so i got curious one day. i’ve been encountering a hormone advisory and a chemical warning for the past few days this week: recombinant Bovine Growth Hormone (rBGH) and bisphenol-A (BPA). one’s in my milk (which, thankfully, i don’t drink. except that milk’s in my ice cream), and the other’s (possibly) in my plastic drinking bottles. one gives rise to the possibility of pus in my ice cream milk (yuck!) and the other, well, literature says can cause downe syndrome as well as repeated miscarriages, among others.

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Sorry, folks! I am a triple-blog liar! But finally we have The Dairy Dilemma – Part 2.
(In case you are wondering, my bro’s colonoscopy was clean and clear! Yay for him!)

As I mentioned in The Dairy Dilemma – Part 1, dairy can be hard on the semi-colon’s sytem … and most people’s systems these days. I gave some tips that I’ve learned that have worked for me, and hopefully they’ll help you digest the yummy dairy goodness if you too cannot live without it.

The topic needed a second day because I’ve recently learned things about dairy that have made me very concerned! Once I decided I’d stick with dairy and learn how and what to eat, I became aware of an even bigger problem that affects all of us, not just semi-colons.

Mike’s aunt & uncle sent me a book this past summer called “An Unhealthy Truth” by Robin O’Brien. I dove into it a few months ago and came out as a wide-eyed and concerned consumer regarding what is in our food. In the book, O’Brien uncovers corruption between the FDA and many major food and pesticide corporations who are using genetically modified, synthetic or hormone-treated crops or livestock to make big bucks. I’m typically one who sits back to see if an issue is all “hype” or not – but when I learned that many other countries around world have banned the use of such products and hormones, I started to sense a problem. And for me, I was especially concerned with our dairy.

O’Brien explains, “Most of the nation’s leading dairy processors use milk from cows treated with the bovine growth hormone in at least some of it’s products… ” (p. 109) Bovine Growth Hormone (rBST or rBGH)  is a chemical given to cows to make them “step up milk production.” And while this doesn’t seem like such a bad thing, it’s adverse effects on cows can make you wonder. O’Brien’s book says that:

“The product seems to be hazardous to the cows. The package itself warns of such bovine problems as increases in ‘cystic ovaries and disorders of the uterus,’ ‘decreases in gestation length and birth-weight of calves,’ and ‘increased risk of clinical mastitis’ ‘(a painful type of udder infection that causes cows to pump out bacteria and pus along with milk requiring treatment with antibiotics and other meds that can end up in the milk.” (p. 99)

Sorry to gross you out, but those simple truths made me very concerned. I am an individual with some sort of cancer-causing gene mutation, and so to hear that the majority of the food I’ve been eating is from genetically-modified, hormone-enhanced and possibly antiobiotic-laced cows or crops worries me. Especially when it’s pointed out that:

“90-percent of breast cancers being diagnosed today are being triggered by factors in our environment.” (p.102).

“IFG-1 has also been implicated in prostate and colon cancer.” (IGF-1 is a hormone that can be found in milk, and is found in rBGH milk up to 10 times more than the levels of natural milk, and possibly even twentyfold according to more recent studies.” “It’s been known for years that the particular hormone is linked with cancers (because of its effects) on the endocrine sysem,’ says Dr. Pompilio.(p. 102-103)

“According to CNN and a recent study published in the Journal of Allergy and Immunology, milk allergy is now the most common food allergy in the United States, having risen to the number one position in the last ten years.”(p. 100)

After reading the research and studies, I was ready to change. But the nail in the coffin for me was O’Brien’s statement about what the FDA is requiring, which to me, is so sickening because of the corruption and greed:

“If a dairy wanted to highlight the fact that its milk had NOT been made with rBGH (you know, for those of us who might have an interest in avoiding this potentially carcionogenic hormone), the FDA recommended it to also state on the label that there was no difference between the genetically altered hormone that Monsanto had developed (company manufacturing the rBGH) and the regular old bovine growth hormone that already occured in nature.” (p. 104)

And when I went to Kansas City’s beloved Shatto milk’s website. I saw that to be true – there was a small disclaimer on their homepage that although they were rBGH-free, there has been no proven difference. What a load of crap. Because of lawsuits that have favored the rBGH-making Monsanto, local dairies priding themselves for not using artificial growth hormones now have to tip-toe around just to share their story and safety with consumers.

So friends, here we are. I was overwhelmed after I read this. Mainly because 1) This is all that I’ve consumed my entire life. We didn’t know! 2) I cannot afford to go all-organic, and 3) This is too big for me!

But as I began to do some research and finish O’Brien’s book, I learned it was possible to do something! And while it’s not wise to jump in the cold pool all at once, baby steps into the water will help make the swim much easier. Here’s what I’ve done so far, and what I’d encourage you in if you’re concerned now too.

1. Read the book. It gave great advice about adopting an 80/20 policy so you don’t kill yourself over being totally hormone-free or organic. This has helped me tremendously, as I still buy regular butter and feel comfortable in restaurants and other’s homes. Dairy is just one of the foods she tackles too… read the book for the full scoop on many of our beloved brands.

2. I began researching safe brands in my area. O’Brien lists several safe brands and stores, but not many are close to me in the KC Metro area. For you who are local to KC, here are some brands that can be found in the area that are safe and rBGH-free. I’m sure this is not a comprehensive list. If you have any to add, leave a comment and let me know!

• Any Organic Products (to be labeled organic they have to be rBGH-free by definition). Hy-Vee, Target, Wal-Mart and many other stores are carrying organic lines of dairy, and some (like Hy-Vee) even have their own organic store brand.
• Wal-Mart’s “Great Value” milk (milk only, not cheese or other products at this time)
• Yoplait yogurt (sneakers, they started making rBGH-free this past August but are keeping it on the down-low.)
• Kraft’s  2% brand of cheese (only one at this time)
• Shatto Milk Company (milk can be found at Hy-Vee, Price Chopper, Nature’s Pantry)
• Ben & Jerry’s ice cream
• Starbucks’ milk – as a company they vow to not use rBGH milk (or preservatives in their cookies for that matter.)
• Chipotle – their food is hormone-free
• I believe I read that Cabot cheese is going rBGH-free due to consumer demand.

3. I told somebody. It all starts with passing along the info. If you’re concerned too – tell somebody. Maybe together we can turn this around and one day be a country in-line with Europe, Australia, Russia and even Africa and demand that our country can prioritize making dairy (and other foods for that matter) safe over profitable. I just wonder how many more of us will have to lose colons, breasts, lungs, prostates and other vital organs to cancer to get this point across. Even if the dairy dilemma didn’t cause it … it’s certainly not helping it.

Post #8

Tonight I watched the movie Food, Inc which exposes the American industrial food system and its effects on health, the environment, human rights, and the economy. I found the book to be more informative but the movie is definitely worth watching — and take that from someone who doesn’t like watching movies. I was able to download the entire DVD off a popular torrent site. With a little search engine magic, it shouldn’t be too difficult for you to find.

