The Chair of one of the largest local environmental groups in my area sent this along. I already get this newsletter, but read the posters comments and the headlines anyway and noted other things, a grocer in San Diego, one man, whose working on taking back their food Supply in San Diego, and then noted Kevin Zeese and Margaret Flowers face on another article.
First link is to the newsletter online, second is to Kevin and Margaret interview. http://www.organicconsumers.org/bytes/ob389.html http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MqFuch9ym3g I did edit out private e-mail and ph number contact information. Scott -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Normally I do not pass many items of National import, since our main focus is local and regional environmental issues. However, I feel our foods are already badly manipulated and need better oversight, and would like to keep GMO foods out of the food chain. Organic Bytes is an very interesting newsletter published by the Organic Consumers Association, and if you don't already receive it, you may want to get on the list. Always well written and cogent. If you scroll down past the Essay of the Week, there is an important Action Item about keeping GMO's out of "natural" foods (another reason to label foods with GMO's) that you may be interested in acting upon. Stephanie Sakasai also felt it was important and shared her Organic Bytes newsletter with me, motivating me to pass it on in case others of you are interested. (That's why her name is at the bottom...) Nancy Macy, Chair VWC's Environmental Committee for the SLV > Is this email not displaying correctly? > View it in your browser. > > Subscribe & Read Past Issues | OCA Homepage | Donate > ESSAY OF THE WEEK > Are We Torturing Animals with Monsanto's GMO Feed? > > We associate food with, at most, pleasure, at the very least, survival. Its not too different for animals. Lambs turned out on new grass move quickly over certain grasses to get to others to nosh on clover and mustard grass, avoiding horse nettle and fescue along the way, writes Dan Barber in A Chef Speaks Out. Wild pigs, capable of seeking out the nutrients they need, enjoy eating nuts, roots, fruits, mushrooms, bugs, rabbits, and, occasionally, dead animals. > > But what happens when animals are confined in cramped, filthy environments and force-fed monoculture diets of genetically modified corn and soy? > > A lot can happen. Calves are born too weak to walk, with enlarged joints and limb deformities. Piglets experience rapidly deteriorating health, a failure to thrive so severe that they start breaking down their own tissues and organs self-cannibalizing to survive. Many animals suffer from weak, brittle bones that easily fracture. Dairy cows develop mastitis, a painful udder infection. Beef cattle develop liver abscesses and an excruciating condition referred to as twisted gut. > > It all adds up to a lot of misery for the animals. And it doesn't bode well for humans, says the author of America's Two-Headed Pig. > > Read the essay > > > > > ACTION ALERT > Tell the FDA: GMOs Arent Natural! > > Would you be shocked to learn that the corn in the all natural tortilla chips you just bought had been genetically engineered to produce a toxin that ruptures the intestines of insects? Causing them to die quickly after ingesting the corn? Or that the corn in the 100% natural cereal flakes you just served your kids for breakfast had been saturated with far more glyphosate than any normal plant would be able to tolerate? Because the corn was engineered to resist Monsantos RoundUp herbicide? > The Food & Drug Administration (FDA) says natural means nothing artificial or synthetic has been included in, or has been added to, a food that would not normally be expected to be in the food. So who would guess that food marketed as natural contains the engineered genes of insecticide-producing and/or herbicide-resistant bacteria? > > So far the FDA has dodged the question of whether or not food companies are lying to customers when they say their product is natural even though it contains genetically engineered ingredients. But with the courts facing a barrage of lawsuits from consumers furious that food companies have been allowed to hide GMOs in popular natural brands, the FDA is being asked to weigh in. > Given that the FDAs Deputy Commissioner for Foods is none other than Monsantos former lawyer, Michael Taylor, whose side do you think the FDA will take? > TAKE ACTION: Tell the FDA that GMOs Arent Natural! > > > > > ORGANIC RETAIL AND CONSUMER ALLIANCE > Top Grocer Spotlight: Jimbos . . . Naturally! > Fifteen years ago, Jimbo Someck, grocer and father, had one small organic store and one big mission: A piece of organic fruit in every childs recycled lunch bag. > Today, Jimbo's . . . Naturally! is a thriving San Diego-based company with four locations, and a fifth in the works. The store and its owner have also become known as a champions of consumers right to know about GMOs. Not only does the company educate consumers about the dangers of GMO ingredients, but it also works with manufacturers to find alternative ingredients. Those manufacturers who are willing to transition to GMO-free are rewarded with Jimbos continued business. Those who arent are shown the door. > Last year, Jimbos contributed $10,000 to Californias Proposition 37 campaign to label GMOs. And even though the California-based company doesnt operate any stores in Washington State, Jimbos has donated $10,000 to help pass I-522, a GMO labeling initiative on the ballot this November in Washington. > > For all these reasons and more, Jimbos