Fwd: [Biodemocracy]ORGANIC BYTES #22 - Organic & Food News Tidbits with an Edge

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[biodemocracy]ORGANIC BYTES #22 - Organic & Food News Tidbits with an

Edge

 

ORGANIC BYTES

Organic & Food News Tidbits with an Edge

Issue #22 10/29/2003

 

By Organic Consumers Association

 

 

 

IN THIS ISSUE:

 

BUYING CLUBS SPROUT IN THE BIG APPLE

QUICK FACTS

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

FOOD BREAK

RELATED TIDBITS

BURGER W/ PICKLES & CATSUP, HOLD THE GROWTH HORMONES

EU CLEANS UP

ORGANIC CONSUMERS DON'T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT THIS

SURVEY SAYS...

MONSANTO STUMBLING

GENETICALLY KRAFTED FOODS

MADE IN CHINA

ORGANIC VENDING MACHINES REPLACING JUNK FOODS IN SCHOOLS

IN THE PRESS

TAKE ACTION

 

 

 

BUYING CLUBS SPROUT IN THE BIG APPLE

Over 6,000 low to middle income New Yorkers have discovered how to

afford fresh organic produce for their dinner tables -- cut out the

middlemen. Buying clubs and CSA's (Community Supported Agriculture) are

enjoying unprecedented growth, bringing the farmlife to the innercity.

Organic family farmers are successfully bypassing distributors and

supermarkets and literally delivering their food firsthand to families

in neighborhoods like Harlem and Brooklyn. As a result, the fruits and

vegetables are organic, fresher and less expensive than the produce at

supermarkets, yet the farmers see a better profit from their crops.

Members of these urban buying clubs are even organizing weekend trips to

visit the farms where their food is grown.

http://www.organicconsumers.org/organic/newyork102703.cfm

 

 

 

QUICK FACTS

-An average family-size seasonal share of produce from a CSA is only

$350 (half shares are also available), which provides the customer with

a weekly delivery of fresh, locally grown produce, while offering small

family farmers a means to stay in business.

-There are over 1,000 CSAs in the US, up from zero in 1984.

-You can find a CSA near you at http://www.csacenter.org

 

 

 

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

" How we eat determines to a considerable extent how the world is used. "

Wendell Berry - Author

 

 

 

FOOD BREAK

Last week (Oct. 24) was national " Take Back Your Time Day " . Most of us

at the OCA offices forgot to acknowledge it, as we were too busy

working, serving as a testament to the problem at hand. In the US, we

each work an average of 350 hours (9 weeks) more per year than our

European friends. In other words, for the EU and the US to have

equivalent work hours per person per year, the average American would

need to take off work from October 24 until the end of the year.

Although this is not an obvious food related issue, the American work

schedule directly impacts how the food industry reacts to consumer

demands. Longer days at the office mean more convenience foods, more

eat-on-the-run foods, more fast foods, more packaging, and more

preservatives. It also means less time to cook with fresh locally grown

produce from co-ops, farmer's markets, CSAs, and home gardens.

 

 

 

RELATED TIDBITS

-The average Americans puts in more hours now than in the 1950s

-We put in more hours than Medieval peasants did, and more than any

other modern day industrialized country.

-Working Americans average a little over two weeks of vacation per year,

while Europeans average five to six weeks.

-Take Back Your Time Day is not about being anti-work. It's about taking

back time for your family, your health, and your involvement in

bettering the world around you. More info: http://www.simpleliving.net

 

 

 

BURGER W/ PICKLES & CATSUP, HOLD THE GROWTH HORMONES

The European Union has announced it is permanently banning beef from

cattle given synthetic growth hormones, due to a number of studies

showing such meat to be a human health risk. It is likely the Bush

Administration will be filing a complaint to the World Trade

Organization against the EU, since the vast majority of synthetic

hormone-laced beef comes from the US. Ninety-four percent of US beef

cattle have growth promoting hormones implanted in their ears. Organic

standards prohibit the use of growth hormones.

http://www.organicconsumers.org/Toxic/hormone_beef_europe.cfm

 

 

 

EU CLEANS UP

The European Union has also officially banned atrazine, a toxic

herbicide that is both a carcinogen and endocrine disruptor. The

decision was made after alarming concentrations of the Syngenta chemical

have been turning up in waterways all over the world. On the other side

of the pond, atrazine recently received reapproval by the Bush-led EPA.

Atrazine is currently the most commonly used herbicide in the US, where

60 million pounds were applied in 2003 alone. The water supply in much

of the US corn belt is contaminated with atrazine and other toxic

chemicals routinely used in conventional agriculture.

http://www.organicconsumers.org/foodsafety/atrazine102703.cfm

 

 

 

ORGANIC CONSUMERS DON'T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT THIS

After compiling over 100,000 laboratory tests, the Environmental Working

Group has released a list of conventionally grown produce that is the

most and the least contaminated by pesticides. Among the worst were

apples, peppers, celery and cherries. Among the best were asparagus,

avocados, bananas, broccoli, cauliflower, corn, kiwi, mangoes, onions,

papayas, pineapples and sweet peas. Of course, the safest course of

action is to buy organic fruits and vegetables.