The most interesting portion of the movie is the story of Monsanto, a multinational agricultural biotechnology corporation. It currently sells 90% of the worlds genetically modified seeds [1]. Monsanto is also the company behind bST/BGH (Bovine Growth Hormone) which is controversial to its effects on human and animal health. They are also the people behind the herbicide Roundup which is responsible for a host of environmental and health ills. Anyway, Monsanto “owns” seeds and patents their own form of these seeds. When a company such as Monsanto owns life they are able to set any market price they deem fit — and ultimately, become the only choice in the marketplace.  Farmers are being sued for saving seeds because it violates patent laws. What if the wind carries Monsanto patented crops to a nearby farm that isn’t using Monsanto stock? They can be — and have been — sued. This puts many farmers out of business because there is no way in the world to compete with a company so loaded with cash [2]. There is something gravely wrong for a company to hold so much power! I’m going to research more about Monsanto and avoid their products, the best offense against such a corrupt empire is to vote with your wallet.

Sources:

[1] http://www.greenpeace.org/international/news/monsanto_movie080307

[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monsanto#As_plaintiff

So, both Courtney Love and No Doubt aren’t too pleased with Activision.

It’s not really that much of a suprise, Kurt Cobain especially as seeing him playing some songs isn’t the most respectful thing in the world. Although I can see the fun side in this it kinda feels like I shouldn’t.

another GH montage – it’s fairly old but I thought I should post it here.

–

There’s a new Guitar Hero, with pop songs that aimed at little kids.

By this, I mean Band Hero, which is Activision’s most recent entry to the GH franchise. I can only see this being a disaster, as the game is a PEGI 12 age rating, and from the demo I assume that that represents the maximum age rather than the minimum. After the fairly amazing graphical update in GH5, I don’t see why it is necessary to go to graphics that wouldn’t look out of place in a low-budget horror film. Everything seems way too colourful and this makes it strangely creepy.

The main stand-out problem is the neon-pink interface, which kills your eyes after a second of scrolling through a menu. The other stand-out problem is it’s competitor Lego Rock Band, which for a kids game looks absolutely awesome. The setlist is strong, using ‘well known songs’ as in older hits rather than the top 40 nonsense that Band Hero is full of. They also have celebrity characters that have actually earned their icon status – including Queen, David Bowie and Iggy Pop. Band Hero has Taylor Swift and some Adam guy I’ve never heard of. Notice the difference?

Anyway, I’m going to stop now as I can see myself dragging this on, but I’m sure you get the point. The sad fact is that due to the GH series being more commercial I can guarentee Band Hero winning sales-wise, and a BH2 is inevitable.

Flameh out.

There’s a classic Chris Rock piece that will probably be removed from YouTube by the time I link to it (but it can probably be easily found again anyway). It’s about medicine and how humans no longer cure diseases. He’s talking about how the last disease that was really cured was polio and how drug companies no longer attempt to cure diseases because they make true profits, not by eradicating something from human experience forever, but by marketing various mitigation techniques that require repeat purchasing.

“Ain’t no money in the cure! The money is in the medicine!”

The idea of getting paid “on the come back” is what I thought about when I read this Jeffrey Smith post about Eli Lilly over at the Huffington Post. Readers of this blog know that I like Jeffrey Smith and the Institute for Responsible Technology. They have some of the best stuff about GMOs around. And this piece is about bovine growth hormone. And it even ties back to Kate’s great post about breast cancer since Breast Cancer Action is a part of the Milking Cancer campaign. There’s an 18 minute film here.

And while we are on the subject of brief Internet films, here is a well-worth-your-time 10 minute movie about the lawyers who authorized torture. It’s by the Alliance for Justice and it’s called Tortured Law. It’s worth your time, whether you are a product of law school or simply think that the United States ought to be above the world’s lowest common denominator when it comes to treatment of detainees.

And finally, rounding out the video recommendations is the most recent Adbusters ad that was rejected by the major networks. The ad is only a minute and can be seen here. The design is kind of tough on the eyes, but I think that’s intentional. I’m always interested when people refuse to simply take the money. The people who run the TV don’t want you to see images about brands and consumption habits. And that makes me want to see those things even more.

Because those flashing images are like the “sky flowers” that distract the zombies in George Romero’s Land of the Dead. We, of course, are the zombies. And we shuffle around in a stupor, while our minds are invaded by acts of psychic piracy and our ecosystems are invaded by cogon grass. More pesticides will solve anything.

We are armed with paper weapons. They are armed with Laserblasts.

Years ago, an owner of a glass company was arrested for throwing bricks through store windows in his town. What a way to increase business! Has Eli Lilly figured out the drug equivalent of breaking, then fixing our windows?

In August 2008, the huge drug company agreed to buy Monsanto’s bovine growth hormone (rbST or rbGH), which is injected into cows in the US to increase milk supply. It was an odd choice at the time. A reporter asked Lilly’s representative why on earth his veterinary division Elanco just paid $300 million for a drug that other companies wouldn’t touch with a ten foot pole. The drug’s days were obviously numbered. The former head of the American Medical Association has urged hospitals to stop using dairy products from rbGH-injected cows, the American Nurses Association came out against it, even Wal-Mart has joined the ranks of numerous retailers and dairies loudly proclaiming their cows are rbGH-free. In fact, Monsanto’s stock rose by almost 5% when the sale was announced, and Eli Lilly’s dropped by nearly 1%.

The main reason for the unpopularity of this hormone, which is banned in most other industrialized countries, is the danger of insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1). Dozens of studies confirm that IGF-1, which accelerates cell division, substantially increases the risk of breast, prostate, colon, lung, and other cancers. Normal milk contains IGF-1, milk drinkers have higher levels of IGF-1, and the milk from cows injected with Eli Lilly’s drug has much greater amounts of IGF-1. You can connect the dots.

Would it be too crass to point out the obvious conflict-of-the-public’s-interest that Eli Lilly also markets cancer drugs? In fact their drug Evista, which might help reduce the risk of breast cancer, may lower IGF-1 (according to one small study). So on the one hand, Eli Lilly pushes a milk drug that might increase cancer, and on the other, it comes to the rescue with drugs to treat or “prevent” cancer. Call it the perfect cancer profit cycle.

It gets better.

Cows treated with rbGH have much higher incidence of mastitis, a painful infection of the udder. This results in more pus in the milk (yuck). But don’t worry. It’s Eli Lilly to the rescue again. They are one of the companies happy to sell antibiotics to dairy farmers to treat the infection–which can’t help but increase antibiotic resistance in humans (double yuck).

History of Lawsuits and Criminal Charges

But would Eli Lilly consciously risk our health just to increase their profit? What kind of company are they and can we trust them with our food? If recent events are any indication, you better look for rbGH-free labels.

A December 17, 2006 New York Times article revealed that according to hundreds of internal documents and emails,

Eli Lilly has engaged in a decade-long effort to play down the health risks of Zyprexa. … Lilly executives kept important information from doctors about Zyprexa’s links to obesity and its tendency to raise blood sugar — both known risk factors for diabetes. … Lilly was concerned that Zyprexa’s sales would be hurt if the company was more forthright about the fact that the drug might cause unmanageable weight gain or diabetes.

Their own surveys revealed that 70% of psychiatrists had at least one patient “develop high blood sugar or diabetes while taking Zyprexa.” And 30% of patients taking the drug for a year gained at least 22 pounds–some over 100 pounds. But Lilly told their sales team, “Don’t introduce the issue!!!”

