Food Supply Summary: the Farm Bill, Monsanto, and GMOs

Jon Stewart explained the ludicrous Monsanto Protection Act.

Tweet
  We're going to run the US Food Supply gamut today. But it's long overdue!

  Every week it seems, for the past few months, there has been a GMO-related development hit the news wire. With each and every story, I fully intended to give it attention, and write a blog focused around it. But it's in-depth, involved stuff that takes time to get a hold of. So weeks passed, and the the stories mounted.

  Just now, in the past few weeks, there have been significant developments, in the battle for GMO labeling, the expired Farm Bill, and Americans' (and the world's) growing disgust for the Big Ag super-power Monsanto.

  I'm going to touch on a lot of areas; hopefully spread the word, clarify any confusion (yours and mine), and encourage conversation.

• First up, the passage of the 'Monsanto Protection Act'.

  Officially named the 'Farmer Assurance Provision,' this law was quickly nicknamed the Monsanto Protection Act by opponents when the details of the law were analysed (apparently it's all about language in Washington).

March Against Monsanto in Melbourne.

  Under the guise of farmer protection and public safety, this provision was conveniently snuck into the must-pass budget bill in March. The Monsanto Protection Act gives biotech companies, GM seed distributors (such as Monsanto), and their new, untested products, free passes.

  Prior to the law's passage, because of potential lawsuits (and I would hope public safety), biotech companies had to get permission from the US Department of Agriculture to plant new genetically engineered crops.

  Now, with the Monsanto Protection Act in play, the USDA is required to allow the planting of new genetically engineered crops while the agency conducts further review.

  Unfortunately, once the seeds are planted, it's a little difficult to undo any harm that my be discovered after the fact. And once a law has been set, a precedent has been set as well.

  Once the public was made aware of what had really transpired, there was quite an outcry. Imagine, it's like saying, 'go ahead and put those potentially dangerous food additives on the market while we keep studying them to see if they make people sick'. (We kind of already do that, but that's another story.)

  Rightfully so, the people were mad.

  Now, there is an attempt to repeal the Monsanto Protection Act. Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley has introduced an amendment to the Farm Bill (which will be discussed further down the page) that would completely repeal the biotech industry's free pass. Sen. Merkley will be introducing the amendment to Congress in the coming week.

  Sign the petition to communicate your disapproval of the loophole here.

• Second up, GMO Labeling Wins and Failures.

  Monsanto and GMOs are becoming part of the everyday vernacular. That is a good thing. We are making progress!

  The problem with GMOs in the US, is that they're unidentifiable. Because of uncertainties about safety, GMOs are required to be labeled, or banned, in 64 countries throughout the world. Over the course of the last several months, a lot has happened regarding the US GMO labeling battle.

  Of course, it was narrowly defeated in the November election in California (Prop 37). But GMO Labeling is becoming an ever-present debate. At the state level, over 65 bills have been introduced in 2013 regarding GMOs, and the majority of them about labeling. 20 states are working to get GMO labeling initiatives on their ballots.

  Last week, the Connecticut Senate approved a GMO labeling bill, and is awaiting vote by the Connecticut House.

  Senator Barbara Boxer and Representative Peter DeFazio have introduced a mandatory labeling law to be voted on as a part of the Farm Bill. The law would require food manufacturers to clearly label any product containing genetically engineered ingredients, or else the product would be classified as “misbranded” by the FDA.

March Against Monsanto in Las Vegas.

  Public opinion is growing. Over the weekend, more than 2 million people in 436 cities in 52 countries rallied in protests against the seed giant Monsanto and genetically modified food, in the 'March Against Monsanto'.

  Because of growing public opinion and demand, many Food Companies are Seeking non-GM Ingredients. Customers are asking for them, and they are trying to comply. But in the US, roughly 90% of corn, soybean, canola and sugar beet crops are grown from genetically engineered seeds. So you can imagine it is quite a challenge for companies seeking non-GM ingredients.

• Thirdly, The New Farm Bill is finally nearing a conclusion.

