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  • From: "Tradingpost" <tradingpost@lobo.net>
  • To: livingontheland@lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [Livingontheland] Does any one know if this is bogus?
  • Date: Tue, 27 Apr 2010 20:30:09 -0600


Bob, of course Monsanto wants their tentacles in everything. Of course the
corporations and middlemen want control. But some kernels of truth are blown
away by all the exaggerations and insistence on the worst possible outcomes.
Some of these claims are obviously beyond the power of the U.S. government to
legislate or to enforce, like giving the U.N.'s WHO control of the whole
world's food supply. Ridiculous. Some just don't pass the smell test. Nobody
has an army of a million bureaucrats to routinely inspect everybody's back
yard. These wild exaggerations do not push people harder to fight it. It
makes it sound unwinnable so why bother, or just looks nuts. And there are
consumer and small producer organizations pushing for sensible rules for
small producers. Home growers aren't even on the radar screen.


following is from:
http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2010/04/farmers-make-gains-in-senate-battle/
Farmers Gain in Senate Food Safety Battle
by Helena Bottemiller | Apr 15, 2010

Several amendments aimed at lessening the impact on small farms will be
adopted in the final version of the food safety bill headed for the Senate
floor next week, a key sustainable agriculture group announced yesterday.

The National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC) reported that "several
very important breakthroughs on important improvements" for its constituents
will be included in the manager's amendment, a package of changes agreed upon
by both sides before floor debate.

The group has been working closely with Senate staff to address widespread
concern in the small, organic, sustainable agriculture communities about the
impact the pending FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (S. 510) would have on
the growing local food movement.

With key changes in the works, the group may be able to get behind the
legislation, NSAC spokeswoman Aimee Witteman told Food Safety News. "Assuming
there are no new surprises in the bill and once information is shared about
the outcome of the negotiations over Senator Brown's traceback provision [see
below], we can support the bill as amended," said Witteman in an email
yesterday.

According to NSAC, the support for changes has "picked up speed in the past
week" with a floor vote imminent. The group reported that the following
changes have been agreed to (it's important to note, the final language has
not been worked out):

-The amendment sponsored by Senator Bernie Sanders (D-VT) pertaining to farms
that engage in value-added processing or that co-mingle product from several
farms will be included in the final bill. It will provide the Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) with the authority to either exempt farms engaged in low
or no risk processing or co-mingling activities from new regulatory
requirements or to modify particular regulatory requirements for such farming
operations. Included within the purview of the amendment are exemptions or
flexibilities with respect to requirements within S. 510 for food safety
preventative control plans, and FDA on-farm inspections.

-The amendments sponsored by Senator Michael Bennet (D-CO) will also be
included in the final bill. These amendments, intended to reduce unnecessary
paperwork and excess regulation, pertain to both the preventative control
plan and the produce standards sections of the bill. FDA will be instructed
to provide flexibility for small processors including on-farm processing,
minimize the burden of compliance with regulations, and minimize the number
of different standards that apply to separate foods. FDA will also be
prohibited from requiring farms and other food facilities to hire consultants
to write food safety plans or to identify, implement, certify, or audit those
plans. With respect to produce standards, FDA will also be given the
discretion to develop rules for categories of foods or for mixtures of foods
rather than necessarily needing to have a separate rule for each specific
commodity or to regulate specific crops if the real food safety issue
involved mixtures only.

Much more at that site.

Current status on file at
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=s111-510
Apparently it's taking a back seat to financial reform this week. We need
more credible, current status on it.

paul tradingpost@lobo.net

*********** REPLY SEPARATOR ***********

On 4/27/2010 at 5:13 PM bob wrote:

>http://foodfreedom.wordpress.com/2010/04/24/s-510-is-hissing-in-the-grass/#more-1828
>
>
>
>All about new law that will not let farmers sell their produce. Bob C
>
>
>





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