MONSANTO'S MESS
Organic Consumers Association
Monsanto's Mess When the colours turn grey and the lights all fade To black again We’re in over our heads But somehow we make it back again – lyrics from “Beautiful Mess” Next month will mark one year since Congress obliterated Vermont’s GMO labeling law and replaced it with its own faux-labeling measure. The DARK Act was an outright attack on consumer and states’ rights. But then-President Obama refused to veto it. We lost the right to labels on GMO foods. But we never lost our determination to expose Monsanto’s corrupt manipulation of government agencies, or the truth about just how harmful Roundup herbicide is to humans and the environment. Fast forward to today. Monsanto is facing down scores of lawsuits by people, or their families, who were diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma after being exposed to Roundup. Those lawsuits have led to revelations about possible collusion between Monsanto employees and former U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) officials to bury evidence of Roundup’s carcinogenicity. Meanwhile the EPA, perhaps fearing consumer backlash, has yet to rule on whether to renew the license for glyphosate (the active ingredient in Roundup), even though we’re now nearly two years past the deadline. Food companies are being sued, too, when product testing reveals that brands labeled “100% Natural” contain glyphosate residues. And the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) recently announced it will resume testing of consumer foods for glyphosate. Farmers are growing fewer GMO crops. Other countries are banning GMOs and glyphosate. It’s no wonder Monsanto can’t wait to hand over the keys to Bayer. Things are getting messy. But for consumers and environmentalists, it’s a beautiful mess. Read 'Monsanto's Mess—Four Signs Consumers Are Winning' |
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Still Looking?
“I think that it is conceivable that we could wake up and we could have activists controlling literally the local level in a way that we've never seen before. With that power, we'd have the sovereignty to pass legislation that really fundamentally affects people's lives.” – Micah White, Occupy activist, in an interview with NPR
Fed up with how big corporations are interfering in local politics, in ways that strip cities and states of their right to local control?
Tired of local officials saying NO to your right to pass local pesticide bans, to ban fracking, to reject the construction of factory farms, and to protect local water supplies from pollution, and local organic farmland from contamination caused by drifting GMO seeds and pesticides?
You may already be working in your city or your state. On a critical environmental or food and farming issue. Or maybe you're working to elect new candidates who will serve you and your community, not some corporation.
But if you’re still looking for a way to get involved—and have fun doing it—plug into our #Resist & #Regenerate Movement.
Find and join a #Resist & #Regenerate Meetup near you
Start your own #Resist & #Regenerate Meetup group in your community
Watch our Meetup webinars for tips on how to organize in your community
Crazy.
As summer rolls out, it’s shaping up to be more crazy than hazy.
And here in the OCA offices, lazy isn’t an option.
We’ve got a new EPA director who has made it his life’s ambition to dismantle the EPA—in other words, get rid of the regulations that are supposed to protect us from deadly chemicals in our food, water and air.
We’ve got regulatory agencies ready to sign off on mega-mergers, like the one between Monsanto and Bayer, that will give Big Biotech even more power than ever over the global food (commodities, really) supply.
We’ve got a former Exxon chief running the U.S. State Department, and a president who things global warming is a hoax. And the CEO of Dow Chemical heading up some new government entity called the “American Manufacturing Council,” which puts him in a position to overturn science-based decisions calling for bans on chemicals like chlorpyrifos, known to cause brain damage in children.
And don’t even get us started on the unfolding scandal around the potential collusion between Monsanto and former EPA officials to keep the truth about Roundup herbicide’s deadly impact on human health hidden from the public.
It’s gonna be a busy summer. But with your help, we’ll fight back.
Donate to the Organic Consumers Association (tax-deductible, helps support our work on behalf of organic standards, fair trade and public education)
Donate to Organic Consumers Fund (non-tax-deductible, but necessary for our GMO labeling legislative efforts)
Support OCA's Regeneration International Project (tax-deductible, helps support our work on behalf of organic, regenerative agriculture and climate change)
We, the People
A few of us from OCA attended the People’s Summit last week in Chicago, where Sen. Bernie Sanders spoke to the crowd about the state of the political revolution. He started out by saying:
“The American people are sick and tired of establishment politics and establishment economics.”
To which we say, Amen.
Let’s not forget that Sanders supported GMO labeling and opposed the DARK Act—a bill Obama could have vetoed, but didn’t. Instead, Obama supported Monsanto, not consumers.
We think it’s time for both a #political revolution and a #consumer revolution. And we agree with Bernie, that it’s not up to him to lead the revolution—it’s up to us.
Watch Bernie’s speech at the People’s Summit
Um, No . . .
You can eat less and exercise more—but you’ll still probably gain more weight (about 10 percent more) than someone your age would have gained 20 – 30 years ago, eating and exercising the same amount.
So says a new study published in the journal Obesity Research & Clinical Practice. The study found, as reported in The Atlantic, that someone, in 2006, eating the same amount of calories, taking in the same quantities of macronutrients like protein and fat, and exercising the same amount as a person of the same age did in 1988, would have a BMI (Body Mass Index) that was about 2.3 points higher.
The study’s authors posited three possible explanations for their findings:
1. Today we’re exposed to more chemicals—pesticides, flame retardants, the substances in food packaging—that may be messing with our hormones.
2. We’re taking more drugs, especially antidepressants, many of which are linked to weight gain.
3. Our gut bacteria are changing, possibly because we’re eating more meat—and that meat is now being treated with growth-promoting hormones and antibiotics.
It all makes sense. Except the statement by one of the study’s authors, who told The Atlantic that the body weights of Americans today are influenced by “factors beyond their control.”
Noooooo . . . we can control our own exposure to pesticides, antidepressants, and factory farm meat. By going organic. And staying off drugs. What’s more, we must continue to fight the corporate control of our food system that’s led to this mess.
And we better hurry up. Because according to another new study, 107 million children and 603 million adults are now obese.
Grab Your Passport!
Join fellow adventurers, nature-enthusiasts, gardeners and organic activists for an 8-day eco-tour in the central highlands of Mexico. You’ll stay at Vía Orgánica’s educational farm, where you’ll learn about the latest in organic regenerative farming and ranching. (Vía Orgánica is a project of OCA).
The Vía Orgánica eco tours also include tours to San Miguel de Allende and other World Heritage sites, trail rides and nature walks, horseback riding, and organic farming and cooking workshops. It’s the perfect combination of international travel, adventure and learning, at the same time you help build solidarity between the U.S. and Mexican Organic Movements.
Our next two eco tours are planned around these two cultural events:
Day of the Dead Tour (October 30- November 5, 2017): $1,250 / person. Experience the cultural phenomenon of Día de los Muertos —Day of the Dead—, one of Mexico’s most important cultural events, a traditional celebration in which the living remember and honor their departed relatives with festivals and lively celebrations.
Monarch Butterfly Tour (February 15-22, 2018): $1,500 / person. Witness the astounding natural phenomenon of the annual migration of the Monarch Butterfly, one of the great spectacles of Mexico’s central highlands! We’ll go on a 3-day trip to the state of Michoacán to visit a Monarch Butterfly Sanctuary, located within Mexico’s Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve.
Download a registration form: PDF / Word
Questions? Email tour@organicconsumers.org
Essential Reading for the Week
Is It Time to Dump Your Toothpaste?
Why Can't America Solve the Hunger Problem?
Growing Community and Feeding the Revolution on an Atlanta Urban Farm
What Happens to Your Body When You Use the Internet
Is Your Turkey or Chicken Really Organic or From a Factory Farm? Help Us Find Out.