OT (1) Fw: [biotech_activists] ProdiGene CEO is an advisor to USAID!
- Forwarded message -- Date: Mon, 18 Nov 2002 15:35:21 -0600 Subject: [biotech_activists] ProdiGene CEO is an advisor to USAID! Biotech Activists ([EMAIL PROTECTED])Posted: 11/18/2002 By [EMAIL PROTECTED] Date: Mon, 18 Nov 2002 11:58:40 -0500 From: ISE Biotechnology Project [EMAIL PROTECTED] AgProfile interview with Anthony G. Laos Anthony G. Laos, president and chief executive of ProdiGene, Inc. was appointed by President George W. Bush to serve as a member of the Board for International Food and Agriculture Development (BIFAD). Mr. Laos will serve a four-year term, expiring on July 28, 2005. BIFAD, which consists of seven members all appointed by the President, provides advice to the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) on international food issues such as agriculture and food security. BIFAD also assists and advises the U.S. Government Inter-Agency Working Group on Food Security in carrying out commitments made in the U.S. Country Paper for the November 1996 World Food Summit and on the Plan of Action agreed to at the summit. I am honored to be appointed to this position by President Bush, Laos says. I welcome the opportunity to work with my fellow colleagues in promoting USAID policy and increasing world food production. ProdiGene, headquartered in College Station, TX, is a private biotechnology company that is developing and manufacturing industrial and pharmaceutical proteins from a transgenic plant system. --- | Check out the neRAGE biotechnology news wire at | |http://www.neRAGE.org| --- | Institute for Social Ecology, Biotechnology Project | | Northeast Resistance Against Genetic Engineering| | 1118 Maple Hill Road| | Plainfield, VT 05667| | (802) 454-7138 | --- |[EMAIL PROTECTED] | www.neRAGE.org | --- How to Use this Mailing List You received this e-mail as a result of your registration on the biotech_activists mailing list. To unsubscribe, please send an email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] In the body of the message type: unsubscribe biotech_activists For a list of other commands and list options, please send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] In the body of the message type: help Please direct content questions about this list to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Please direct technical questions about this service to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
OT (2) Fw: [biotech_activists] Monbiot: THE COVERT BIOTECH WAR
- Forwarded message -- Date: Tue, 19 Nov 2002 00:29:33 -0600 Subject: [biotech_activists] Monbiot: THE COVERT BIOTECH WAR Biotech Activists ([EMAIL PROTECTED])Posted: 11/19/2002 By [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.guardian.co.uk/Columnists/Column/0,5673,843103,00.html The Guardian (London) Tuesday November 19, 2002 by GEORGE MONBIOT The battle to put a corporate GM padlock on our foodchain is being fought on the net The president of Zambia is wrong. Genetically modified food is not, as far as we know, poison. While adequate safety tests have still to be conducted, there is as yet no compelling evidence that it is any worse for human health than conventional food. Given the choice with which the people of Zambia are now faced - starvation and eating GM - I would eat GM. The real problem with engineered crops, as this column has been pointing out for several years, is that they permit the big biotech companies to place a padlock on the food chain. By patenting the genes and all the technologies associated with them, the corporations are manoeuvring themselves into a position from which they can exercise complete control over what we eat. This has devastating implications for food security in poorer countries. This is the reason why these crops have been resisted so keenly by campaigners. The biotech companies have been experimenting with new means of overcoming their resistance. Zambia, Zimbabwe and Malawi, all of which are suffering from the current famine, have been told by the US international development agency, USAID, that there is no option but to make use of GM crops from the United States. This is simply untrue. Between now and March, the region will need up to 2m tonnes of emergency food aid in the form of grain. The UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation says that there are 1.16m tonnes of exportable maize in Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and South Africa. Europe, Brazil, India and China have surpluses and stockpiles running into many tens of millions of tonnes. Even in the US, more than 50% of the harvest has been kept GM-free. All the starving people in southern Africa, Ethiopia and the world's other hungry regions could be fed without the use of a single genetically modified grain. But the US is unique among major donors in that it gives its aid in kind, rather than in cash. The others pay the world food