One doctor even warned: “Unless we come clean on this, it could get much more serious than we might anticipate.” It did indeed get serious. They paid out hundreds of millions in settlements to people who claimed they developed diabetes or other disorders.

But Lilly’s Zyprexa troubles were not over. In early 2009, they were forced to pay a record-setting $1.42 billion settlement with the Justice Department, and another record-setting state consumer protection claim of $62 million, for illegally marketing the drug to children and the elderly. It emerged in June of this year that Lilly “officials wrote medical journal studies about the antipsychotic Zyprexa and then asked doctors to put their names on the articles, a practice called ‘ghostwriting.’”
Eli Lilly was also the maker of the infamous Diethylstilbestrol (DES), a synthetic estrogen. Starting in 1938, it was prescribed to pregnant women to prevent miscarriages and other problems. Although in 1953, research showed that it didn’t actually prevent miscarriages, it continued to be used until 1971, when the FDA alerted the public that the daughters exposed to DES in the womb were at risk of a rare vaginal cancer. An estimated 5-10 million pregnant women received DES. The civil courts held Lilly liable because they should have foreseen (based on prior information) that DES might cause cancer and that Lilly should have done the proper testing before marketing it.

Rigging Research

In the late 1980s Eli Lilly was one of four companies (including American Cyanamid, Upjohn, and Monsanto) that tried to get their version of bovine growth hormone approved by the FDA. I sat down with Dr. Richard Burroughs, who was a lead reviewer for the agency on these applications. He didn’t have kind words to say about the companies. “They didn’t follow good science and they didn’t follow regulations for adequate well controlled studies,” he said. “They just went out and skewed the data.”

He said, for example, that Eli Lilly had mysteriously lost organ samples that may have shown problems in injected cows. And their researchers came up with creative ways to hide reproductive changes in the animals. Specifically, injections appeared to suppress cows’ regular menstrual cycle or reduce the visual symptoms. The company was required to report the number of cows “in heat,” but was told by the FDA that they could not use bulls to identify them. If bulls were needed, then the label on their drug would have to inform farmers that they would need a bull to help identify which cows were in heat. And most farms didn’t have bulls.

According to Burroughs, FDA investigators figured out that Lilly researchers secretly pumped up a heifer–a young female cow–with male hormones, so that the transgendered animal would act like a male and be attracted to the cows in heat. Lilly followed the letter of the law by not using a bull, but well, you can decide if you want to trust these guys.

Eventually, Lilly and two other companies withdrew their products, leaving Monsanto’s brand of rbGH as the only one that got approved and marketed. But Lilly worked a deal where they represented Monsanto’s drug outside the US. They sell it in 20 countries, including South Africa, Brazil, Colombia, Honduras, Kenya and Mexico. And now, they offer it in the US as well.

Human Reproductive Problems from Drugged Milk

In May 2006, an article in the Journal of Reproductive Medicine concluded that rbGH use, and the subsequent increase in IGF-1 in the US diet, is probably the reason why we have much higher levels of fraternal twins compared to the UK, where rbGH is banned.

Mothers with twin births are more likely to suffer from hypertension, gestational diabetes, hemorrhage, and miscarriage. Twin babies are more likely to be born prematurely and suffer from birth defects, mental retardation, cerebral palsy, vision and hearing disorders, and serious organ problems. How many drugs do you suppose Eli Lilly sells to treat these disorders?

Tell Eli Lilly to take rbGH off the market and out of your milk. To find non-rbGH dairy products, check out the non-GMO shopping section at www.responsibletechology.org.

http://www.sott.net/articles/show/194443-Is-Eli-Lilly-Milking-Cancer-by-Promoting-and-Treating-It-

In the United States today – the Water and Food supply delivers chronic fatigue, digestive disorders, allergies, irrational behavior, obesity and years of unnecessary, miserable suffering – before we depart this life at a much younger age than the Citizen’s of other industrialized Nations – ten years earlier than the Japanese. Americans spend 90% of their Food Budget on Processed Foods with little or no nutritional value.

Is America committing involuntary surreptitious mass suicide or is the agenda to have everyone sick so they have to resort to prescription drugs for the rest of life?

Let’s look at the status quo facts of US nutrition: there is no safe drinking water coming out of any faucet fed by a municipal water source in the US, in fact, there is Fluoride added to water with the sole purpose of involuntary medication of the population. Of course there are many other toxic chemicals in tap water as contaminants, including pharmaceuticals, agro chemicals, and perchlorate from rocket fuel – just to name a few. But – of course that doesn’t matter, right? There is always a soda, beer, coffee, wine and whiskey – and if it really has to be water, there is always a Bisphenol A leeching plastic bottle nearby – never mind the ice cubes made from chlorinated tap water. And besides, we can always consume distilled or RO water, who needs minerals anyway?

But let’s talk about solids, Food as we used to call it, when it still deserved that name as there was a semblance of life in it. As an aerobic exercise walk through the vast expanse of your Supermarket isles will clearly unveil – once you have reached the state of near exhaustion and strained eye sight – finding an edible and digestible Food is far more challenging than winning the jackpot in the Lottery.
All the packaged foods are processed for indefinite shelf life, which, of course the producers don’t tell you because they want you to replace it sooner rather than later. But there is nothing to spoil, because only food that has some form of life in it can rot; we can’t say: “go bad” because it is already dead on arrival. If the producer has made the stupid mistake of printing the Ingredients onto the package in a legible format and language – you won’t buy the product anyway because your choice of gourmet yummy chemicals is more distinguished. So, more mature companies have earned their seniority by deluding you into buying their products because you trust them; after all, a multibillion dollar company deserves your unwavering faith so much more than the local Farmer who doesn’t even disclose a nutrition label on his freshly harvested Greens. Indeed, there is something wrong here; there is not even an oval self-adhesive PLU Label stuck onto the edible plant tissue.

So your trusted Food giants that bestow you Breakfast Cereals fortified with sprayed on synthetic vitamins and bogus heart health claims are sanctified by the FDA, and the toxic gunk vendors of fake, so called “Organic Milk” from feed lot confined cows are blessed by the USDA, while the Farmer is castigated and threatened with armed raids for pointing out the salubrious effects of anything Nature provided. Rightly so, how dare the Farmer that points to the natural cholesterol balancing effects of Garlic, the Tumor inhibiting effect of Cherries and the anti-viral properties of Basil – he is making Drug claims and such are illegal. Oh, and by the way, he didn’t lavishly entertain the lawmakers on Capitol Hill either. The next hint on this omission will surely come from these elected officials, when the Farmers are cited for improper registrations and labeling of their Produce; just look at these eminently important and life supporting Information you obtain from the Nutrition Facts disclosure on your PET water bottle: sure you didn’t know that there is No Fat and No Carbs in that Water – right?