  Every five years, Congress passes a bundle of legislation, commonly called the 'Farm Bill' that sets national agriculture, nutrition, conservation, and forestry policy. The Farm Bill has been expired since September 2012. Finally, a new version is currently being discussed in the House and Senate.

  Here are six ways the Farm Bill affects us. It dictates:

     - Which foods are grown and raised in the U.S.

     - Which American farmers and ranchers produce our food

     - In what quantities our foods are produced

     - What kinds of food ends up on grocery store and food bank shelves

     - Food prices

     - Who can have access to the food.

  It's expensive, and it's a big deal.

  Right now, the House and the Senate are deciding the Farm Bill's future. Our food policies for the next 10 years are being decided.

  As it stands today, there are several significant developments that could stem from the 2013 Farm Bill (including the GMO labeling vote discussed earlier): 1) huge cuts in food stamps for the poor, and 2) will end potentially expensive expansion of federally subsidized crop insurance.

  Also worked into the Farm Bill is a preemptive attempt to take away individual state's rights: 'Monsanto Protection Act 2.0'. Inserted into the Farm Bill 2013, the 'King Amendment' -- introduced by Iowa Representative Steve King -- would revoke the ability of individual states to pass GMO labeling laws.

  If passed, this could be the MOST IMPORTANT aspect of the Farm Bill.

  The Monsantos of the world see the writing on the wall. With non-GMO campaigns gaining more and more popularity, and labeling laws becoming a familiar sights on election ballots throughout the country, it's just a matter of time before states begin passing their own GMO labeling laws.

  Go here to voice your disapproval of the Monsanto Protection Act 2.0.

• Finally, the 'Oregon Monsanto Protection Act'.

  This one hits close to home. Another preemptive attempt by the biotech companies to strip Oregon counties of the right to ban genetically modified seed and seed products from being passed. The bill passed the Oregon Senate with a 17-12 vote, and been referred to the House Rules Committee. Further action: TBA.

  These things make me confused, and frustrated to write about. But this is the system we have allowed to develop. It makes you wonder, why are these insanely rich biotech companies getting so many helping hands from our government?

  If we want to make any changes, we have to be diligent and attentive to the policies our elected politicians (they work for us!) put in place. Although I'm growing tired of the constant petitions, I am thankful we have them. It allows us to voice our opinion to our senators and representatives. Sign them if you agree (Monsanto Protection Act 2.0 and Repeal the Monsanto Protection Act).

  I know, it's a lot of information to digest. But stay informed and involved. We're making progress!

RELATED POSTS:

GMO Labeling

GMOs
US Food Supply 

LINKS:

Monsanto Protection Act
The 2013 Farm Bill: What to Know, What to Do 

2013 Farm Bill

Monsanto Protection Act 2.0

Whole Foods & GMO Labeling

Whole Foods will require GMO labels by 2018.

Tweet
  It's become the popular thing. You could call it the trendy thing: GMO avoidance, and labeling.

  Most of you are well-aware that I am 100% behind sharing information about the US Food Supply, GMO labeling and transparency. It's imperative we know what is in the foods we are nourishing our bodies with (not to mention our kids').

  As word spreads about GMOs and their possible health and environmental effects, people around the country are becoming more and more fed up with the idea of not knowing what's in their food. Especially if it is potentially causing us harm. The cause is gaining more and more momentum. And that's a great thing.

  Roughly 90% of Americans think GMOs should be labeled. That is no new statistic, we've thought that for quite some time now. And around the world, 60 countries require labeling on products containing GMOs. Yet GMOs remain mostly unlabeled, and still dominate the US Food Supply.

  Public demand or no, the US government remains unable (unwilling?) to do anything to appease the voices, and put a label on GMOs.

  In fact, it seems the two sides are bearing in for a head-on collision. One side desperately trying to label the controversial foods, while the other desperately trying to keep the consumer in the dark.

Public Demand vs. Politics
  Just last week (March 26th), the Monsanto Protection Act (aka Section 735 in the Continuing Resolution spending bill) was passed by Congress, and then signed into law by President Obama. This new addition would bring biotech agriculture companies one step closer to ensuring their GMO crops will evade any serious scientific study or regulatory review.