programme, which then buys supplies as locally as possible. This is cheaper and better for local economies. USAID, by contrast, insists on sending, where possible, only its own grain. As its website boasts, the principal beneficiary of America's foreign assistance programs has always been the United States. Close to 80% of the USAID contracts and grants go directly to American firms. Foreign assistance programs have helped create major markets for agricultural goods, created new markets for American industrial exports and meant hundreds of thousands of jobs for Americans. America's food aid programme provides a massive hidden subsidy to its farmers. But, as a recent report by Greenpeace shows, they are not the only beneficiaries. One of USAID's stated objectives is to integrate GM into local food systems. Earlier this year, it launched a $100m programme for bringing biotechnology to developing countries. USAID's training and awareness raising programmes will, its website reveals, provide companies such as Syngenta, Pioneer Hi-Bred and Monsanto with opportunities for technology transfer into the poor world. Monsanto, in turn, provides financial support for USAID. The famine will permit USAID to accelerate this strategy. It knows that some of the grain it exports to southern Africa will be planted by farmers for next year's harvest. Once contamination is widespread, the governments of those nations will no longer be able to sustain a ban on the technology. All that stands in the way of these plans is the resistance of local people and the protests of environment groups. For the past few years, Monsanto has been working on that. Six months ago, this column revealed that a fake citizen called Mary Murphy had been bombarding internet listservers with messages denouncing the scientists and environmentalists who were critical of GM crops. The computer from which some of these messages were sent belongs to a public relations company called Bivings, which works for Monsanto. The boss of Bivings wrote to the Guardian, fiercely denying that his company had been running covert campaigns. His head of online PR, however, admitted to the BBC's Newsnight that one of the messages came from someone working for Bivings or clients using our services. But Bivings denies any knowledge of the use of its computer for such a campaign. This admission prompted the researcher Jonathan Matthews, who first uncovered the story, to take another look at some of the emails which had attracted his attention. He
Re: Pleomorphism/Orthopathy
James Hedley wrote: I like your quote that the The Universe is infinite, therefore there are infinite possibilities, The possibilities are only in what we are capable of thinking, and then believing what we think. Do you think that it is possible that we are already living in this plane of life bearing worlds which you have hypothesised.. Maybe it is possible that we may be already highly evolved in the scheme of things. With our abilities to think and rationalise it is just possible that any problem that we create we are capable of solving. Each generation is charged with the task of repairing the problems which have been created by the previous generations. The real problems are not caused by malevolent people, but by common ordinary people committed to an ideal, whose actions sometimes turn out to be irrational after the event. At the risk of boring people by speaking about or quoting from a novel which has not been published and may never be, 'Earth's Companions' centres around a group of Earth people (the Chosen) of our era (the end and beginning of the 2nd and 3rd Millenniums) who have been traumatised in a variety of ways by life and who are brought together by unusual means to find a cure for one of their number who believes himself to be unable to procreate when in fact he is physically capable of so doing. This cure is needed because Manny and his wife Sylvia are the end results of a one thousand year natural selection breeding program which combines in them all the genetic qualities the immortal behind the plan thought would be needed to overcome the Monstrous Danger he believed the Earth would face in our time. Well, it IS a fantasy! Along the way, the Timeless One has been helped by scads of humans and other beings, substantial and insubstantial, from several planes of existence and planetary systems including the Hall of Clouds and the Inter-Galactic Federation. Helped 'within guidelines', that is, set down and monitored by the One Above and his/her Chief Executive. The Chosen's Universe is rather dissimilar to our own (although in their own plane the Earth is identical barring a few fictitious places additional to the usual). For example, there is a shattered world (Thera) on a separate plane and a second species of the human race on yet another world (Brrron) in a third plane. The trick here is that the ancestors of the Brrronians originally occupied Thera and brought about its destruction. A handful of survivors somehow managed to find their way to Brrron; their descendants though technologically brilliant have zero empathetic qualities. Other than some members of the current generation who have been Changed (but you'd have to read the book to find out how :) ) It should be borne in mind that I wrote most of this novel seven years ago after I had been so traumatised by numerous pressures that during the course of one 24-hour period I lost my memory totally and began to recover it again. 