Protect Babies’ and Children’s Health

March 21, 2011

In conventional foods, the government allows the use of toxic pesticides, genetically engineered crops, and novel synthetic additives that have not been tested for safety. As organic consumers, we say: “No thanks, we’d rather not be part of this huge uncontrolled experiment!”

Organic foods offer an alternative, but some pro-corporate members of the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB), the panel set up by Congress to advise the Secretary of Agriculture on organic standards, would like to open the door to all synthetic additives to be added freely to organic foods—as long as they have, theoretically, nutritional value.

Any “nutrient” synthetic additive that comes on the market would become fair game for organics, even those that have never before been part of the human food system, chemically extracted with toxic solvents, grown in genetically engineered feedstock, and otherwise produced in ways that would shock any organic consumer. Read Full Article »

Posted in Completed Action Alerts

EWG Action Fund

The budget legislation passed by House Republicans in the wee hours of February 19 (no Democrats voted for it) would slash $747 million — about 10 percent — from the 2011 budget for the Special Supplemental Feeding Program for Women, Infants and Children. It’s commonly known as “WIC.”

Created in 1974, WIC provides very modest but crucial food assistance to low-income moms and little kids who are at “nutrition risk.” To qualify, recipients must be poor — very poor. Some 68 percent of WIC beneficiaries live at, or below, the poverty line. That’s about $22,000 for a family of four.

Cutting funding to WIC during the worst economy in 80 years is an unacceptably lopsided and wrong-headed approach to food and agriculture policy. The House Republicans’ budget inflicts serious damage to a food program for poor kids and pregnant women, but it cut not one penny from the farm subsidies that go to big agribusinesses and wealthy landowners — at a time when they are enjoying record-high crop prices and incomes. By cutting just a fraction of these subsidies we could have held WIC harmless. Read Full Article »

Posted in Completed Action Alerts

USDA Poised to Approve Genetically Engineered Alfalfa

On December 16, the USDA released its Final Environmental Impact Statement on Monsanto’s genetically engineered Round-up Ready Alfalfa. Alfalfa is the fourth most widely grown crop in the U.S. and a fundamental source of livestock forage for dairy and beef farmers.

Read Full Article »

Posted in Completed Action Alerts

Agribusiness Shows Its True Colors!

Even though an agreement was reached on the Tester-Hagan amendment last week, by the leadership in the Senate, this issue in the food safety bill is still not over!

The Tester-Hagan amendment would exempt smaller, organic and local growers from expensive regulatory burdens. Read Full Article »

Posted in Completed Action Alerts, Cornucopia News

Call your Senators MONDAY or TUESDAY— Urge their support for the Tester Amendment
The Cornucopia Institute

It now appears that the Food Safety Modernization Act (S. 510) will be voted on in the Senate during the “lame-duck” session as early as Wednesday, Nov. 17.

This bill, as we have noted before, would impose extremely burdensome and unnecessary requirements on the thousands of small farmers and food processors who are producing safe, nutrient-dense foods for their local communities — in fact, it may force some of these producers out of business.

A key amendment sponsored by Senator Jon Tester (D-MT) would exempt small farmers who direct market more than 50% of their products. Read Full Article »

Posted in Completed Action Alerts