Keeping CA GE Lawsuit Free!

August 30, 2008 - A landmark piece of legislation protecting California's farmers from crippling lawsuits was passed through both legislative houses this week in an end-of-session flurry. The bill, AB 541, is now headed to the Governor's desk for his signature. AB 541 is the first bill passed by the California legislature that brings much-needed regulation to genetically engineered (GE) crops. AB 541 enacts protections against lawsuits brought against California farmers who have not been able to prevent the inevitable - the drift of GE pollen or seed onto their land and the subsequent contamination of their non-GE crops. Currently, farmers with crops that become contaminated by patented seeds or pollen have been the target of harassing lawsuits brought by biotech patent holders, particularly Monsanto. The bill also establishes a mandatory crop sampling protocol to prevent biotech companies that are investigating alleged violations from sampling crops without the explicit permission of farmers. A copy of the bill can be downloaded at: http://www.leginfo.ca.gov

The Truth About GM

The truth about GM

by Colin Tudge

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NOTE: Dr. Colin Tudge trained as a biologist and is a three-time winner of the Glaxo/ABSW Science Writer of the Year Award. His career includes serving as Features Editor at New Scientist, his own science program on BBC Radio and freelance writing for The Independent, The Times, Natural History and The New Statesman. He is the author of numerous works on food, agriculture, genetics, and species diversity.
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"Indeed, there has been so much hype and obfuscation in the promotion of GM - Prince Charles's recent warning about the looming environmental disaster aside - that it would be foolish to believe a word of it. Here are three quick examples. We have heard much, of late, of the "golden rice" made by Syngenta. It is fitted with a gene that produces carotene, which is the precursor of Vitamin A - the lack of which is a prime source of blindness among children worldwide. Therefore, Syngenta tells us, golden rice is a good thing - a sentiment echoed subsequently in the media and in the House of Lords by Dick Taverne. But carotene is the yellowish pigment in green leaves (such as spinach) and in all yellow-orange roots and fruits (carrots and papaya among them) and is one of the commonest organic molecules in nature. Poor people do not need handouts from Syngenta. All they need is horticulture - which, before the days of corporate-owned monocultures of commodity crops, they had."

See the full article:

http://www.newstatesman.com/food/2008/08/technology-feed-crops-farming

How can people who gorge on fat and rarely see a vegetable be healthier than we are?

This is just fascinating. Lots you'll already know but quite a few surprises. Opening paragraphs:
“Our meat was seal and walrus, marine mammals that live in cold water and have lots of fat. We used seal oil for our cooking and as a dipping sauce for food. We had moose, caribou, and reindeer. We hunted ducks, geese, and little land birds like quail, called ptarmigan. We caught crab and lots of fish—salmon, whitefish, tomcod, pike, and char. Our fish were cooked, dried, smoked, or frozen. We ate frozen raw whitefish, sliced thin. The elders liked stinkfish, fish buried in seal bags or cans in the tundra and left to ferment. And fermented seal flipper, they liked that too.” Cochran’s family also received shipments of whale meat from kin living farther north, near Barrow. Beluga was one she liked; raw muktuk, which is whale skin with its underlying blubber, she definitely did not. “To me it has a chew-on-a-tire consistency,” she says, “but to many people it’s a mainstay.” In the short subarctic summers, the family searched for roots and greens and, best of all from a child’s point of view, wild blueberries, crowberries, or salmonberries, which her aunts would mix with whipped fat to make a special treat called akutuq—in colloquial English, Eskimo ice cream. Now Cochran directs the Alaska Native Science Commission, which promotes research on native cultures and the health and environmental issues that affect them. She sits at her keyboard in Anchorage, a bustling city offering fare from Taco Bell to French cuisine. But at home Cochran keeps a freezer filled with fish, seal, walrus, reindeer, and whale meat, sent by her family up north, and she and her husband fish and go berry picking—“sometimes a challenge in Anchorage,” she adds, laughing. “I eat fifty-fifty,” she explains, half traditional, half regular American. Full article here.

FDA OKs Irradiation Of Spinach, Lettuce

Nearly two years after E. coli bacteria traced to California-grown spinach killed three people and sickened 205, the federal government says it will allow producers of fresh iceberg lettuce and spinach to use irradiation to control food-borne pathogens and extend shelf life. The Food and Drug Administration is amending the food additive regulations to provide what it calls the safe use of ionizing radiation for just the two leafy greens. The FDA also has received petitions seeking permission to use irradiation for other lettuces and many other foods. The government is allowing the practice in the wake of the major E. coli outbreak in 2006 and numerous other problems with food safety and recalls. But this won't be first time such a technique has been used on food. Consumers have eaten irradiated meat for years. More here.