Download the full list here: http://www.foodnews.org/reportcard.php

 

 

 

SURVEY SAYS...

A recent survey funded by the USDA (released 10/15/03) found that 94% of

Americans want labels on genetically engineered (GE) foods. Of those

surveyed 74% weren't aware they had ever eaten any foods with GE

ingredients, despite the fact that 80% of foods on US supermarket

shelves do contain genetically modified organisms.

http://www.organicconsumers.org/ge/newpoll102303.cfm

 

 

 

MONSANTO STUMBLING

Monsanto, the creator of PCBs and Agent Orange and the world's largest

purveyor of genetically engineered seeds, has temporarily bowed out of

the biopharm industry (genetically engineering plants to grow

pharmaceutical drugs). The company says it wants to continue its focus

on what it claims to be a profitable venture: genetically engineered

foods. Contrasting its PR profit claims, the company recently closed its

4th quarter with a $188 million loss. Last year Monsanto lost almost two

billion dollars on total sales of $4.5 billion. Monsanto is currently

laying off nearly 10% of its employees worldwide. US farmers growing

Monsanto and other gene giant's " profitable " frankencrops lost so much

money last year, taxpayers had to shell out $12 billion in subsidies

for corn, soybeans, and cotton.

http://www.organicconsumers.org/corp/monsanto_biopharm.cfm

 

 

 

GENETICALLY KRAFTED FOODS

The OCA and GE Food Alert Coalition recently organized 300 supermarket

leafleting events across the US over the last week, pressuring

Kraft/Phillip Morris, the US' largest food distributor to go GE-free.

Recent laboratory tests of Kraft products reveal the company may be

listening to consumers, as 6 of 7 products containing corn tested as GE

free (under EU standard thresholds: less than .9%).

http://www.organicconsumers.org/ge/kraft_protests.cfm

 

 

 

MADE IN CHINA

As hungry humans in the US and across the globe are demanding more

organic food, a massive and profitable market niche has opened-- and

Chinese farmers are ready to fill it. Organic sales in the US alone are

projected to hit $20 billion by 2005. While many US farmers still seem

hypnotized by the PR blitz of pesticide and GE seed companies like

Monsanto, Chinese family farmers are happily enjoying the 30-50% higher

annual profits they are receiving by going organic. " They earn more

money. They don't have to worry about sales. They don't have to worry

about storage. There's no reason why they shouldn't go for organic

farming, " said Wang Tingshuang, an organic farmer in China's

northeastern agricultural province of Jilin.

http://www.organicconsumers.org/organic/china102703.cfm

 

 

 

ORGANIC VENDING MACHINES REPLACING JUNK FOODS IN SCHOOLS

Organic food companies are now testing vending machines in high schools.

Perched next to the Coke and Doritos machines at Cranston High School

West in Rhode Island, is a new vending machine with soy chips, rice

snack bars and organic yogurt. Stonyfield Farm, an organic dairy product

producer, has placed similar machines in schools on both US coasts.

Attesting to the overall potential of these programs, Gary Hirshberg,

CEO of Stonyfield said, " This could be the tip of the iceberg. " Profits

are divided between the schools and machine operators.

http://www.organicconsumers.org/Toxic/organic_cafeteria.cfm

 

 

 

IN THE PRESS

The Washington Post has released a feature story on OCA's Coming Clean

Campaign revealing the fraudulent labeling practices of a few of the

biggest " organic " body care companies. These companies claim added-water

as an " organic " ingredient. Consumers beware: there are now household

cleaners that are claiming to be organic, based on claiming added-water

as an " organic " ingredient. The OCA needs your help and support to fight

the " watering down " of organic standards. If you haven't done so yet,

sign our petition to the USDA and forward this email far and wide:

http://www.organicconsumers.org/bodycare/action.cfm

 

 

 

TAKE ACTION

If any of the issues above spark your desire to take action, please

visit OCA's Action Center for instant faxes, petitions, volunteering

and donation opportunities. http://www.organicconsumers.org/action.htm

 

 

 

FOR MANY MORE FOOD ISSUE DAILY HEADLINES:

http://www.organicconsumers.org/log.html

 

 

 

NOTE TO CO-OP AND NATURAL FOOD STORE SUBSCRIBERS: Organic Bytes is a

great tool for keeping your staff and customers up to date on the latest

issues. Feel free to forward this email to your staff and print for

posting on bulletin boards and staff break tables. You are also welcome

to use this material for your newsletters. There's a super-pretty

print-friendly PDF version of this available for free download at

http://www.organicconsumers.org/organicbytes.htm

 

 

 

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ORGANIC BYTES is a publication of:

 

ORGANIC CONSUMERS ASSOCIATION

6101 Cliff Estate Road

Little Marais, MN 55614

Phone: (218) 226-4164 Fax: (218) 353-7652

 

 

 

 

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