Well, and the FDA does not read Science, that is why this agency has no knowledge that GMO is any different than conventionally grown Produce; funny though that the rats know the difference very well as they don’t touch GMO-Tomatoes. Don’t waste your time pondering why, then Corporations spend Billions on making “no difference”; instead cherish the fact that there is an FDA consecrated “don’t ask – don’t tell” policy on Frankenstein, eh Frankenfoods. And you better don’t ask, you might get sued for obstruction of unlimited and unregulated growth of the Biotech Oligarchs on their government paved Freeway to monopolizing the World’s Food supply. Oh yes, and they completely forgot to tell you that they already lost the entire South African GMO Maize harvest in 2009 because they screwed up the GMO-seeds production. Then, surely it was an oversight, the US media missed to report this blunder of apocalyptic proportions; they probably didn’t find any open space between the Drugs and Fast Food commercials.

Sorry the digression, let’s get back to the Mausoleum a.k.a. Supermarket isles where – actually not all the Food comes in oversized Cartons, there are products you never knew you missed, like the fresh Apples with added artificial Grape Flavor in a blister pack, whoa, how could our Creator have missed to endow that necessity on mankind? Thanks to the Biotech Industry for correcting God’s omission. Just imagine if these Apple with a Grape flavor would have been offered to Eve by the serpent in the Garden of Eden – she would have been shocked and died of a heart attack before the sin – so we would now all live there in peace and harmony with a sinless nature.

Then, in search of a five dollar bottle of Designer Brand purified tap water – we find that this is probably one of the only products where the “nutrients” have not been removed – because the Fluoride is still in there and so is the Prozac. Never mind since that is the only “Natural” product at the end of an 80-foot shelve of sodas, whose most natural constituent may be the aluminum can enclosing the liquids, which, of course, have absolutely nothing to do with obesity, the American Beverage Association has said so. And, if ever anyone has told you that HFCS is bad for you, don’t worry, just revert to white Sugar – it is now GMO too.

So how about something healthy, like the “High in Fibers” canned Kidney Beans. Sure, a great natural Food in its own right, so what is the HFCS doing in all these cans, who requested that Kidney Beans are to taste sweet? But all the other cans are hiding worse, so let’s go to something more transparent, like Rice in a plastic bag, if only there were anything more than empty Carbs after all the Nutrients were processed out of the polished, snow white grains. Oh, but there, almost hidden is the Brown Rice, that must be good? But it doesn’t say Organic and there is no Origin, and it doesn’t sprout, so it’s probably Frankenfood.

So let’s talk about live Food, let’s visit the meat section, and remember that you have never heard of feed lots, animal factories, confined animal feeding operations “CAFO’s”, and exploitation and abuse of workers, OK?  The processed Meats in Blister Packs looks all but live and it shuts down my salivary glands completely, after suffering from dry mouth syndrome contracted in the previous isles. The long list of tongue twisting names of chemicals and colors that never made it to the Pantone color standard chart, appear a bit misplaced, I would rather look for these terms in the pharmacy section. But wait – there is the Fresh Meat, all neatly packaged and labeled. Oh, where are my reading glasses – OK, but it’s too dark to read such tiny letters, with this skimpy Font Tolstoy’s entire 800 plus pages epic “War and Peace” book could be conveniently printed on the back of a single T-Bone Steak package. But who cares, it’s the cheapest source of Transfats anyway; never mind in what miserable condition the animals were held before they were slaughtered under torture and distress, after a “life” accelerated by artificial Growth Hormones, Antibiotics and Steroids the animals were injected with and the toxic remnants of landfills, GMO corn and animal cadavers they were fed with. Besides, those facts are not listed on the minuscule scripted ingredients list anyway, so let’s just find comfort in the long list of chemicals used to make the meat look good for at least past the checkout counter.

No luck here either, so how about the Bakery section, there is nothing to mess up there, we think. This section is bulging as hundreds of bakery products are now presented in supersized Blister Packs. Blueberry Bran Muffin sounds and looks entirely palatable, at least we get the Bran’s Fibers and the Antioxidants form the Blueberries, really? The number one position of the Ingredients label proudly announces Sugar, no disclosure as usual whether it is GMO sugar or not; then, number two is HFCS – just to make sure you are staying on track to obesity and metabolic syndrome. The seemingly endless list of Ingredients seems a bit strange –what has my cooking book been missing? Oh yeah, the MSG, the artificial Flavors, the artificial Colors, the GMO Canola Oil, the GMO Soybean Oil and all those toxic chemicals for which one probably needs a weapon’s license to buy.

But why just focus on this one product when there are hundreds more? Right, there are hundreds of bakery products but not one single One that even vaguely resembles what the Baker learned to please the palate. So it’s all about appearance, as long as it looks like the real thing, People will buy it – at least those folks that don’t read labels and that must be the majority, otherwise who are they producing these Disease baits for?

Finally, in a last ditch effort near to starvation we reach the Bread stand: ‘100% Whole Wheat” says the bread wrapper – at least we know that Bread has been around for thousands of Years, at least since Genesis 14; how could the Human species have been fertile and populated the World if there was anything bad to it? Makes you wonder, when Lot was baking Bread without Yeast for the two angels in Genesis 19 – was he using high fructose corn syrup, GMO-soybean oil, mono and diglycerides, exthoxylated mono and diglycerides, dough conditioners (sodium stearoyl lactylate, calcium iodate, calcium dioxide), calcium sulfate, dicalcium phosphate, diammonium phosphate, calcium propionate and sodium benzoate?

Now, the World was prospering on natural ingredients for thousands of years, while people were enjoying Foods in their season with great pleasure – corporate America covertly replaced all wholesome constituents with unregulated Chemicals even as the US Consumers enjoyed the lowest cost on food and the world’s highest spending on Health-care: a whopping 16% of the GDP. With the decline of fertile Food consumption comes the rise of Infertility, but the Consumer does not connect the dots even the loss of pregnancies exceeds fifty percent of live births.

Instead, while Individuals spend record amounts on Health-care – they seeks the money to pay for it from gambling with stocks of the very companies that are making them sick by yielding to Wall Street pressure. But such irrational behavior is reasonable in light of the fact that most brains are damaged by the potent neurotoxins of flavor enhancer MSG and artificial sweeteners aspartame and sucralose.

So what’s the solution? Visit http://www.vitalityconcepts.com and learn about wholesome Nutrition – or just put on the blinders in the Supermarket, after wiping the cart handle with Anti-Bacterial spray – make sure you take a deep breath too so you are immunized in the unlikely case you pass by a Produce with a fragrance – buy everything and just ignore the labels (they are fraudulent anyway), buy Food with no taste and use your favorite condiment to hallucinate yourself into old memories (guaranteed to be free of any natural ingredient), avoid the Farmer and fresh Produce like the Plague (there could be bacteria on it !), drink at least a 6-pack of Sodas every day (yes, you heard that you need to drink half your body weight in ounces!) – keep buying these Pharma- and Biotech Stocks – and laugh all the way to the Pharmacy!

From last week’s post, you’ll remember we explained that GMO crops (to date) do not fulfill their promise:

1. They do not decrease hunger and poverty;
2. Data shows that GMO crops actually increase pesticide and herbicide use;
3. They do not yield more; in a new report from the Union of Concerned Scientists, Failure to Yield, data shows that despite 20 years of research and 13 years of commercialization, genetic engineering has failed to significantly increase U.S. crop yields.   In fact data points to possibly lower yields than would have been achieved by NOT using GMO seed.