US Food Prices to Post Biggest Rise Since 1990

U.S. consumers should brace for the biggest increase in food prices in nearly 20 years in 2008 and even more pain next year due to surging meat and produce prices, the Agriculture Department said on Wednesday. Food prices are forecast to rise by 5 percent to 6 percent this year, making it the largest annual increase since 1990. Just last month, USDA forecast food prices would climb between 4.5 and 5.5 percent in 2008. Details here.

More Rice, Less Seed and Water

Dr. Norman T. Uphoff, of Cornell University, has made an extremely exciting discovery for rice growers and our hungry planet. Harvests typically double, he says, if farmers plant early, give seedlings more room to grow and stop flooding fields. That cuts water and seed costs while promoting root and leaf growth. (On the downside, the lack of flooding does increase the need to weed). The method, called the System of Rice Intensification, or S.R.I., emphasizes the quality of individual plants over the quantity. In a decade, it has gone from obscure theory to global trend — and encountered fierce resistance from established rice scientists. Yet a million rice farmers have adopted the system, Dr. Uphoff says. The rural army, he predicts, will swell to 10 million farmers in the next few years, increasing rice harvests, filling empty bellies and saving untold lives. More here.

The Story of Stuff

A nice synopsis of the rise, current status and inevitable decline of our of hyper-consumerist society. $$$ facts: U.S. companies currently admit to pumping 4,000,000,000 tons of pollution into the atmosphere each year. 99% of all "stuff" purchased in the United States is thrown away in the first 6 months. 70 bins of trash are produced to make the contents of one bin of recycling. Click here for 10 things you can do right now to escape the whirlpool. Also, a quick browse on Freecycle could save you from shopping. While we're at it, don't forget to give the good Rev. Billy from the Church of Stop Shopping a listen from time to time.

Monsanto's Bovine Growth Hormone Up for Grabs

St. Louis-based Monsanto announced it's selling its Posilac Division that makes bovine growth hormone, also known as rBGH or rBST. There's no problem with the product, insists the company. During a conference call today, Monsanto's Chrissie Chavis told reporters that Posilac, as it's known commercially, is a "solid successful product of significant value to dairy farmers." But nationwide a growing number of consumers and dairy processors feel otherwise. "No artificial growth hormones used" is now commonly displayed on store shelves from Florida to California. The proposed sale, she said, allows the company to focus on genetically engineered seed. "Our long term growth platform is focused on corn, soybeans, cotton and vegetables. Repositioning the business would ensure that loyal dairy farmers could continue to receive the value of Posilac in their operations." Posilac, is sold in an injectable form to an unknown number of dairy farmers in the U.S. and internationally. Monsanto refused to divulge sales figures, but insists that one-third of the nation's cows receive injections. The USDA estimate that number to be more in the range of 15 percent. In the last several years, major retailers such as Safeway, Publix and Kroger have decided to ban the artificial hormone in their store-brand milk. Starbucks has refused to purchase dairy from treated cows at its 6,793 company-operated stores. Chipotle Mexican Grill, a McDonalds spinoff, has banned rBST in its company stores. Recently, rBGH has been tested on catfish and tilapia to increase growth. More here.

Good News on the Grain Front

According to a new survey by Farm Futures Magazine, corn and soybean crops appear to have largely recovered. Normal yields are still possible, if not likely. Based on a survey of more than 700 farmers, as well as crop ratings and agronomic data, Farm Futures currently estimates 2008 corn production at 12,061 million bushels, based on average U.S. yields of 154 bushels per acre. USDA, which updates its forecast on Aug. 12, last estimated corn production at 11,715 million based on yields of 148.4 bpa. For soybeans, Farm Futures estimates a crop of 3,038 million bushels, based on national yields of 42.5 bpa. Unlike corn, survey data suggests farmers planted fewer soybeans than USDA previously forecast, in part because a late wheat harvest reduced double crop acres. USDA in July estimated soybean production at 3 billion bushels, based on yields of 41.6 bpa.

USDA Admits Organic Fraud is Increasing

The U.S. Department of Agriculture National Organic Program (NOP) announced on August 5th that 15 of the 30 accredited organic certifiers they recently inspected failed the USDA audit and will have 12 months to make corrections or lose their accreditation with the NOP. It is clear that there are numerous violations of organic standards taking place in the U.S. and across the world. (Read the August 5 NOP Audit Report here). Read more and sign a petition calling for the creation of an organic community "Peer Review Panel" here.