'Recover' is not really the right word but I don't know what is. Over the next five months I did recover most of my memory (and since, I must say that) but not all, not by a long chalk, so now when I meet someone who remembers me but I don't remember them, I tell them very simply what happened. That is not a problem. Where I do run into difficulties is that I have memories and knowledge of people and events which I did not have before, which have no relation to what I did before. And skills. Like dowsing. Or even writing. Or having the courage to 'talk' to hundreds of people around the world, to say things that must appear outlandish to many; things which I believe must be said. Going back to the novel, I would agree with James that we are living in a plane of many life-bearing worlds, but not that we are as highly evolved as we might like to be. Some of us, yes, but not enough, not yet. We need 14% or 15% of the world population, I think. Just a moment. No, I'm wrong, it's 12%. That percentage of people operating in tune with the higher consciousness (interpret that how you please) would bring Earth up to the recognition point. We need that, to be there, because I don't think we can defeat the Monstrous Danger by ourselves from down here (and I think most would agree that there is indeed an MD). roger
Fw: [SANET-MG] Compost Tea and Organics
- Original Message - From: Frank Teuton [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: Sustainable Agriculture Network Discussion Group [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Monday, November 18, 2002 8:14 PM Subject: Re: [SANET-MG] Compost Tea and Organics Dear Dr Benbrook: I appreciate the tone of your post. The problem as I see it, is that a task force on compost issues, including compost tea, was brought together that did not include any of the advocates, advisors, or practitioners of compost tea making, specifically Dr Ingham and some of the firms she works with. I don't pretend to understand the politics of who is in and who is out in creating these groups, but I do know that when you exclude a group of stakeholders from a process such as this, then issue a finding which undermines their work directly, the result is not likely to be a satisfied and happy bunch of campers. Any future body formed about the issues of compost tea should certainly include Dr Ingham or someone who can represent a similar viewpoint. Furthermore, the group should at least attempt to perform a literature review, and conduct a sampling of the various commercially produced products, for both positive and negative aspects. It should not be difficult to access the underlying research such a group relies on for its recommendations. Every effort should be made to be open, to receive and respond to comments, and to clearly state assumptions, research needs, opinions of various task force members, and the basis of recommendations and conclusions. It should also attempt to put these things into clear and simple language so that farmers and other growers as well as consumers understand what is known, what is assumed, and what else needs to be done. Clearly, no one out there has a total, thoroughgoing understanding of all the details of microbial action in water, soil solution, phyllosphere, rhizosphere and solid state environments such as drier soils and composting and vermicomposting environments. Our best researchers, of which Elaine Ingham is certainly one, admit that we are barely scratching the surface in terms of knowing who all the actors are, and knowing exactly what each does. But, as Russel Bulluck used to like to close his posts: The soil population is so complex that it manifestly cannot be dealt with as a whole with any detail by any one person, and at the same time it plays so important a part in the soil economy that it must be studied. --Sir E. John Russell The Micro-organisms of the Soil, 1923 Indeed in one of his pithier posts on a closely related topic, Russ lays out the reality for us: Here's the good news and the bad news. . . The good news is that pathogenic strains of enteric bacteria (such as the dreaded E. coli O157:H7) produce toxins that require a large energy output, and as such, these organisms are not normally good competitors in the soil environment (being used to the gut of cows, the bugs in the soil no longer have a constant and rich nutrient supply or constant and pleasant 37 degrees