But I still didn’t understand  what the fuss is all about.  After all, companies have been making claims for products forever.  Shouldn’t the product just die by way of non-purchase?  Why should governments get involved and prohibit the use of GMO seeds?  Why are the organic trade associations around the world in such an uproar?

After all, the promise of genetic engineering  is very powerful -  to be able to feed the world as populations increase and agricultural land gets squeezed.   James McWilliams, an associate professor at Texas State University, says that genetic engineering is “a hidden realm of opportunity to feed the world’s impending 9 billion a diet produced in an environmentally responsible way.” Time Magazine reported in September, 2009 that a scientist at Texas A & M University has discovered a way to remove the gossypol (a naturally occurring toxic chemical that protects the plant from infestation) from cottonseeds.  Today cottonseeds can be used for humans only after an extensive refining process to remove the gossypol.  Also in the works are crops that can produce higher yields with less water; a dust from genetically modified ferns that can remove heavy metals from the soil;  crops that can withstand drought or high salt content in soil; and other GM technologies that “have the potential not only to streamline production, but to play a meaningful role in reducing their carbon footprint.”(1)  Sounds pretty good to me.

In the United States, we haven’t heard much about genetic engineering, because in 1992, the
FDA unilaterally decided (in its opinion) that as long as a GM food is no more toxic, allergenic, or any less “substantially equivalent” than its standard counterpart, it need not be labeled to show the process that created it. That is quite different from the European labeling laws, introduced in 1997, which required that any food containing residues of engineered DNA or protein must be recorded as GM.

So what is it about genetic engineering that has these other governments and organizations so concerned?  Part of the problem may be that the scientific community does not like the unknown, and it seems to have not reached a consensus on the safety of these products for our health or for the environment, although it’s hard to determine what interests are behind which studies.

These areas of concern, in addition to those of the plants developing increasing tolerances to pesticides and herbicides, include :

1. The concept of “drift”:   that is,  pollen from genetically engineered plants will spread by insects and the winds to affect non-GMO plants.  (After all, a bee can travel up to 30 km or more.)  This contaminates both conventional and organic fields.  And farmers or food processors lose money because of unwanted contamination.   The  Organic Trade Association of Canada recently reported the discovery of contaminated flax seed in some German food products;  native corn in Mexico (where it is illegal to plant genetically engineered corn) was reported to have new GM genes found in the genome, where they could interfere with the plant’s normal genes.(2)   “It’s time for biotech companies to be good parents and take responsibility for their children. The owners of GE crops need to assume the liability for loss of market access due to their technologies appearing in countries or products in which they are not wanted. As GE products are not permitted under organic standards, the organic sector in Canada is extremely concerned by the prospect of losing access to its essential markets in Europe, Asia and around the world,” said Matthew Holmes, managing director of OTA in Canada.  According to the U.S. Organic Trade Association,  “Bt contamination is  a trespass, a nuisance, unwanted, and can lead to significant economic losses for organic farmers.  This is a clear example of potentially disastrous environmental degradation, with the added problem that consumers seeking products that contain no genetically engineered materials may be denied this choice because of inadvertent contamination.”
2. Concerns regarding human health: These are classed into those that fall under “unknown effect on human health” and allergenicity.   With regard to unknown effects, a study published by the Austrian government found that mice fed a type of genetically engineered corn produced fewer offspring and more females with no offspring, than mice fed conventional corn.  The effects were particularly pronounced in the third and fourth litters, after the mice had eaten the GE corn for a longer period of time.  Another study published in Lancet claimed that there are appreciable differences in the intestines of rats fed genetically engineered potatoes and those fed unmodified potatoes.(3)  The milk from cows injected with genetically engineered  bovine growth hormone rBGH  (sometimes called rBST)  has been found to have much higher levels of IGF-1, a hormone considered to be a high risk factor for breast, prostate, colon, lung and other cancers – and the milk has lowered nutritional value! (4). “This … should serve as a wake-up call to governments around the world that genetically engineered foods could cause long-term health damage,” said Andrew Kimbrell, Executive Director of the Center for Food Safety.       With regard to allergenicity, there is the possibility that introducing a gene into a plant may cause a new allergen or cause an allergic reaction in susceptible individuals. When DNA from one organism is spliced into another, can it turn a non-allergenic food into one that will cause an allergic reaction in some people?
3. Concerns regarding agricultural diversity:  The 1st conference on animal and plant breeding of the International Federation of Organic Agricultural Movements (IFOAM) was held in August, 2009.  Speakers at the conference made it clear that we are in a battle to save the diversity of today’s food in order to have future food.  According to Vandana Shivam,  who spoke at the conference, unprecendented weather is occurring in India with the disruption of life-giving monsoons which used to appear as regularly as clockwork.  Farmers growing GMO rice could not plant their seedlings because of lack of rain, while farmers who had access to heirloom drought-tolerant varieties were able to plant and get a crop.  Traditional farming used to include over 250 crops.  Now there are a mere 2 crops.  Community seed banks are springing up around India to preserve traditional varieities, and “freedom villages” are forming to prohibit GMOs because of their threat to traditional seeds.  You can learn more about the situation in India by reading “Stop the Biopiracy of Climate Resilient Crops” by clicking here. The Wall Street Journal ran an article on how organic farming, even with reduced yields, is more profitable for Indian farmers than conventional crops, because the farmers  no longer are subjected to high up front costs for chemical fertilizers and insecticides, and they can save  seeds from year to year.
4. Concerns regarding the safety of wildlife in the surrounding areas of GM crops: A major study performed by the British government and published by the Royal Society,   found that GM crops had 33% fewer seeds for birds to eat at the end of the season, and even two years later there were still 25% fewer seeds.  As the study puts it: “While reduction or removal of the visible flora temporarily reduces the food available to farmland animals, the key to longer-term impacts is the ‘seed rain’ (seeds falling from weeds) and its contribution to the seedbank (weed seeds left in soil).” (5)  They concluded that over time this would have a dramatic impact on the bird populations which are dependent on these seeds.  There are also fewer bees, beetles, butterflies and other insects in the GM crops. Such invertebrates are food for mammals, birds and other animals, and many are important for controlling pests or recycling nutrients within the soil.
5. Concerns regarding the use of Bt crops and organic agriculture:  Bt is often used in organic agriculture;  it is an excellent biological control for corn and cotton insect pests.  It is the most widely used biological control in organic agriculture.    But Bt engineered plants will lead quickly to significant insect resistance, depriving organic farmers of one of their most useful tools.
6. Concerns regarding the business of corporate agriculture: Many are concerned that farmers are turning dependent on large multinational corporations (MNCs) for seeds, fertilizers, pesticides and other inputs while also becoming more vulnerable to pressures to produce genetically engineered crops.   They fear the predatory nature of corporate agriculture and its attempts to corner the entire chain of food production from seeds to sales of food products.  Three companies — Cargill, Archer Daniels and Bunge — control nearly 90 per cent of global grain trade while DuPont and Monsanto dominate the global seed market. Eleven firms account for about half the world sales of seeds, of which about a quarter are sales of genetically engineered seeds. (6)  And agrichemical sales are concentrated in 6 firms which together control 85% of the annual pesticide market. (7)   The research into GMO crops is very expensive, meaning only large, well funded companies can afford the research.  It’s this last concern, that of “vertical integration” (i.e., a corporation taking over the entire food production cycle from the development of proprietary strains of DNA and the sales of seeds to farmers down to contracts with farmers that determine what is produced, how and for whom, and at what price and quality), that I want to focus on.

