Fw: Organic vs. genetic engineering + ACTION ALERT: Contact Kraft Foods

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" News Update from The Campaign " <newsupdate

News Update From The Campaign to Label Genetically Engineered Foods

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Dear News Update Subscribers,

 

Organic crops in the United States continue to become contaminated with

the genes from genetically engineered crops. Organic corn is particularly

susceptible to contamination because corn pollen can drift for miles.

 

For meat and dairy products to be certified organic under the USDA

standards, the animals must be fed organic feed. Organic dairy farmers

are becoming concerned that their organic certification could become in

jeopardy from this ongoing contamination of organic corn.

 

In Vermont, the Agriculture Secretary is trying to determine a way to

protect the growing organic dairy industry in that state and still allow

genetically engineered crops to be grown. He has formed a task force

of 16 legislators, scientists, farmers, and organic advocates.

 

However, many people think such " coexistence " is impossible.

Thirty-seven of the 60 organic dairy farmers in Vermont have signed a

petition opposing the coexistence policy.

 

The article below titled " Organic vs. genetic engineering " from the

Brattleboro Reformer will discuss the controversy in further detail. It

will also tell you about a protest that was held in Montpelier, Vermont

on Thursday with about 30 farmers and activists.

 

ACTION ALERT: Contact Kraft Foods

 

Although the primary focus of The Campaign to Label Genetically

Engineered Foods is passing labeling legislation in Congress, we also

support putting pressure on food manufacturers to remove genetically

engineered ingredients from their products.

 

Friends of the Earth and the Genetically Engineered Food Alert Coalition

are having a " Kraft Week of Action for Safe Food " October 25th to

November 1st.

 

In conjunction with this Week of Action, The Campaign to Label

Genetically Engineered Foods has implemented an e-mail ACTION ALERT

on Kraft Foods.

 

To send an instant e-mail to Kraft, please visit the following web page:

http://www.thecampaign.org/kraft102503.php

 

Posted below the " Organic vs. genetic engineering " article is a sample

of the e-mail ACTION ALERT message to Kraft Foods.

 

Craig Winters

Executive Director

The Campaign to Label Genetically Engineered Foods

 

The Campaign

PO Box 55699

Seattle, WA 98155

Tel: 425-771-4049

Fax: 603-825-5841

E-mail: label

Web Site: http://www.thecampaign.org

 

Mission Statement: " To create a national grassroots consumer campaign

for the purpose of lobbying Congress and the President to pass

legislation that will require the labeling of genetically engineered

foods in the United States. "

 

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Organic vs. genetic engineering

State could set national precedent in use of GE seeds

 

By HOWARD WEISS-TISMAN

Brattleboro Reformer Staff

Friday, October 24, 2003

 

BRATTLEBORO -- While Vermont's dairy industry, overall, continues to

decline, the one shining light has been the success in organic farming.

Meanwhile, the use of genetically engineered seeds increases every year

and threatens organic fields.

 

Since this summer, Agriculture Secretary Steve Kerr has been leading a

task force of 16 legislators, scientists, farmers, and organic

advocates. The agency is attempting to adopt a set of best-management

practices that would allow the use of GE seeds, while protecting the

state's growing organic dairy industry.

 

If the agency is able to arrive at consensus, and the Legislature adopts

a set of best practices, Vermont may set a national precedent in the use

of GE seeds.

 

" What we want to do is see if we can find some middle ground for

coexistence, and pursue some thoughtful agricultural policy around the

issue, " Kerr stated in a press release.

 

The agency will present a report to the Vermont Legislature during the

upcoming session. The task force plans to meet two more times, so what

that report contains and which direction the agency chooses, remains to

be seen.

 

The debate centers mostly around feed corn. GE corn is being grown on

approximately 22 percent of the state's acreage devoted to the crop,

according to the agency. Ninety-seven percent of GE seeds sold in the

state are corn.

 

GE seeds are legal and acceptable, according to the U.S. Department of

Agriculture. The Food and Drug Administration has no laws or regulations

concerning their use.

 

" Our concern is that if Vermont passes a law to put a moratorium on the

seeds, it would be challenged in court, " said agency spokesman Jason

Aldous. " We want to develop policy with farmers and experts so it is not

decided by the courts. "

 

Pollen from corn grown with GE seeds can spread through the air, Aldous

said, and potentially contaminate an organic field. The agency is

considering setting up buffer zones between fields, or staggering

planting times to protect crops.

 

" We are trying to forge something now and get everyone involved, and

listen to everyone's concerns. But, " he added, " it hasn't been easy. "

 

" Compromise can be extremely difficult, " said Marian White, policy

analyst for the agency, and one of the organizers of the task force.

 

White said if Vermont passes legislation on coexistence it would set a

precedent, because no other states have taken a formal position on the

issue.

 

The task force has been listening to geneticists and federal officials

to try to reach an educated decision.

 

" There is a lot of emotion around the subject of coexistence, " White

said, " and understanding the science is a crucial aspect of getting the

legislation right. Vermont is known for its tolerance, and we have to be

tolerant of all farming methods. "

 

The task force met for the fifth time Thursday in Montpelier, and an

organized protest was held in front of the agriculture building. Around

30 farmers and activists gathered to show their opposition to the work

of the task force.

 

" We are opposed to the adoption of 'Accepted Agricultural Practices' or

best-management practices that would allow the use of genetically

engineered crops. We urge the governor to support the growing of

environmentally sound, healthy crops and food products in Vermont by

calling a time-out on GMOs, " said Jack Lazor of Butterworks Farm in a

press release.