earned a spot on the list of OCAs Top Diligent Dozen Right to Know Grocers. > More about Jimbos . . . Naturally! > More about the Right to Know Grocers Contest > > > > > SUPPORT THE OCA & OCF > Platitudes. > If at first you dont succeed. Patience is a virtue. The wheels of change grind slowly. > Dont give up the ship. > Weve heard them all. And so have you. Theres been no shortage of platitudes in our conversations around consumers quest for GMO labeling laws. > > Last year this time all eyes, including yours and ours, were on California and Proposition 37, a citizens initiative to label GMOs. A year later, with GMO labeling laws now on the books in Connecticut and Maine, all eyes are on Washington States I-522 Label GMOs initiative. > We need more than platitudes. We need a win on the west coast to connect the dots with Maine and Connecticut. We need a law, one initiated by consumers, that doesnt contain trigger clauses requiring three or four other states to pass GMO laws before it takes effect. > We need to win in Washington State. And we need your help to do it. Because despite what they say that all things come to those who wait we know we cant just sit back and wait. We have to work. And its your support that makes our work possible. Thank you! > Donate to the Organic Consumers Association (tax-deductible, helps support our work on behalf of organic standards, fair trade and public education) > > Donate to the Organic Consumers Fund (non-tax-deductible, but necessary for our legislative efforts in Washington, Vermont and other states) > > > > > ORGANIC INDEX 8.8.13 > GMO Seeds and the Global Market: Can You Say Monopoly? > One glance at the statistics and its clear: The U.S. and Monsanto dominate the global market for genetically engineered crops. Forty percent of the worlds genetically modified (GM) crops are grown in the U.S., where Monsanto controls 80 percent of the GM corn market, and 93 percent of the GM soy market. > > Worldwide, 282 million acres are planted in Monsantos GM crops, up from only 3 million in 1996, according to Food and Water Watch. Forty percent of U.S. cropland, or 151.4 million acres, are planted in Monsantos crops. Monsanto owns 1,676 seed, plant and other applicable patents. > > Maybe its time we ask ourselves: How long will we tolerate the growing monopolization and genetic engineering of seeds by a monopolistic pesticide company that poses a deadly threat to our health, our environment and the future of our food? > > More Facts on GMO Seeds and Monsanto > > > > > VIDEO OF THE WEEK > The Mother of All Trade Agreements. And Why You Should Care. > > > The Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP). Its not really about trade. Its about creating a back door for corporations to get what they want. What do they want? Bigger profits. Lower food safety standards. Fewer rights and lower pay for workers. Fewer environmental regulations. Fast and loose financial regulations. Internet censorship. Did we mention bigger profits? > Watch the video > Learn more > TAKE ACTION: Tell President Obama and U.S. Trade Rep. Michael Froman: Trade Agreements Shouldn't Be Secret! > > > > > LITTLE BYTES > Essential Reading for the Week > > Fair Trade Labels: Some Good News, a Challenge and a Call for Transparency > Cancer: Forbidden Cures > You, Yes You Can Afford Wholesome and Organic Food > Fracking the Commons: Why Your Public Lands Are Under Assault by Oil and Gas Drilling > 5 Surprising Genetically Modified Foods > The Killing Fields: Industrial Agriculture, Dead Zones and Genetically Engineered Corn > > > > MESSAGE FROM OUR SPONSORS > Aloha Bay Certified Organic Bath Salts > Aloha Bay's USDA certified Himalayan Bath Salt is guaranteed to be one of the most relaxing baths of your life. Crystal salt from Aloha Bay's fair trade factory in Pakistan blended with organic essential oils of Cedar from the same Himalayan mountain range, fresh pressed California orange, Bulgarian Lavandin and Clary Sage with just a hint French Rosemary. > > Learn More > > follow on Twitter | friend on Facebook | OCA on Pinterest | Donate > Please forward this publication to family and friends, place it on web sites, > print it, duplicate it and post it freely. Knowledge is power! > > Organic Bytes is a publication of Organic Consumers Association > > 6771 South Silver Hill Drive - Finland, MN 55603 - Phone: 218-226-4164 - Fax: 218-353-7652 > Subscribe - Past Issues - PDFs | Manage Your Subscription | Unsubscribe > > > ------------------------------------ --------------------------------------------------------------------------- LAAMN: Los Angeles Alternative Media Network --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Unsubscribe: <mailto:[email protected]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Subscribe: <mailto:[email protected]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Digest: <mailto:[email protected]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Help: <mailto:[email protected]?subject=laamn> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Post: <mailto:[email protected]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Archive1: <http://www.egroups.com/messages/laamn> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Archive2: <http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]> --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/laamn/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/laamn/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: [email protected] [email protected] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [email protected] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