In an equity research paper done by Deutsche Banc of DuPont in 1999, they stated that they were willing to believe that GMOs were safe and “may provide a benefit for the environment” but that the perception wars are being lost by the industry.     “Not a day goes by lately where concerns and/or rebuttals are not in the press somewhere in the world. Domestic concerns regarding agbiotechnology are clearly on the rise, with the Monarch butterfly but one example of negative press causing a rethink of the future. For the most part, though, it has not yet gotten the attention of the ordinary U.S. citizen, but when it does – look out.”

The corporations which have so much at stake here know that they need a more aggressive marketing technique to promote the impression that GMOs are good and safe to use.  Agrichemical lobbyists are trying to convince the public that the industry is “science-based”.  A new global federation of agrichemical multinational corporations, Crop Life International, is the new representative of the “plant science industry”.  Crop Life’s annual report for 2007 makes the breathtaking claim that pesticides are actually good for the environment for a host of reasons, including “lower carbon dioxide emissions associated with the switch to no-till/reduced tillage farming systems, and less frequent pesticide applications made possible by biotech crops fuel savings.”

The agrichemical companies are vertically integrated, based on the law of efficiency similar to economies of scale which favors big corporations.  Antonio Tujan, Jr., international director of the Ibon Foundation Inc. (a research and educational institution specializing in socio-economic issues) says that “integration destroys the free market as it becomes increasingly dominated by the giants, which are able to dictate profits and what is produced.”  This turns the market into a sellers’ market, and farmers have little or no choice.  Farmers are forced to accept whatever they are asked to use such as seeds and pesticides.  A democratic market, in contrast, is a consumers’ market.

The big companies have a lot at stake, and the squabbling and double dealing – not to mention lawsuits and counter suits -  are worthy of a good thriller.   Monsanto, after years of acquiring seed companies while trying to become the major seed producer in the world,  filed a lawsuit in the spring accusing DuPont of patent infringement; DuPont countersued saying Monsanto wanted to protect its franchise at the expense of giving farmers access to better technology.   But in June, DuPont sued BASF over the same kind of alleged violations Monsanto sued it for in the spring – and of course, BASF countersued!

A more disturbing set of statistics is the number of lawsuits that Monsanto has filed against farmers who are accused of violating its patents.  It has built a department of 75 employees and set aside an annual budget of $10 million for the sole purpose of investigating and prosecuting farmers for patent infringement. For cases with recorded judgments, farmers have paid a mean of $412,259.54.  (Click here to read the entire report.) The table below gives the number of cases by year:

Number of Lawsuits by Year

Source:  The Center for Food Safety,  January 2005

According to Tom Wiley, a North Dakota farmer, farmers are being sued for having GMOs on their property that they “did not buy, do not want,  will not use and cannot sell.”

This just in:   Monsanto announced on  August 13 that it would be raising prices for its genetically modifed seeds from 17% to 42% – saying that these new seeds will boost yields; this is part of the company’s drive to double profits by 2012. (8)

(1) Brandon, Hembree, “GMO rejection – ‘Fatal rush to judgment’”, June 3, 2009, Southeast Farm Press

(2) “Chapala Vindicated”, Organic Consumers Association, March 5, 2009, http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_17133.cfm

(3) “Effect of diets containing genetically mofidied potatoes expressing Galanthus nivalis lectin on rat small intestine”, Lancet, Vol 354, No 9187, pp 1353-1354, Oct 1999

(4) http://www.preventcancer.com/consumers/general/milk.htm

(5) http://www.i-sis.org.uk/GMCHW.php

(6) Netto, Anil, “GMO Seeds:  “MNCs Gaining Total Control Over Farming”, December 12, 2007, Center for Research on Globalization

(7) Ibid.

(8) “A Seed Company Some Love to Hate”, Jim Jubak blog on MSN Money, http://blogs.moneycentral.msn.com/topstocks/archive/2009/08/14/a-seed-company-some-love-to-hate.aspx

Comment: Funny how a “right-wing” news organization prevents an anti-Monsanto story from making it on the air, only for a “left-wing” President to make a Monsanto shill/lobbyist one of his first Cabinet appointees. Could it be that the “right-wing” and the “left-wing” are actually ONE AND THE SAME?!

FOX NEWS Reporters (Reporters Steve Wilson & Jane Akre) uncover that most of the Milk in the USA and across some parts of the world is unfit to drink due to Monsanto Corporation’s POSILAC®, which has been proven to be a cancer-causing growth hormone.(known in short as “BGH” “BST” or “rBGH” ), but they were fired for trying to tell people the truth.

(Important note: After a long court battle, the Court dismissed the whistle blowers protection for the reporters because the Court stated that there was no law to force that the NEWS state the truth! Fact! Going on to say the NEWS was no different than other TV shows/reality shows!!)

But the FDA has turned a blind eye once again!

If you consumed or fed regular milk to your family today (8/21/08), there is more than a 90% chance that it was from a cow injected with BGH

(Bovine somatotropin developed by using recombinant DNA technology).

You could be killing or harming your child every time you pour them a glass of milk, the same as pouring them a glass of slow acting poison.

Please take action to ensure our children’s safety, for they can not protect themselves.

What first alarmed farmers was the massive amount of PUS in the milk but Monsanto and the FDA still had no concerns by stating that the PUS was not harmful to be ingested by consumers!

If you have little children, at least feed them certified BGH free Milk, Organic Milk or Organic/BGM free milk equivalent like Organic soy milk.

Last night my husband and I went to see the documentary Food, Inc. I found out it was playing at a local independent theater for just a few days and I had to see it.

Upon entering the theater, I was pleased to see about 20 – 25 people. I hope those people tell their friends and family as I am. I have to admit I felt as though I spent most of the film eyes welled up with tears. I was reminded once again how big business profits are more important than human health. Board room decisions that affect us ALL are made without the thought of future repercussions to humans, our environment, or our future. If you didn’t already know this, our nation’s food is controlled by only a few large corporations and a few key people. The film names these companies and people.

The saddest part of the film for me was a story of a mom who lost her child at 2 years of age just 12 days after eating a burger tainted with E. coli 0157:H7. She and her mom have been fighting in Washington for 6 years to get a food safety law passed named Kevin’s law in honor of her son. The law would allow the USDA to close down a factory if it had repeated orrurences of pathogen contamination. To see the full details of Kevin’s law click here.

How does E. coli get into beef to begin with? Basically, cattle are fed a diet of corn instead of being able to graze on grass. Corn is cheaper feed and it fattens the cows. The corn causes E. coli to form in the intestines. The cows then stand in their own feces because they are kept in such close quarters. When they get slaughtered and processed the meat can become tainted with E. coli. Remember the E. coli spinach recall? That was due to cow waste runoff being soaked into the ground and infecting crops.

