Fwd: [Biodemocracy] Organic Bytes #24 - Organic and Food News Tidbits with an Edge

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Organic Bytes #24 - Organic and Food News Tidbits with an Edge

 

ORGANIC BYTES #24

Organic & Food News Tidbits with an Edge

Issue #24 12/9/2003

By Organic Consumers Association

 

 

 

GENETICALLY ENGINEERED PETS

California recently became the only state in the U.S. to ban the sale of

genetically engineered pets. Although new glow-in-the-dark zebrafish

(engineered with genes from jellyfish and sea anemones) have been

released onto the market throughout the rest of the nation, the CA Game

Commission said their decision is based on simple ethics. “I just don't

think it's right to produce a new organism just to be a pet. To me, this

seems like an abuse of the power we have over life, and I'm not prepared

to go there today,” said Sam Schuchat of the CA Game Commission.

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

 

 

 

SEEKING THE BRAIN’S “BUY BUTTON”

Backed by funding from major corporations, Researchers at Emory

University are undergoing intensive studies of the human brain looking

for what has been coined the “buy button”. This new pursuit of consumer

control, known as neuromarketing, involves Magnetic Resonance Imaging

(MRI) on live subjects to find the specific part of the brain that is

activated when a consumer is successfully wooed by an advertisement into

purchasing a product. Using the data from this research, marketers hope

to be able to create ads that follow the exact neurological pathways

that ultimately activate the “buy button” in consumers. According to a

letter to the Emory University from a coalition of groups opposed to

this research, “If Emory University takes its own mission seriously, it

should challenge this abuse of medical knowledge and technology to

manipulate people for commercial purposes.”

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

 

 

 

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

" I do not allow myself to be overcome by hopelessness, no matter how

tough the situation. I believe that if you just do your little bit

without thinking of the bigness of what you stand against, if you turn

to the enlargement of your own capacities, just that in itself creates

new potential. "

--Vandana Shiva, India Activist and Author

 

 

 

HARVESTING THE WIND

Farmers across the US are continually discovering innovative methods of

keeping their family farms in business. One such means, harvesting wind,

is becoming increasingly profitable and popular. While taking up very

little space and generating clean and sustainable energy, each wind

turbine quietly cranks out between $2,000 and $4,000 in annual profits

for the farmer. Leroy Ratzlaff, a South Dakota farmer, has now installed

7 wind turbines, to provide stability to his farm’s finances. " It's

almost like renting out my farm and still having it, " Ratzlaff said.

" And the cows don't seem to mind a bit. "

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

 

 

 

POSITIVE ACTION BRINGS POSITIVE CHANGE

Complaining about the oil, coal and nuclear power industries does little

good, unless you do something about it. Now just about everyone can

support the sourcing of wind power by their local utility company. To

find out opportunities for including wind power and other renewable

energy sources in your monthly electricity bill in your area, go here:

http://www.eere.energy.gov/greenpower/consumers.shtml

 

 

 

CREATING A GE-FREE NORTHERN CALIFORNIA

It’s official: Mendocino County California has approved a ballot

initiative that will allow voters to choose whether or not the County

should ban genetically modified crops. Mendocino County's agricultural

income is strongly rooted in organics, and local farmers are concerned

about decreased revenues, due to possible contamination from neighboring

GE crops. The vote will be held March 2, 2004 and would make the county

the first in the U.S. to pass an anti-GMO resolution. Stay tuned to the

OCA for further updates. The OCA is also working with activists in

several other California counties (Humboldt, Marin, Sonoma) who are

interested in joining Mendocino and creating, in effect, a GE-Free

Northern California.

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

 

 

 

HOW TO REGISTER TO VOTE ONLINE

Can one vote make a difference? Just ask the folks in Florida, where the

margin of victory in the 2000 presidential election was a mere 537

votes. You can register to vote and/or update your registration info,

right now, through the OCA/ “Your Vote Matters” website! Not only will

you be taking the required step to become an active participant in the

coming elections, you will also be helping OCA, as Working Assets Long

Distance is currently offering a small donation to the OCA for every

voter that registers on our site. If you are already registered, please

pass this link on to your family and friends. The time for positive

change is NOW. https://www.workingforchange.com/vote/index.cfm?ms=OCA001

 

 

 

FAITH AND FAIR TRADE

Responding to the plight of millions of struggling coffee farmers

worldwide, Catholic Relief Services (CRS) is working to get U.S.

churches and parishioners into the practice of buying “fair trade”

coffee (a certified product that guarantees farmers a fair price for

their crops). " There's a lot of coffee being moved through faith

communities, " says Karen Smith, director of CRS' coffee program. " It's

tying into people's values, and they're making conscious decisions based

on their values. " Americans spend $19 billion on coffee each year. With

65 million Catholics in the U.S., CRS is hopeful this new initiative can

have a positive impact on coffee farmers everywhere.

http://www.organicconsumers.org/Starbucks/faith_fair_trade.cfm

 

 

 

LIKELY ALLERGENIC GENETICALLY ENGINEERED CORN STILL SPREADING

StarLink Corn, an experimental genetically engineered crop that the USDA

found to be unsuitable for human consumption, hasn’t been grown by

farmers for several years. Yet recent analysis of this year’s harvest

has found that it is still contaminating 1% of the nation’s corn. The

discovery fuels the arguments of GE opponents, who claim that these

experimental crops should not be released on the market until they have

been adequately tested for effects on human health and the environment.

" The StarLink lesson is that contamination is to some extent

irreversible, " said Doreen Stabinsky, a Greenpeace scientist. Once a new

genetically engineered plant is released on the market, it is impossible

to keep its pollen from spreading, thereby leading to its existence in

the food supply indefinitely. According to the European Union, this is

one of the reasons for its decision to resist growing and importing GE

foods.

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

 

 

 

BRONNER'S DONATING 10% OF WEB SALES TO OCA

Dr. Bronner's Magic Soaps has committed to donating 10% of all web sales

in November and December to the Organic Consumers Association. Bronner's

recently won Co-op America's prestigious 2003 Green Business Award for

leadership in advancing the Green business movement. The 50 year old

natural soap and body care product company was selected from 2,200 Green

businesses for its dedication to the environment, social rights, and the

community.

Click here to shop: http://www.drbronner.com/main.html

 

 

 

GREEN GUIDE ANNOUNCES BEST ORGANIC COTTON PRODUCTS

As one of the most chemically intensive crops, conventional cotton is

responsible for $2.6 billion worth of toxic pesticide use every year.

You can help change this unsustainable practice by exercising the power

of your consumer dollar. Here’s a list of what the Green Guide recently

announced are the best organic cotton products on the market:

http://www.organicconsumers.org/clothes/organic_cotton_products.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

 

 

http://lists.organicconsumers.org/listinfo/biodemocracy

 

 

 

 

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