  This provision will strip judges of their constitutional mandate to protect consumer rights and the environment, while giving 'big ag' the opportunity to plant new and untested genetically engineered crops.

  On the contrary, in November, a GMO labeling law (Prop 37) was narrowly rejected (losing by three percentage points) in California. Even after $45 million was contributed by the likes of Monsanto, DuPont, Pepsi, Coca-Cola, Kraft, Bayer, and so on, to oppose the GMO labeling initiative, for it to be so-narrowly defeated is encouraging.

  Almost immediately after Proposition 37 failed, more initiatives popped up at the state level throughout the country. Currently there are 20 states with volunteer groups working to get GMO labeling initiatives on their ballots for the coming elections.

  On one hand, we have our politicians and food industry leaders trying to increase the amount of GMOs in our food supply, while on the other, the public is asking for the ability to identify them.

  Who will win out? 

Whole Foods Enters the Fray
  To this point, grassroots efforts to label genetically modified foods have failed. But never has there been a big name behind the effort. Until now.

  Whole Foods, either looking to do right by the consumer, or capitalize on public sentiment, threw their hat into the ring before any other major grocer was willing.

  They announced in early-March, that within five years, all genetically modified ingredients for sale in its stores will be labeled. Whole Foods will be the first retailer in the US to take this step.

  "People have the right to know what is in their food," said Whole Foods Market founder and co-CEO John Mackey. What a novel idea.

  I think this is fabulous news, and something worth celebrating. But five years?! Whole Foods won't be require the labeling until 2018. As public opinion goes, it seems Whole Foods really didn't have much choice. They had already come under fire for not backing Prop 37 immediately, and felt even more pressure when GMOs were exposed in many of their products last year. 

  It seems, to avoid losing customers, Whole Foods made the jump. And with that jump, they will probably force big ag's hand into labeling their GMO foods. (And then maybe we can work on ridding GMOs from our food supply entirely.)

  Whatever Whole Foods' reasoning, requiring labeling is a great step for all of us. While it won't be a requirement until 2018, they are expecting many companies to comply earlier. Consumers shouldn't have to wait five years, but allowing companies the time to adjust and comply is fair. 

  It's unclear how Whole Foods' new requirement will impact the industry as a whole. The most logical result is that a ripple effect will occur, and labels will pop up in other stores across the nation as well. I guess we will see.

  Whole Foods or no, with the direction things are heading, it would seem labels will be either statewide or federal law, long before 2018. I hope so anyway.
 
  One way or the other, labels are on their way!

LINKS:

Q&A: Why Whole Foods Decided to Label GMOs

Prop 37 Opponents 

Monsanto Protection Act 

Whole Foods Promises to Label GMOs by 2018 

Reality Check: Is This the Political Atmosphere We Want?

Election season's over!

Tweet
  I had a blog all ready to go today. And it had nothing to do with the election or politics. But some thing's been eating at me this election season, and now is as good a time as ever to address it.

  It seems to me that we, as Americans, have a problem. Safe to say, that you've seen it too. I know, because I've seen the fed-up posts on FaceBook; the 'now we can go back to being decent human-beings' posts.

  Really? Why was it acceptable to NOT be decent human-beings? Just because it was election season?

  When did our political atmosphere become so polarizing? When did we become so fragmented? So hateful even?

  How do we expect to move forward and progress? We don't even respect each other's opinions.

  I'm far from a political junkie, and still relatively young in this voting game, but it seems to me that year after year, the gap between the right and the left widens further.

  That's not how it should be. And that's not the atmosphere that will most-benefit our country.

  How was the atmosphere 20, 30, 40 years ago? I know a lot has changed, just in the past few years, with the influx of social media and information being at our fingertips 24/7. But we cannot allow those advancements to change us for the worse.

  We need to demand more from ourselves, and maybe more importantly, more from the media.

The Media Effect
  Like it or not, the media has a great deal of power over us.

Blue vs. Red?

  If we continue to watch it, they'll continue to put the bickering, hateful, argumentative stories on air. Because it sells. In turn, we become hateful, bickering, argumentative people; that get nothing accomplished.