It was hard for the filmmakers to find farmers actually willing to speak on camera and rightfully so. When you have multi-billion dollar corporations controlling everything, who would want to speak up? There was an interview with a chicken farmer who was under contract with one of the largest chicken manufacturers. She said after years of working with these chickens that have been given antibiotics, she was now allergic to all antibiotics. Unfortunately after speaking with the filmmakers, she lost her contract with that big poultry company. She said she felt in her heart it was time to speak up and I for one am so grateful that she did. It was a very brave thing she did to educate us all.

On the flip side, there was an interview with a farmer that does things right. Cows, pigs, and chickens roaming and grazing on grass. He told a story about a customer that complained that a dozen farm fresh eggs costs $4 while he was drinking a 75 cent soda! Really now? It was good to see there are still real farmers out there.

The film also talked about the power of the consumer. Consumers all but eliminated dairy products containing recombinant bovine growth hormone (rbGH) by choosing other products until companies listened. Unfortunately you can’t talk about food or food companies in this country without the possibility of being sued. We all remember the case of the Texas cattlemen vs Oprah Winfrey, right?  In fact, in Georgia, South Dakota, Alabama, Florida, Idaho, Texas, Arizona, Oklahoma, Mississippi, Colorado and Louisiana it is now against the law to publicly criticize corporate food products under so-called “food disparagement” laws promoted by agriculture, chemical and biotechnology industry lobbyists. Wow, what ever happened to free speech?

We, as consumers, do have a say and essentially cast our vote EVERY time we make a food purchase. Every time you pick up organic milk instead of conventional milk you are sending a powerful message that this is what consumers want more of! Yes it’s more expensive. No you don’t have to buy all organic all the time but just those few items you choose to purchase organic is making a difference!

The end of the film gives ways you can make a difference and I’m going to list a few.

• tell people about the film
• buy more organic produce and products
• purchase meat locally from cattle or poultry farms. You can find some in your area by visiting this great website.
• purchase vegetables locally and in season where possible.

In conclusion, a very important film that you should take the time to see!

Hi!  I’m Amy, your Nutritional Nanny, and I want to help you and your family eat better, feel better and look better for the rest of your fabulous lives. Simple enough, right?

Actually it is. You just have to eat real, whole food.

As many of you already know, I’m passionate about getting people away from their processed, artificial, chemical and junk-filled diet because, simply put, it’s terrible for them.

Relax.

I not asking you to throw those mallowbars out the window but I am here to gently nudge you into incorporating more real, whole food into your diet.  It’s not hard, I promise.

Stay tuned for posts on how to make minor adjustments in your shopping that will have major impacts in your life, simple, practical advice on how to get your family to eat the real whole food you serve them, and even explanations of GMOs, rBGH, organic, locavores and all sorts of other fancy words you’ll want to use to impress your friends. It’ll be fun, and more importantly, good for you and your family.

In other words, stick around. We’ve got a lot to talk about.

 Food, Inc. was assigned reading for my 1102 English course. I am about halfway through it and it has given me a glimpse into the ugly world of industrialized agriculture.

A few examples of things I didn’t know about the food I was eating:

1. Most of our nations meat comes from “factory farms”, where animals are packed together by the thousands in unsanitary conditions. They are not freely roaming in grass fields (as I had imagined) (19).

2. Because of these unsanitary conditions, antibiotics are regularly used to keep the animals from getting sick and dying. This contributes to new strains of antibiotic resistant bacteria (like staph); a growing public health concern (20).

3. Animals are forced to ‘relieve’ themselves where they stand, producing huge amounts of manure and urine that is poured into cesspools. Leaks, runoffs and spills pollute the land and water of surrounding communities. (19)….2,500 cows produce as much waste as 411,000 people (24).

4. These animals aren’t eating grass and hay, as nature intended. Rather, their ‘feed’ consists of; restaurant plate waste, cattle tissue (cow body parts), cattle blood, and poultry litter (uneaten chicken food, which is also made of cattle tissue) (21).

5. In 2004, the FDA had the opportunity to ban this type of cattle feed but didn’t. Instead, they simply proposed a weaker set of rules, restricting tissue use of older cows (21).

6. Hormones, used in American dairy and meat cows, are banned in the European Union, citing their 1999 study on safety for humans. The report shows hormone residues in meat affects the hormone balance of humans, causing reproductive tissues and breast, prostate, or colon cancer. The EU has prohibited the import of all beef treated with hormones; none of America’s meat is accepted (23).

7. Chickens are kept in cages too small for even simple movement, often their beaks are cut off to keep them from pecking their neighbors (25). 

8. Genetic engineering (GE) is changing the DNA of many staple crops in this country, and the viral promoter, CAMV, used in ’splicing’  is unregulated. British press released findings in 1999 that revealed GE potatoes were posinous when fed to lab rats. The scientist behind the study had his funding cut off and was fired after going to the media….Regulatory agencies currently do not require the kind of feeding test done by Dr. Pusztai (81).

9. In 1998, Monsanto (maker and owner rBGH) and FDA documents that had been withheld, were released to scientists in Canada, showing damage to laboratory rats fed dosages of rBGH (the growth hormone injected into dairy cows), indicating cancer hazards. Canada had since banned the use of rBGH (83).         

10. More than 8 million acres of GE crops (soybeans, soy oil, corn, potatoes, squash, canola oil, cottonseed oil, papaya, tomatoes) are presently cultivated in the US, and up to 750,000 dairy cows are injected regularly with Monsanto’s growth hormone, rBGH (81).

This book is a must read, the list above is just the tip of the iceberg. I, like many Americans, was misinformed about the food I put into my body, now I am choosing organic products whenever possible.

. . .or, why can’t we be more like the savage socialists across the pond?

Marion Nestle recently pointed out that in Europe food must be labeled as containing GMO’s. The system isn’t new, and it springs from a general distrust of GM agriculture in much of the world. Nothing, however, stops a company from using GM ingredients or consumers from purchasing GM products. Their presence is labeled with the allergens. Looks like a free market where the informed consumer can make choices, promote competition and generally play a part in the all important invisible hand mechanism.

I have no idea whether ingesting GM crops will damage humans, but we’ll find out for sure in a few decades. Like in the pharmaceutical industry, long-term testing mostly consists of selling it to us and seeing what happens. And we will see what happens, because planting percentages of GM crops is large and growing. Corn is at least 50%; soya is close to 90%; and canola/rape is 75%. The US plants 63% of all GM crops, with Argentina trailing by a wide margin at 21%.

Contrary to what you might read on the internet, not all of the applications are scary. Golden rice is probably one of the noblest developments in agriculture’s history, but it still amounts to fiddling the latch on Pandora’s Box. No, genetic modification is not “just like hybridization”. Hybridization is strictly controlled and promoted evolution. Genetic modification is winding evolution up and letting it go. The 50% number that Ms. Nestle quotes for GM corn is almost certainly much, much higher, and i’ve read reputable reports stating that more than 90% of corn at sorting tests positive for GM markers. The modifications don’t stay where they’re put because plants cross pollinate; in fact, genetic modification of crops travels like the wind…literally. And since some of the modifications give plants a distinct advantage, they are unlikely to go away.

