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Subject: Market Farming

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Chronological Thread  
  • From: Leigh <lh AT pressroom.com>
  • To: market-farming AT franklin.oit.unc.edu
  • Subject: alar myth
  • Date: Mon, 14 Jan 2002 17:42:42 -0500


But the truth is daminozide is off the market -was withdrawn by the company and banned by the US government ( during a Republican administration), has been for quit some time, and while some might want to have this chemical in their food, I don't. As the owner of an orchard, I don't want Alar on my trees, in my soil, in my drinking water or on my apples. I also support the EPA's testing of chemicals. As farmers we should have extensive knowledge about what is safe and what is not. Alar is unsafe. And has few benefits.

Furthermore, any rational person would demand a safe food system that prohibits use of chemicals on our food with obvious potential negative health results and which provide little benefit.

Sprouts, specifically sprouts grown commercially, are a different kettle of fish. Anyone who grows sprouts commercially or for themselves, can easily imagine the potential for contamination, (contaminated water, unclean growing surfaces, unsanitary handling) especially if the sprouts are to be shipped for long distances and the pathogens have extended periods of time to grow and multiply in a pathogen friendly medium.

This is not a chemical contamination but a handling issue.

With commercially grown sprouts we should demand the highest sanitary standards for the 'factory' where they are grown, and also for the shipping and packaging process.

For chemicals, we should demand of the companies that profit from, and have extensive sales forces to promote chemicals insure that their products are safe before they are marketed.

In the case of Alar, little testing was done, and finally when the producer did do appropriate tests, the results showed that their produce was unsafe. They then pulled it off the market.




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