Guest guest Posted October 27, 2000 Report Share Posted October 27, 2000 From Veganstreet news http://www.veganstreet.com/news/00_10_03.html PCRM Wins Food Pyramid Lawsuit Judge James Robertson issued a ruling, Saturday, September 30 that the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) had violated parts of the Freedom of Information Act when it withheld information on the 140 experts who were considered for the 11-person committee that puts together dietary guidelines upon which the national food-guide pyramid is based. They also were charged with not fully disclosing information about one committee member's paid service on a corporate editorial board. " It's a major victory for us and huge embarrassment for the USDA, " said Neal Barnard, executive director of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM), a nonprofit health advocacy group that filed the suit against USDA and the Department of Health and Human Services. This lawsuit was filed in December, 1999, charging that the food-guide pyramid was racially biased because it recommends dairy products, even for those racial groups known to have a limited ability to digest lactose, such as African-Americans, Hispanics and Asians. Also part of the lawsuit was the allegation that committee members had ties to the meat, dairy and egg industries that could affect their judgment. The suit sought the disclosure of information on committee members and those nominated to the panel. Government lawyers countered that the information on nominees was private information. Judge Robertson ruled that the USDA must provide the curricula vitae - a summery of one's personal history and job qualifications - of the 140 experts who were nominated to serve; PCRM then will attempt to show that more qualified people were not chosen for the dietary guidelines committee. " I'm disappointed with the ruling, " said Agriculture Deputy Undersecretary Kennedy. The dietary guidelines, which are updated every five years, dictates everything from school lunch programs and the food pyramid to food programs for the impoverished. -- Free email services provided by http://www.goodkarmacafe.com Powered by Outblaze Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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