C temp). The bad news is that some enteric bacteria will likely be found in soil! We don't live in a sterile environment, but luckily, most of the bacteria in soil (and our food for that matter) are not harmful. Let me say this. . . the food that we eat (be it vegetable, mineral or animal) has bacteria on it or in it. That's right, our food has bacteria in it. . . millions of bacteria. Our skin has bacteria on it, as well as fungi, mites, some nematodes (likely as not), and other bugs that literally make your skin crawl (does everyone feel a little itchy now?). Most bacteria and fungi are not that bad. If they were bad, we'd not be here! http://www.sare.org/htdocs/hypermail/html-home/43-html/0129.html I personally want organic food to be food grown in a living soil, with a full and active foodweb. That means, yes indeed, there will be millions of bacteria on it, of a large diversity, and fungi, and other stuff. That living food is what we all evolved on; it is what we have eaten for countless millennia. People who want or need sterile food should either not buy organic food (or conventional food, either, for that matter) or they should cook the heck out of everything. I think the big bugaboo on compost tea down at the NOSB is fear of 0157. I think every time 0157 is raised as an issue, it should be pointed out that the big breeders of this pathogen are the CAFOs, especially grainfed cattle feedlots. It is true that such operations are sufficiently widespread that 0157 could be on everyone's farm, and that suitable precautions should be taken; see for example: http://www.cog.ca/efgsummer2000.htm#ecoli But it is also true that if we really wanted to greatly reduce 0157 in the environment, we would stop the practice of grainfeeding ruminants. All the costs associated with this practice are now being borne by the larger society, including consumers, and
FW: DIABETICS FISH OIL; IRON OVERLOAD
Title: FW: DIABETICS FISH OIL; IRON OVERLOAD Be Careful in Using Fish Oil if You are Diabetic There is considerable evidence showing the protective effect of dietary omega-3 fatty acids in the prevention of heart disease, especially in high-risk populations. Fish oils, which are high in fatty acids, improve high cholesterol, triglyceride levels, blood vessel and platelet function and lower blood pressure. People with type 2 diabetes have an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, hypertension, high cholesterol, and insulin resistance. Therefore, an increased intake of omega-3 fatty acids may be of particular benefit for . However, some recent trials suggest that fish oil could actually worsen diabetic control. In one study, the use of purified EPA and DHA (fatty acids found in fish oil) by diabetic patients was evaluated. Participants took high doses (4 grams per day for a six-week period) of EPA, DHA or olive oil in addition to their regular diets. It was found that, compared with the olive oil, the EPA and DHA increased the blood sugar in diabetics. Interestingly, the insulin levels were not increased. The researchers speculate that the EPA causes the liver to break it down and actually increase its production of glucose in the process. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieveamp;db=PubMedamp;list_uids=12399272amp;dopt=Abstract , November 2002 Vol. 76, No. 5, 1007-1015 Dr. Mercola: My dad is 75 years old and has had type 2 diabetes for nearly 15 years. His diabetes has typically been well controlled with a low-carb diet and two hours of exercise a day. I recommended fish oil http://www.mercola.com/forms/carlsons.htm for him as it typically is beneficial for diabetes. Shortly after he started the fish oil, his blood sugar started rising uncontrollably, even up to 300. Of course, I thought he was cheating, but he hadn't gained any weight and was quite adamant that he was being faithful with his grain restriction. My dad is not as obsessive as I am, and he still has a few grains occasionally, despite having diabetes. However, when I read this study I realized instantly what had happened: The Reverse Effect. Omega-3 fish oil is terrific for most of us, but if we get too much it actually worsens our health. This is obviously what happened in my dad. The take-home lesson here is that if you are diabetic you will want to monitor your sugar levels very carefully when you use fish oil, and you will need to lower or stop the fish oil if your blood sugar rises. As an aside, I also checked my dad's ferritin level and was shocked to find that he had hemochromatosis. His level was 450, and he was seriously iron overloaded. It is likely that the high iron levels further impaired the beta cells in his pancreas, impairing his ability to even make insulin. Fortunately we have a substance called phytic acid that can effectively chelate out iron from the body without the need for therapeutic phlebotomies. -- End of Forwarded Message
Re: YOU CAN'T MAKE ME TALK ABOUT E-COLI...
