented formula. Another mother had a similar experience with her 3-month old infant son. When her son's diarrhea disappeared as soon as she switched to formula without DHA and ARA, she wrote to the FDA: "Today was the first day in three months that he actually had a firm stool with no sign of diarrhea." My baby is not an experiment. Mead Johnson should be ashamed of itself for allowing this to happen and the FDA should take responsibility for our health and the health of our children." Help us put an end to this unnecessary suffering and write to the FDA Commissioner today.

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"Raw" Almonds Must Soon be Steam-Heated or Treated with Toxic Chemical CORNUCOPIA, WI: Small-scale farmers, retailers, and consumers are outraged over a new federal regulation that will require all almonds grown in California to be sterilized with various "pasteurization" techniques. The rule, which the USDA quietly developed in response to outbreaks of Salmonella in 2001 and 2004, traced to raw almonds, mandates that all almonds undergo a sterilization process that includes chemical and/or high-temperature treatments. Although the final rule was just published in the Federal Register, The Cornucopia Institute, a Wisconsin-based farm policy research group, is asking the USDA to reopen the proceeding for public comment. Cornucopia contends that the rule was never effectively announced to the public, and that the reasoning behind both the necessity and safety of the sterilization processes should be questioned before the rule goes into effect this September. Click here to read a comprehensive fact sheet on the almond issue. And a sample letter for concerned individuals to send to the USDA has also been prepared by The Cornucopia Institute.

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