 

Butterworks Farm, in Westfield, is one of the largest organic dairies in

the state.

 

" There is no proof that coexistence works, " said Bayard Littlefield,

coordinator for the Vermont Genetic Engineering Action Network, a group

opposed to any GE agriculture.

 

Thirty-seven of the 60 organic dairy farmers in the state have signed a

petition opposing the coexistence policy, Littlefield said.

 

" People are worried about their livelihood, " she said. " And the governor

is not listening to the people of Vermont on this, " she added, noting

that 70 towns have passed town meeting resolutions which call for a

moratorium on growing GE crops.

 

But according to Vern Grubinger, director of the Center For Sustainable

Agriculture and a vegetable and berry specialist with the University of

Vermont Extension, the choice is not so clear.

 

" It is a very complex issue, " said Grubinger, a member of the

Agriculture Agency's task force. " Clearly, GE crops are not allowed

under organic standards, and they pose a threat to organic farmers if

they get onto their farms. But on the other side, mainstream dairy

farmers want to keep them, and the state is convinced that they legally

have to allow them to. "

 

GE corn contains a gene from a naturally occurring bacterium that helps

control pests like the corn borer and root worm, Grubinger said, " and

that's why GE corn is so widely planted in the state. Some conventional

farmers find it useful. They don't have to apply other pesticides, and

they find it safer and easier. "

 

Grubinger applauds the state's attempt to formulate policy, but worries

that even if a series of best practices are adopted, organic farmers may

not be sufficiently protected.

 

" My concern is with the accidental spreading of seed in a combine, or

with seed spilling from a truck, " Grubinger said.

 

In Canada, a field of conventional canola was contaminated when a truck

spilled GE seed along the road, and in Texas, GE corn was detected in a

shipment of organic tortilla chips.

 

" There isn't an organic police out there testing for contamination, so

it could happen and farmers wouldn't even know, " Grubinger said. " A

moratorium on new GE crops would make it much easier to assure that

organic farmers are protected, because the more GE crops that are here,

the harder it will be to control them, let alone take them away from

farmers who want to use them. "

 

And when GE crops like alfalfa and strawberries arrive it will be even

harder to protect organic fields, because bees can carry their pollen

for miles. These and other GE crops should be available within a few

years, he said.

 

" With more GE crops and acreage we will have fewer options for

protecting organic farmers. And the irony is that organic farming is the

most rapidly growing segment of agriculture in Vermont, " Grubinger said.

 

" Personally, I wish GE crops would go away. But that is a fantasy, " he

added. " If the advocates who want a moratorium don't succeed, then we

walk away with nothing. Given the current legal and political situation

the first step is to put some protections in place to protect organic

farmers. "

 

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KRAFT ACTION ALERT MESSAGE

 

Posted below is a copy of the e-mail you can instantly send to four people

and departments at Kraft Foods.

 

Click here to send the e-mail message to Kraft Foods:

http://www.thecampaign.org/kraft102503.php

 

Dear Ms. Betsy Holden, Kraft Foods Co-President and CEO,

Dear Donna Sitkiewicz, Director of Corporate Affairs,

Dear Mark Magnesen, Investor Relations,

Dear Kraft Public Relations,

 

Your 2002 Annual Report to your stockholders is titled " We're at home

all around the world. " However, in your Annual Report, you never mention

the controversy over genetically engineered foods that is taking place

all around the world.

 

In Europe, you have removed genetically engineered ingredients from your

Kraft family of products. But in the United States, you are allowing

your customers to eat unlabeled, untested genetically engineered foods.

 

There is a growing body of scientific research indicating that

genetically engineered foods could cause allergic reactions and many

other health problems in humans. Yet you continue to let your U.S.

customers serve as guinea pigs in this unprecedented feeding experiment.

 

I encourage you to read the recently released book " Seeds of Deception:

Exposing Industry and Government Lies About the Safety of the

Genetically Engineered Foods You're Eating " by author Jeffrey Smith:

http://www.thecampaign.org/seeds.php

 

You should be aware that under current U.S. Food and Drug Administration

(FDA) regulations, biotech companies are not even required to notify the

FDA they are bringing a new product to market. The FDA has essentially

told the biotech industry to regulate itself. This is not the kind of

oversight that will protect the health of the American public.

 

In the 15 European Union countries, plus Japan, China, Australia, New

Zealand, and many other nations, genetically engineered foods are

required by law to be labeled.

 

A poll released July 15, 2003 by ABC News found that 92 percent of the

American public wants the federal government to require mandatory

labeling on genetically modified foods.

 

In the United States, the FDA says companies have the option of

voluntarily labeling their products. Kraft has apparently chosen to

neither voluntarily label your products that contain genetically

engineered ingredients nor remove genetically engineered ingredients

from your products.

 

As a concerned consumer, I am asking Kraft to do the following:

 

1. Stop using genetically engineered ingredients in all of your products

unless adequate testing, labeling, and liability are established;

 

2. Start labeling products containing tested genetically engineered

ingredients, so consumers can make their own choices; and

 

3. Pledge not to use genetically engineered wheat, currently being

developed for commercial introduction by the biotechnology industry.

 

Please write me back and tell me if Kraft intends to take these steps or

whether I will need to start boycotting the Kraft products. Thank you!

 

Sincerely,

 

[Your name here]

 

 

 

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