Go Will Winter! Great passionate post! I wanted to tell you that some pagan's in fact foster Holistic views! The orgy (as I understand it) has been the military-pharmaceutical-industrial complex's party, not the pagans! Thanks for your post! Jane Sherry From: Will Winter [EMAIL PROTECTED] Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Date: Fri, 15 Nov 2002 11:43:34 -0600 To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: YOU CAN'T MAKE ME TALK ABOUT E-COLI... The germs are just bit-players cleaning up in the aftermath of a pagan orgy. This is about THE LOSS OF THE HOLISTIC VIEW.
Re: Thanks
Liz, Your course program sounds wonderful. What is name of it and where are you taking it? What all have you done? Best, Merla Liz Davis wrote: Hi all Have finally lifted my head from finals and presentations. How I went is still unsure, the soils paper was 3 hours and no easy task, especially the nutrition programs. I'd like to say thanks to all of you, this link has been a large part of my learning, and a wonderful connection through a year which has been mostly conventional methods. My BD units begin next year. Our last task of the year was to reflect on capability 7 'To have personal values, beliefs and ethics necessary for a sustainable and healthy planet'. There are 9 capabilities in total, set out by the uni. These capabilities must be met before an eco ag student can graduate. A great way to finish the year, and reflect along with witnessing the transformation over the years, as it was taped. Now to do some trial plots of various soils and also some mulches and attend some workshops, such as Stoneage Farming and radionics. How was it Tony, are you practising your dowsing? Thanks again LL Liz
Re: Help with burying horn
Christy, We did the BC too last week. Finally got some manure locally. We dug a hole in one of our French intensive broccoli beds that was high and put 10 fire bricks (bigger than regular bricks) in an oval only 3 levels high. We potentized the manure with local basalt and eggshells I ground up in my suribachi and two sets of preps, put it in the hole and covered with a piece of plywood, then covered the whole area deeply with quaking aspen leaves I raked up from the driveway. Hope all is O.K. It rained a bunch last night. We're having a warm spell. A friend, Joe Clark, is lending me 14 horns. I saved some manure for them (I think I have enough) and hope to pick them up today. I was feeling glad I had put the bentonite in the horn this morning since it rained so much last night. Wouldn't the horn just fill up with water? Is that a good thing? Best, Merla The Korrows wrote: I might suggest packing soil around the horn with in the clay tile, and if you think the bricks might get scooted around, you could tie some nylon screen over each end, as is sometimes done with stinging nettle. I know Hugh C. doesn't seal the manure horns with bentonite (I believe he does seal the silica horns up), neither do I or, neither does Jeff. I got my first stag bladder of the year yesterday. My neighbor Ron rode over on his four wheeler, pistol at his side, rifle in the holder, and a big buck tied to the front , he zoomed up and dangled a little bladder in front of me. So I am slowly gettting these guys trained. I am so happy your a re burrying a horn Merla!! Christy
Re: Help with burying horn
Christy, It really rained heavily all night last night and I was thinking that it was a good thing I sealed that horn with bentonite. Would it have filled up with water and would that have been all right? Last week, Green and I dug an oval hole in our tallest French intensive bed which is in one of the warmest parts of the garden and put 10 fire bricks (larger than regular bricks) three tiers high in it. We potentized some local manure with local basalt that my husband identified and I ground up 3 dozen eggshells in my suribachi and put in two sets of compost preps, stirring the valerian for 20 minutes. We didn't quite fill up the hole because I held out some manure to fill 14 horns that Joe Clarke is lending me. I'll pick them up today or tomorrow and get them in during this warm spell. We covered the whole area with quaking aspen leaves. What ever happened with your video idea? Best, Merla The Korrows wrote: I might suggest packing soil around the horn with in the clay tile, and if you think the bricks might get scooted around, you could tie some nylon screen over each end, as is sometimes done with stinging nettle. I know Hugh C. doesn't seal the manure horns with bentonite (I believe he does seal the silica horns up), neither do I or, neither does Jeff. I got my first stag bladder of the year yesterday. My neighbor Ron rode over on his four wheeler, pistol at his side, rifle in the holder, and a big buck tied to the front , he zoomed up and dangled a little bladder in front of me. So I am slowly gettting these guys trained. I am so happy your a re burrying a horn Merla!! Christy
was Thanks now Eco Ag