  We voted at the polls yesterday, let's vote with our viewership as well. Every day. 

  Demand better from our mainstream media, or seek out other sources. Simple as that.

Not 'Us" versus 'Them'
  We all know, to accomplish anything in this world, we need cooperation and teamwork. We need both sides in this fight to make our country better. There cannot be a huge crevasse between the left and the right. If we truly have OUR country's best interest at heart, we need both sides to make progress.

  It's not 'us' versus 'them'. We're all Americans, remember? We're in this together. We need to, at the very least, respect each other's opinions. Once we have that, then maybe we can work on compromise.

  Am I naive to expect more from us?

  I watched President Obama's acceptance speech. He talked about this very thing. We're not red and blue states. I hope he's right when he says we're not as divided as the pundits say we are. But as I take a look around me, I'm told otherwise.

  He seems confident that he can lead us closer together. I hope he's right. But there's a lot of work to be done, by US all.

More to be Done
  While we're at it, there are a few more things we should address:

•  Having 100s of millions of dollars (billions???) thrown into campaigning is NOT OK. There is entirely too much money involved in our elections.
• It's not OK that people's right to vote is threatened. Every American deserves the right to cast their vote. And in a timely manner. Four+ hour wait-times at the polls are unacceptable.
• Church and state were separated in our First Amendment for a reason. Religion has no place in our government.
• Campaigning needs a serious overhaul. It's not OK to demonize the opponent, and tear him or her apart. It's not OK to lie and cheat our way to the top.

  No one's going to fix it by themselves. So it's up to us to demand the change, and demand the compromise.

  These are just my two cents, and thank you for being patient through one last political essay (from me). But I doubt I am alone in thinking like this. I just think we need a little wake up call before we go too far. 

  What can we do to make a change for the better, and be 'decent human-beings' no matter the season?

Voting Time! Yes on Prop 37

Tweet
  Election season is here. And shouting at us. If you're like me, you grew tired of the political ads, and the back-and-forth bickering long ago.

  But it's time to get on with it, and exercise our right to vote. (I actually voted last week -- my absentee ballot should be making its way back to the Election Office any day now!)

  As I wrote a few months ago, California is voting on Proposition 37 -- the GMO Labeling referendum. Since election day is fast-approaching, I wanted to issue a friendly reminder before votes are cast.

  California is trying to become the first state in the US to label genetically engineered ingredients in foods. As much as I wish this were a national vote (or one I at least could take part in), it's not. So it's up to voters in California to get the ball rolling.

  No pressure.

  Truth is, California's vote on Proposition 37 impacts the entire country. If the legislation passes in California, other states probably will follow suit, or the food industry might very well decide to reformulate their products nationwide, in order to avoid the liability that these labels might carry. Resulting in the removal of GMOs from their products and replacing them with alternatives, much like they have done in over 50 countries around the world, where GMOs are already labeled.

  As it is now, GMOs have zero regulations and were never even tested before they entered the market in the early-90s. GMOs quickly became a fixture in our daily diets and now makeup nearly 80% of the food in supermarkets. Even worse, GMOs have become nearly impossible to identify and avoid on a daily basis.

  Unforeseen consequences on both human health and the environment have pushed this issue to the forefront in recent years. The time is right to do something about it.

  It seems that there is a food movement on the verge of occurring in the US. We're questioning the food supply. We're reading labels. We're concerned about where our food comes from, and what we are putting into our bodies. We want real food.

  So isn't it time?

  Public polling shows that 90% of Americans want to know exactly what is in their food, and want GMOs labeled. We need to make that a reality.

  If you're a voter in California, please vote YES on Prop 37 (and if you have friends or family there, please pass this along to them!).

  After all knowledge is power. Knowing what is in our food allows us to make informed decisions!

RELATED LINKS:

New York Times: Vote for the Dinner Party

The Battle Over Genetically Engineered Food Heads to Voters
Proposition 37 Facts 

RELATED POSTS:

What are GMOs?

The Effects of GMOs

Just Label It

Dangers of Soy

Prop 37