I am a human becoming...help me to become... @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ PLANETNEWS broadcast... ...excuse me...then why the hel* do we need an FDA...? N
ORGANIC CONSUMERS ASSOCIATION AND THE CENTER FOR FOOD SAFETY REPORTS NEW FDA POLICY FAILS TO REQUIRE TESTING OR LABELING OF GENETICALLY ENGINEERED FOODS; FDA DECISION DEPRIVES AMERICAN CONSUMERS OF THEIR RIGHT TO KNOW IF THEIR FOOD HAS BEEN GENETICALLY ENGINEERED May 3, 2000 WASHINGTON -- New rules to be announced today by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) governing testing and labeling of genetically engineered foods will not protect the American public. Contrary to the blueprint for effective rules detailed in the legal petition to FDA filed by the Center for Food Safety and 50 other scientific, consumer, environmental and farm organizations in March, FDA's new rules provide no genuine safeguards for consumers. "This announcement means FDA will not be doing any testing on genetically engineered food, but instead relying solely on industry data," said Andrew Kimbrell, Executive Director of the Center for Food Safety. "Under the new FDA policy, tens of millions of American consumers will still be the guinea pigs testing the safety of these foods. Voluntary labeling means consumers won't see any labels out of this, and won't have a right to choose." Consultation Is Not Testing Today's announcement that FDA will not require mandatory pre-market safety testing of GE foods, but rather engage in "consultations" with food producers is a major disservice to the American consumer. "Consultations are not the same as unbiased, rigorous pre-market safety testing. These discussions with GE food producers fall far short of the thorough testing needed to determine the safety of GE foods, and should not be confused as being the same as requiring actual safety testing," said Kimbrell. FDA still clings to its "no-testing" policy despite FDA's own scientists admitting that GE food poses significant risksóincluding creation of new toxins, novel allergens and antibiotic resistance. While consultations are mandatory, safety testing is still voluntary with each GE food producer. "Mandatory consultations" have no legal meaning. The alteration of food involved in genetic engineeringóthe addition of new genes, bacterial vectors, viral promoters, and anti-biotic marker systemsóshould go through the rigorous safety and toxicological tests required of all "food additives," whether chemical or biological. Rules should include new testing for such things as unknown allergens, novel toxins and changes in nutritional content. To date, the FDA has refused to require this food additive testing for GE foods. "These informal FDA consultations with biotech food producers, even if mandatory, fall far short of any mandatory food additive safety testing, as is required by law," said Kimbrell. "The FDA's use of the word mandatory is simply a ruse to avoid requiring GE foods to undergo the pre-market food testing required of all other additives." Voluntary Labeling Means that Consumers Will be Deprived of Their Right to Choose The FDA's new policy also rejects the mandatory labeling of GE foods, a policy supported by the vast majority of Americans. Instead the agency has created a "GE Free" voluntary labeling scheme which violates the right of the American consumer to know which foods have been genetically engineered. Under the new FDA policy not a single producer of GE foods will have to reveal that their product is genetically engineered. Instead, FDA's voluntary "GE Free" labeling policy reverses the labeling burden from those using GE to those who are not using this technology. Clearly, those who are introducing GE food into the market should be required to label their foods as "genetically engineered." FDA's new voluntary labeling idea will punish those not using the technology by putting the burden on them to certify, test and label their foods as "GE Free." Many companies will not want to undergo the considerable time, expense and liability of testing, certifying and labeling their foods as "GE Free." As a result, consumers will not be informed which foods have been genetically engineered and which have not. The only sure way to ensure consumers right to know about GE foods is to require labeling of foods which have been genetically engineered. FDA's new voluntary labeling policy serves the interests of a few biotechnology companies at the expense of the rest of the food industry and millions of consumers. CFS Lawsuit Against FDA In May 1998, the CFS, the Organic Consumers Association, and other public interest groups filed an historic lawsuit against FDA seeking to overturn its non-testing (voluntary consultation), non-mandatory labeling 1992 policy on GE foods for violations of the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act. The Center for Food Safety is a plaintiff and serves as lead attorney in lawsuit. The decision is currently pending in the United States District Court for District of Columbia. CFS Legal Petition on Safety Testing On March 21, 2000, the Center for Food Safety spearheaded an unprecedented coalition of over 50 scientific, consumer, environmental and farm organizations in the filing of a legal petition with the FDA demanding the development of a thorough pre-market and environmental testing regime and mandatory labeling for GE foods. The petition provided FDA with a blueprint for developing a mandatory pre-market safety regime based upon the legal requirements of the Food Additive petition process. Web site: http:// www.centerforfoodsafety.org/ Ronnie Cummins BioDemocracy Campaign/Organic Consumers Association 6114 Hwy 61 Little Marais, Mn. 55614 Tel. 218-226-4164 Fax 218-226-4157 email: [email protected] http://www.purefood.org -- The silver-list is a moderated forum for discussion of colloidal silver. 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