on 20/11/02 4:25 AM, Merla Barberie at [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Liz, Your course program sounds wonderful. What is name of it and where are you taking it? What all have you done? Best, Merla Hi Merla. The course is Ecological Agriculture, Orange Campus of University of Sydney. (3 hrs west of Sydney) A very small and intimate campus where lecturers know your name. In first year I have taken intorduction to Ecological Agriculture, which is a wonderful journey through agricultural history and thinking, everything from hunter gatherers to Des Cartes, Rachel Carson and Australia's stance on Ecological Sustainable Development opposed to the rest of the worlds stance of Environmental Sustainable Development. The Biological Environment, Plant Systems and Introduction to Management were all first semester and core units. The management unit far surpassed all expectations, a journey of the self, values, paradigms, working with others along with critical thinking, mind mapping and lots of other tools. A farm mentor was also a part of management and was great learning. Second semester consisted of one core unit - Soil Resource Management. Habitat Management which includes everything from vegetation classification, mammal and invertebrate trapping, conservation classification, contour habitat mapping. Financial Analysis planning fulfilled part of the business aspect, learnt how to do the basic accounting, DSE's along with gross margins and ratios of crop and livestock enterprises. (have cut back to 3 units a semester to better enable me to live closer to my beliefs) Other options are Environmental Law, People, Policy and the Environment, Geology Geomorphology, Marketing and many more. The majority of first year has a conventional slant, which was hard for me to swallow at first, but I soon let go and opened my thinking and heart and am now very happy I have a better understanding of what conventional farmers are up against. Second year begins end of Feb and will consist of Managing Yourself Others, Organic Ag, Soil Conservation Land Rehabilitation, Managing Change (Inquiry Tools), Applied Ecology, Whole Farm Management and Bio Dynamics. A 3 year degree, but many of us think we will take it to a 4 yr. The 9 capabilities are presented to an independent panel at the completion of the degree and must be met before graduating. Would be happy to copy these out if you are interested in the capabilities. To me it is an essential aspect as it means, learning is not only from the head, but also the hands and heart. A way of life. LL Liz
Re: Drought
Hi James It seems that now famous quote of mine about 75% needs to be qualified a bit. No need for that at all and hey I did say I thought you were better than 75%! You have attended one of my dowsing and radionics courses and have seen the range of knowledge that you are able to divineby just knowing how to let go of what seems to be the logical result And a very interesting and enjoyable experience it was too - however I did not feel any pressing need to throw my refractometer and pH meter in the creek on the way home either. All of these things are tools,dowsing and radionics included, and if we fixate on one of them to the exclusion of other useful things, then I think we are on a wrong road. You've just shown Roger dowsing and he is gonna fly with it - thats great -does'nt mean though that that is the only way - what about those that don't yet do it that well? - what about those S - T - R - A - N - G - E individuals like me that are quite happy and comfortable with dowsing (and I do OK with it too) and radionics, but still like to read the numbers on a conventional soil test, and measure things with instruments, OK I know - a whole bunch of people are gonna say thats using a crutch - he's not game to go the last few steps to freedom or whatever. I dont see it that way and being the stubborn sod that I am, probably never will. If you can correctly foretell the answers to 75% of the questions that derive from this short list you would be miles in front of your neighbours. What I said was 'when I start spending for a cash grain crop' - poor choice of words - but there had been some correspondence around foliar spraying and in that light - 75% is not gonna cut it - specially when using a refractometer will take that into high nineties. I just dont see why this has to be an either / or situation - to me there is plenty of room to combine the best of both ideas. The one thing that I cant dowse is a foolproof method to make it rain. I guess we will just have to disagree on this - I reckon if Hugh Lovel thinks he knows how to do this then we are mad if we dont at least hear what he's got to say - but again we dont have to fixate on one thing - we use the kites too - and we use JP's nutritional tactics to make better use of what rain we get However I dowse that if I put Muriel Morrison'.s radionic kites around the boundary to keep the energies in the chances of getting a dry year on our mountain is 30% and for Narrandera it is 20%. I will send you the design for these kites which I obtained from Gil Thanks I would be very pleased to try these - Cheers Lloyd Charles
Re: What is Magic?