You can just go ahead and figure that most of the food you eat contains GM ingredients. Even the farmers who don’t plant it end up reaping it, and when they do the Monsanto snoops will surely find out. That leads to a lawsuit that the farmer will inevitably lose, which leads to a settlement that always includes a strict gag order. The snoops and the lawyers will be from Monsanto because Monsanto is the GM agriculture industry. And the law will be on Monsanto’s side because it has infiltrated government to a degree that makes the MIC weep with envy. Without hyperbole, Monsanto makes Halliburton look like the Salvation Army.

This is the company that brought us Agent Orange, PCBs and an illustrious list of other banned substances. It is the same company that managed to get and defend a law in Pennsylvania that forbade dairy farmers/producers from labeling dairy “growth hormone free”. (Monsanto developed rBGH if you hadn’t guessed.) This is the company that applies for patents on interesting finds from the national seed bank. And when you read the stories of farmer suicide in India, think Monsanto. They have vertically integrated to such a degree that the farmers generally kill themselves by drinking a Monsanto product. After being sold/coerced into purchasing Monsanto seeds that they cannot save under threat of patent infringement, the farmer will find out that the increases in yield will also cost a great deal because the yield increase is dependent on inputs besides the seed…inputs that, coincidentally, Monsanto sells. When the loans taken to pay for the great leap into a glossy, full-page ad in The Economist come due and the harvest isn’t the shining utopia promised by the green revolution, nor are there any seeds for next season, the farmer kills himself.

It’s been said that a revolution tends to devolve into a tyranny worse than the one which it overthrew. If the green revolution were the one in Russia, Monsanto would be Stalin.

And here is the most significant problem. Monsanto and the promoters of GM agriculture claim that it feeds a hungry world by increasing yield. Except that it doesn’t. The majority Monsanto’s GM crops are designed to resist Round Up. Theoretically, being able to cover everything in Round Up to keep weed growth down will increase yield. But higher yields don’t have anything to do with Monsanto’s modifications: it’s about selling Round Up. Tests have been run in which the GM crop yields less than a traditional hybrid. (In one case, a supplement boosted the GM crop to equal the hybrid, but needing to supplement suggests that more changes have occurred than just being “Round Up Ready”…of course, i’m not a research agronomist.) When confronted with these results, Monsanto countered that it hadn’t designed the crops to increase yields in the first place. Precisely, except all of the advertisements and editorials claim yield improvements.

It’s not just the poor, Indian cotton farmers who are in a bind. American farmers are on Monsanto’s treadmill, and so are you. One company controls an astoundingly large percentage of the food you eat at its source: the seed. We won’t see GM labeling laws because they might hurt Monsanto’s business, and there isn’t a politician in America who will poke Monsanto…not for love, nor money, nor the sanctity of free markets.

Worse, if in two decades we find out that one of these modifications is quite dangerous to humans or the environment, we will likely find ourselves in a situation where there isn’t any alternative. Evolution will have adopted the modifications. Monsanto will have made its profit. And we’ll all be left holding the bag…which in this case could well be an empty one of the grocery sort.

I’ve been reading Harvest for Hope: A Guide to Mindful Eating by Jane Goodall. I’ve learned more about genetically modified (GM) foods and seeds, as well as the effects of rBGH (synthetic bovine growth hormone) on dairy cows and humans than I thought possible.

I’ve learned about Monsanto, and that it is a pimple on the butt of humanity. I’ve always know that buying organic meant farmers used natural fertilizers and no chemical pesticides. But I had no idea about the frankenfoods that Monsanto creates…I mean, can you imagine eating corn with Bt in every single cell of the kernels you chew? Not just that, but every single cell of the plant?

I knew about the terrible conditions that cows and chickens live in, but really, has our sense of compassion and humanity degraded so far as to treat these animals like machines?

I’m only a third of the way through the book. Ugh.

So yesterday afternoon consisted of a trip to the grocery store interrupted by the need to run to the minor care center around the corner.

It’s an adventure. The little one and I enjoyed a peach we purchased from the produce  department while we shopped for other things. It only took about ten or fifteen minutes for me to realize I was itching uncontrollably. I began to feel self conscious, so I discreetly pulled a tiny mirror out of my purse to discover giant red splotches all over my neck. Five minutes more, and my lips were tingling and my throat was tightening up. The splotches were spreading up my face, down my arms and onto my trunk.

I didn’t ditch the groceries: no way when shopping with toddler. I just stopped, checked out, and hauled ass to the minor care center.

After some benadryl and prednisone, I was on my way back to normal. It was minor in the end, I guess. But I wasn’t going to mess around with a tight throat. No way.

So the point of this,  as much of a coincidence as it is, I’m not allergic to peaches. It was something ON the peach. Pesticides? Possibly. It could have been any number of things the fruit was exposed to during shipping.

No, they weren’t local. I was going for cheap, since this month’s budget is tight.

Lesson learned: Make room in the budget for local/ organic. Or get hives.

I have long thought Monsanto is the devil. Of course, this is just my opinion, but I would encourage you to watch the video to decide for yourself. Monsanto seems to be buying “safety releases” to say their products are safe. Fox News may also be participating in supporting Monsanto. What would you want to know before you eat food made by Monsanto? Monsanto states that unsavory press would result in “dire consequences to Fox News,” and guess whether or not Fox news aired the information?  Monsanto and Fox News may have conspired to cover up the American schools’ tainted milk supplies.  Watch the video.  It will give you the shivers, and for myself, I drink milk from our local farmer’s market, from a woman who believes Monsanto is evil and that growth hormones don’t belong in our children’s milk.  What will you feed your children today?

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Thanks to Andrew from Campaign for Liberty for the head’s up:

This just in from the National Independent Consumers and Farmers Association (NICFA):

VOTE on HR 2749 POSSIBLE TUESDAY. CALL TODAY.

HR 2749, the All Industrial Agriculture bill, could be voted on in the House of Representatives Tuesday. Please call your Congressman immediately and request that he or she reject this bill. Normal voting rules have been suspended to try and ram this through, so please call immediately.

This bill will:

• Mandate NAIS (National Animal Identification System)
• Allow industrializations of all farms
• Give the federal government arbitrary power to force any practices they choose on any farm.
• Allow the federal government to outlaw raw milk

This bill will not create the food safety it claims (it’s actually called The Food Safety Enhancement Act of 2009). It will make the our food supply less safe by eliminating small farms and centralizing production and processing more than it is already.

ACTION: Please call your Congressman immediately and ask him or her to vote AGAINST HR2749.
Contact info: http://www.House.gov

There is no amendment that will “fix” this bill. An amendment proposed by Representative Kaptur has not been accepted and will not fix the problems in this bill anyway. We want to stop this bill.

Yours for small farms and real food,

Deborah Stockton, Executive Director
National Independent Consumers and Farmers Association (NICFA)
nicfa@earthlink.net
http://www.nicfa.org

More about why NAIS and these so-called “food safety” bills must be stopped:

Learn more here:

http://bytestyle.tv/node/34
http://bytestyle.tv/node/36
http://bytestyle.tv/node/40

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