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  • From: "Lawrence F. London, Jr." <venaurafarm@bellsouth.net>
  • To: Market Farming <marketfarming@lists.ibiblio.org>, permaculture <permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: [permaculture] Fwd: [SANET-MG] Fwd: [MCM] Whole Foods condemns USDA's surrender to Monsanto
  • Date: Sun, 30 Jan 2011 12:25:21 -0500

-------- Original Message --------
Subject: [SANET-MG] Fwd: [MCM] Whole Foods condemns USDA's surrender to Monsanto
Date: Sun, 30 Jan 2011 11:15:19 -0600
From: Douglas Hinds <cedecor@GMX.NET>
To: SANET-MG@LISTS.IFAS.UFL.EDU


This is a forwarded message

From: Mark Crispin Miller <markcrispinmiller@gmail.com>
To: <newsfromunderground@googlegroups.com>
Date: Saturday, January 29, 2011, 6:44:59 PM
Subject: [MCM] Whole Foods condemns USDA's surrender to Monsanto

===8<==============Original message text===============

Whole Foods condemns USDA's surrender to Monsanto
USDA Disappoints: No Regulations on GE Alfalfa

by Walter Robb & Margaret Wittenberg, January 28th, 2011

http://blog.wholefoodsmarket.com/2011/01/no-regulations-ge-alfalfa/

It is difficult to express how disappointed we are by the USDA's decision to completely deregulate genetically engineered (GE) alfalfa without restrictions. This news means farmers will now be able
to plant Roundup Ready GE alfalfa without restrictions, beginning as soon as this spring.

The USDA had been considering two potential decisions on this issue
- either full deregulation or deregulation with restrictions. The
latter would have set rules to protect non-GE crops from
contamination. While Whole Foods Market and other advocates for
non-GE and organic foods feel the USDA's deregulation decision is a
setback, we will continue the fight for the protection of non-GE
food, as we have ever since genetically engineered crops first
appeared in the marketplace.

Whole Foods Market advocated strongly for deregulation with
restrictions to preserve the ability of non-GE and organic growers
to avoid contamination. It seemed that the USDA was finally
recognizing that cross-contamination of GE alfalfa could potentially
impact organic and non-GE farmers and consumers, both domestically
and for our export markets. In fact, by inviting non-GE industry
members to D.C. to discuss this issue, it appeared as though the
USDA was acknowledging that organic and non-GE agriculture has the
right to not only survive, but to thrive alongside GE agriculture.

Unfortunately, the USDA's decision fell far short of this mark, and
we believe that unrestricted planting of GE alfalfa without setting
any clear coexistence framework, with thresholds for contamination
and providing for ongoing testing and verification, is
irresponsible. As true advocates of non-GE foods, we had hoped for
far better from this process.

Many people have asked us why we endorsed the coexistence option
rather than an outright ban on GE alfalfa. That was never an option
in Washington! The USDA presented the industry with only two options
that they were considering- deregulation and deregulation with
restrictions. Given the pervasive planting of GE crops in the U.S. -
93% of soy, 86% of corn, 93% of cotton and 93% of canola seed
planted were genetically engineered in the U.S. in 2010 - the option
of an outright ban was not on the table. Whole Foods Market - along
with the National Cooperative Grocers Association, the National
Organic Coalition, the Organic Trade Association, and other
companies and groups - endorsed the path of deregulation with
restrictions, or coexistence, not because it was a perfect path, but
because it was a path to create meaningful change right now in the
regulating of genetically engineered foods and the protection of
non-GE foods. Because we supported the USDA's approach of
coexistence, certain consumer groups misunderstood our efforts and
accused us of supporting big biotech, endorsing the proliferation of
GE crops, and turning our backs on our shoppers' and their desire to
avoid GE food. Nothing could be further from the truth!

Whole Foods Market has been a staunch supporter of non-GE foods in
the marketplace. We have taken a strong and visible stance on
biotechnology in agriculture, and will continue to do so.

a.. We believe that GE food should be clearly labeled, and that
the USDA and FDA's policies on GE foods are not consistent with
our consumers' expectations.

b.. Since 1992, before GE crops were even commercialized, we have
been educating and advocating on this issue, and we will continue
to pursue our right to sell non-GE food.

c.. We are proud to be a founding leader of The Non-GMO Project,
which works to ensure the sustained availability of non-GMO
choices through an industry-wide product standard. (Genetically
engineered and Genetically Modified Organism - GMOs - are used
interchangeably.)

d.. We are committed to sourcing our store brand products to avoid
GE ingredients, and we will continue to fight for strong organic
standards that do not allow the use of GE crops.

e.. We support the National Organic Standards, which prohibit GMOs
in organics, and we champion informed consumer choice with regard
to GMOs.

f.. Our 365 Everyday Value® and Whole Foods Market brand products
are sourced to avoid ingredients grown from genetically engineered
seed, and our partnership with the Non-GMO Project will enable us
to verify and label these products.

We will continue to work aggressively on this issue because we
believe that GE food ingredients should be clearly labeled, and that
consumers who want to avoid them should have an actionable way to do
so. While yesterday's decision will make our work more difficult, we
are as committed as ever to ensuring that non-GE food remains
available and we will continue to advocate for our farmers and for
our shoppers on this issue.

--

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  • [permaculture] Fwd: [SANET-MG] Fwd: [MCM] Whole Foods condemns USDA's surrender to Monsanto, Lawrence F. London, Jr., 01/30/2011

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