Dear Hugh We have Cheryl working on this and I am really looking forward to your visit if it can be organised - so we'll keep our fingers crossed - she usually manages to get things to happen. I would have thought you'd get a group in Santa Fe easy - maybe the title scared them off? (from your reply to Michelle). As for rainmaking, if anyone can put together a class, I'd like to see at least 30 attendees and go two days. One of the frustrations I feel is that most people are so plugged into advertising and the pictures and totally engineered sales pitches in the major farm magazines. The corn you showed me from in the past compared to the recent higher quality shows the true story, while, as you say the elevator doesn't pay any extra for the quality. That's pretty discouraging, knowing that if you grow responsibly you don't get(m)any breaks. I have been heartened by the fact that out here several animal feeder operations are sniffing around - looking to source grain grown on re mineralised soil programs at a bit of a premium - this is outside of organic certified - these feedlot operations keep meticulous records and do their sums and aparently have found that they are getting a better result for less grain - they are sharks for sure and are not doing this out of any sense of moral responsibility. We've got the tools. Our homeopathic remedies and means for applying them are good enough already, though they may improve. We can create the conditions in virtually any soils to fix nitrogen out of the air and dispense with nitrogen fertilizers. The 'how to of this would make a good after dinner discussion for February in Aus! -- it is a win to KNOW we can do a different agriculture with homeopathics and radionics, despite the fact that the market doesn't give us much advantage. Our slight advantage is that we know we can get our nitrogen out of the air and can make rain in timely fashion. I am really looking forward to learning more of this Cheers Lloyd Charles
FW: Organic Beef Scam in New York City
If you can't trust your heath food store, who can you trust? From: http://www.nypost.com/seven/11182002/news/regionalnews/62362.htm 'ORGANIC' BEEF SCAM By JEANE MacINTOSH MATTHEW McDERMOTT Store owner Helen Burgess November 18, 2002 -- The upscale organic-food chain Healthy Pleasures has been scamming customers by repackaging conventional meat and passing it off as organic and natural, a Post investigation has found. The chain has been relabeling beef at its three Manhattan stores, according to current and ex-employees and industry insiders, gouging customers by several dollars per pound on some cuts. People trust them to sell them a superior product, and that is just not happening, said one source, who asked to remain anonymous. The beef is marked 'natural' and 'organic,' and often that simply isn't the case. Organic meat producers are prohibited by the USDA from using hormones, pesticides and antibiotics in the raising of farm animals. Natural meat must be minimally processed and contain no artificial ingredients, according to USDA rules. Healthy Pleasures owner Helen Burgess and chain manager Omar Bashar contend their meat business is legit. But after being asked about The Post's findings, Bashar and two store workers surrounded a Post photographer on the street and wrestled a camera from his hands. His photos were destroyed, and the three men were charged with felony robbery, criminal mischief and criminal possession of stolen property. The Post's probe found: * Current and former workers have been instructed to remove meat purchased from IBP - a nationwide producer of conventional beef that doesn't handle organic or natural products - from bulk packaging and put it in butcher display cases with organic and natural labels. We would open the boxes, take the meat from the bulk bags and carry it upstairs on a lug, said a former employee. Then we would put it in the case and stick the natural and organic signs on it. We were told never to take IBP boxes up to the selling floor, where customers might see them. * The University Place store gets frequent deliveries from IBP, though manager Bashar said the chain offers only a very minimal amount of conventional beef and only when natural or organic product isn't available. Last Wednesday, there was one cut of conventional beef for sale at University Place - a roast - compared with three rows of organic and natural beef. On other visits to all three stores during a three-week period, The Post saw only one other cut of conventional beef for sale. Following the delivery of a number of large IBP boxes to University Place witnessed by The Post last week, a reporter placed three calls to Bashar seeking comment. He did not return