By Jim Turner, Chair of Citizens for Health
Over the next two or three weeks, as Congress begins focusing its attention on several issues that affect natural health and organic food consumers, we at Citizens want to be careful of your time and resources.
We would like to hear from you about how frequently you want to hear from us. If you suffer from TMI (too much information) from us let us know. We’ll cut back on what we send you. In the mean time here are some issues you will be hearing about from us:
• The most sweeping reform of food safety in fifty years is about to hit the Senate floor. Unfortunately it is very likely to pass even though it lacks effective measures to address many serious concerns about food safety such as:
– feeding of slaughter house waste to animals
– the use of antibiotics and hormones in feed to promote animal growth
– the spread of GMO’s (genetically modified organisms in food)
– the presence of pesticide residue in food
– the failure to require labeling of food that use radiation, GMO’s antibiotics, hormones, and pesticide residue in their manufacture.
Each of these failings leaves a serious potential source of food born disease unaddressed. We will inform you as aspects of the food safety debate as this legislation moves through the Senate, the House Senate Conference and toward the President’s signature. Specifically we want to inform you of the efforts of some advocates who are proposing changes to the bill which we support. Here are two of them:
• Senator Diane Feinstein (D-CA) has introduced a special amendment to the food safety bill, S.593, the Ban Poisonous Additives Act of 2009, to ban the chemical BPA from food which Citizens urges you to support. For more background you can read the Washington Post. We will be sending out an action alert over the next few days about this.
• Senator Jon Tester’s amendment to the food safety bill to exempt small-scale businesses from expensive federal regulations and red tape. Read more here.
Here are some other topics we’ll be posting about:
• An overhaul of the Toxic Substance Control Act is about to be considered by the house.
• Congressman Waxman inserted an obscure anti-supplement measure into the Wall St. “Reform” bill passed by the House that expands FTC powers.
• The science free speech bills.
Please send an email to citizens4health@gmail.com or comment on this post and let us know.
Thank you again for your support.
I think we need to LABEL everything. Europe does it. Why can’t consumers see how much of the food supply is contaminated with GMOs. I dont think people would drink as much coke and other drinks that use GMO corn syrup to sweeten… they would want healthy natural sugar sources.
More people need to know about this.
If action alerts can be marked in some way to stand out from other messages I’m more likely to read and participate.
thanks for your response – that’s a good idea. we’ll try that out for next time.
Dear Sara,
Agreed that consumers want the maximum amount of info on labels–country of origin info, GMOs, etc. Citizens has been a huge supporter of the Right to Know Initiative and (along with the late Craig Winters) the Campaign to Label Genetically Engineered Foods—-whose work is being carried on today by the Institute for Responsible Technology.
I think high-fructose corn syrup is awful, regardless of whether it is GMO or not (although the GMO is much worse for other reasons). CFH has a whole arm devoted to food and water integrity, both areas of which (GMOs and sweeteners) are focuses of policy and informed action for our members.
Thanks so much for writing in and supporting wat we do on behalf of you and many other consumers!
Best,
James (Gormley), VP and Sr. Policy Advisor, Citizens for health
that is the one thing that i wish i could turn into a law. i have always believed that every apple or ear of corn should have a label with each and every pesticide/herbicide/fungicide (or other crazy alien chemical gmo thing) that is found within the particular source of fruit. same for meat, i would require that they label every piece of steak or chicken with a list of hormones and antibiotics AND all of the pesticides/herbicides/gmos used on their FEED. we aren’t stupid!