them. * The manager of the meat department at the University Place store said the store buys its entire supply of organic and natural meat from ES, a top Meat Packing District distributor. But ES owner Evan Wexler said he sells a small amount of organic meat to Healthy Pleasure and that its most recent delivery was Oct. 8. ES does not carry natural beef. Bashar refuted his manager's account, saying the chain bought all its beef from Alberts Organic and Green Circle, not mentioning IBP. Some of my employees are new and don't know the product, he said. * Less than an hour after speaking with The Post Wednesday, Bashar called in large orders for organic and natural meat from Alberts Organic and Green Circle, the organic meat producer used by many of the city's top restaurants and food stores. Reps for both firms confirmed that Bashar placed calls late Wednesday asking for large quantities of organic and natural beef to be delivered the next day. They were scrambling to get their house in order, one insider said. Organic and natural beef fetches top dollar from health-conscious food shoppers, but prices for such meat at Healthy Pleasures are significantly lower than at competing stores. For example, organic rib-eye steaks at Healthy Pleasures were being sold for $10.99 per pound last Tuesday. At Citarella, they were $23.99 per pound. At Gourmet Garage, natural rib-eyes sold for $14.99 per pound. Conventional rib-eyes at supermarkets ranged from $8.99 to $10.99 They are selling their organic and natural beef often for less than most of us can buy it for, said one competitor. A Department of Agriculture and Markets spokeswoman said the agency has had no complaints against Healthy Pleasures involving meat labeling or packaging. Fraudulent mislabeling of meat can carry tens of thousands of dollars in potential fines. Approached at her University Place office Wednesday, Burgess declined to comment and referred all questions to Bashar, who sat for an interview and gave a store tour. Whoever is telling you these things must be disgruntled - because it's not true, Bashar said. He insisted meat in his butcher cases was not mislabeled and offered to provide inventory invoices as proof. But Bashar never supplied the invoices
irradiated meat
This is from Public Citizen. I went into our local Giant this weekend and there it was in its little plastic box -irradiated ground meat, along with a brochure telling just how wholesome food is that has been 'cold pasteurized'. Yum-yum. Except the meat had a very strange color to it, though the brochure did assure me that the color of meat doesn't reflect its taste, nutrition of safety. I wasn't inclined to buy any of the stuff to see if their claims were true. Public Citizen's fact sheet doesn't say it but one of the real reasons the meat industry is turning to irradiation (besides to increase shelf life) is to cover up the unsanitary nature of factory farms and their associated fast moving factory type slaughterhouses and processing plants. (from Public Citizen) Giant Food Inc. is the first supermarket chain in the DC area to carry irradiated ground beef. They attempt to calm consumer anxiety about irradiation, but despite their marketing claims, consumers should be wary. Facts on Irradiation ** Irradiation exposes food to a dose of ionizing radiation that is equivalent to millions of chest x-rays. ** Irradiation destroys vitamins, essential fatty acids and other nutrients in food. ** Irradiation disrupts the chemical composition of everything - not just harmful bacteria. It creates chemicals called radiolytic products that do not occur naturally in food and that the FDA has never studied for safety. ** Research dating to the 1950s has revealed a wide range of problems in animals that ate irradiated food, including premature death, a rare form of cancer, stillbirths, genetic damage, organ malfunctions, low weight gain and vitamin deficiencies. ** Irradiation can kill most bacteria in food, but does not remove the feces and other filth that carries this bacteria, thereby masking and encouraging filthy conditions in slaughterhouses and food processing plants. What Can You Do? ** Vote with your food dollars - don't buy irradiated ground beef! ** Write to Giant and tell them to stop carrying irradiated meat and keep imported irradiated fruits and vegetables off their shelves! (for a sample letter go to http://www.citizen.org/cmep/foodsafety/food_irrad/articles.cfm?ID=8367 ) ** Call 888-4-MyGiant (DC, MD, VA) or 888-MySuperG (DE, NJ) to voice your views. ** Write a letter to the editor explaining the problems with irradiated food! ** Flyer at a local store to raise awareness in your community! (contact Public Citizen at 202-546-4996 for flyers)
