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What Can You Do When Voting with Your Fork Isn’t Enough?

January 27, 2011 by

It’s no secret that I’m a strong proponent of eating locally & sustainably. So, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that from time to time, I use this blog as a platform to talk about issues that are important to me. The US Farm Bill is one of those issues.

The “Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008″ (aka, the “Farm Bill” … strange that it doesn’t have the word “farm” in the title, right?) was enacted into law in June 2008 and governs the bulk of federal agriculture and related programs for the next 5 years.

Its 15 titles include “administrative and funding authorities for programs that cover income and commodity price support, farm credit, and risk management; conservation though land retirement, stewardship of land and water resources, and farmland protection; food assistance and agricultural development efforts abroad and promotion of international access to American farm products; food stamps, domestic food distribution, and nutrition initiatives; rural community and economic development initiatives, including regional development, rural energy efficiency, water and waste facilities, and access to broadband technology; research on critical areas of the agricultural and food sector; accessibility and sustainability of forests; encouraging production and use of agricultural and rural renewable energy sources; and initiatives for attracting and retaining beginning and socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers.”

Sounds like that does a lot for small family farmers, right? Wrong. Out of the $307 billion dollars allocated to the Farm Bill, two-thirds of the money ($200 billion) goes to nutrition programs, which is why many believe the bill should be nicknamed the “Food and Farm Bill” as it has very little to do with farming these days. From what’s left, only $70 million dollars is provided for “organic farmers” … and notice I said “organic” farmers. Many of our small local family farmers don’t make enough money to pay for organic certification so there isn’t much that this bill does for them. But, a number of groups are already calling for change in the next go-round of the Farm Bill, and I hope you’ll join me in taking action with them.

A Fair Farm Bill Vision

The folks at Food and Water Watch have started a campaign for a fair Farm Bill:

“How can we make real change happen in something as large as our corporate industrial food system? Some of us may be able to buy sustainable local food, but many people in the US do not have access to safe, healthy, affordable food. We need to do more than vote with our food dollars—we need to change the system. That’s why we’re launching our campaign for a fair Farm Bill. Food & Water Watch is launching our campaign now so we can spend the next year working with you in your community to make real change. With your help, we will build a powerful grassroots network that can take on the large corporate interests that control our food system. Over the last few years, we’ve seen huge growth in the number of activists, growers, and eaters in the good food movement, but we need to do much more to win real change. Together we can educate and engage our neighbors and elected officials to cultivate change in your local community, in your state, and in Congress.”

Will you take a second to sign the Fair Farm Bill Vision?

Charter for a Healthy Farm Bill

Another group championing for change in the upcoming Farm Bill is Healthy Food Action, a group of health professionals—nurses, dieticians, physicians, public health workers, social workers, and others—who see the downstream impacts of a broken food and farming system every day. Healthy Food Action “makes it simple for health professionals to act. It provides both vital information and a mechanism for action. By speaking out, health professionals can lend their unique, collective voice to public policy debates about food and farming—a voice to ensure that these policies are consistent with better health.”

If you are a health professional or just a concerned citizen, you can support Healthy Food Action’s efforts by signing their Charter for a Healthy Farm Bill.

Thanks for taking action.

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Activist Alert: Say No to Frankenfish and Frankenswine

August 16, 2010 by

From the good people at Food and Water Watch:

“There’s a race to see which will be introduced in the US first—genetically engineered pigs or salmon. The truth is, US food agencies don’t have a way to evaluate the full impacts of these GE [genetically-engineered] animals on human health or the environment. Worst of all, if these GE animals are introduced into our food system, they won’t be labeled, so consumers won’t know what they’re buying. Can you take action to keep genetically-engineered animals out of the US?

Frankenswine and Frankenfish do exist, and they are in a race to see which will be on your plate first. The Food and Drug Administration [FDA] is considering whether or not they will allow GE pigs and salmon to reach your plate. There are so many things that are wrong with this scenario that I don’t know where to begin, but the worst is that they won’t have to be labeled. We need to stop these genetically-engineered animals in their tracks.

Enviropig™ is a genetically engineered pig that was created in Canada. The creator’s idea is to make a pig perfect for factory farm environments, which will produce less polluting waste. While this is an important consideration, there are other solutions to factory farm problems, such as more diversified and local agriculture. Additionally, no testing has been done on the human health effects associated with eating this genetically engineered pork.

On the genetically-engineered salmon front, the aquaculture industry is trying to make a fish that grows at twice the normal rate, so they can get it to market sooner and make more money. This poses many environmental and human health threats. What will happen if these living genetically-engineered animals escape and breed with non-GE animals? And most importantly, what happens to us if we eat genetically-engineered animals? The answer is, we simply don’t know—and it’s not worth the risk to allow either of these animals to reach our plates.

The FDA doesn’t require any special testing or approval for genetically-engineered animals. They also don’t have to consider any environmental impacts. It’s up to us to demand that the FDA reject GE animals. Consumers don’t want Frankenfish and Frankenswine on their plates. Take action to keep genetically-engineered animals out of the US.“

Umm, yeah, no Frankenfish or Frankenswine for me. I signed the petition. Will you?

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Bringing Democracy to our Food System

March 11, 2010 by

From the good folks at Food & Water Watch:

Did you know that despite endless aisles of food in the grocery store, just a handful of companies decide what kind of food you can buy and how farmers can produce it?

It’s true. Decades of bad farm policy and unchecked corporate mergers have driven out independent players, creating powerful agribusiness giants who control much of what ends up on our plate.

Consumers are fed up with a broken food system that makes us sick, harms the environment, and promotes factory farms. A few weeks ago, we worked with our coalition partners to deliver over 200,000 comments opposing Monsanto’s genetically engineered alfalfa to the US Department of Agriculture (USDA). This was just the first step in a growing movement to take back our food system!

We have an important opportunity right now to get the Department of Justice (DOJ) to investigate the handful of companies that control much of the food system. How bad are things right now?

  • Four companies process more than 85% of US beef cattle.
  • Two companies sell 50% of US corn seed.
  • One company controls 40% of the US milk supply.
  • Five firms dominate the grocery sector, ensuring that low prices paid to farmers aren’t passed along to consumers at the store.

After decades of government officials looking the other way, regulators are finally acknowledging there might be a problem.  Tomorrow, the Food & Water Watch staff are participating in the first of several hearings being held by the USDA and the DOJ to hear about the state of competition in agriculture markets.

Please join our effort to break up the monopolies in the food system.

I couldn’t have said it better myself. Please sign the petition today because consumers and farmers both lose when a handful of corporations control our food supply.

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Factory Farmed Fish On Your Plate?

March 7, 2010 by

From the folks at Food & Water Watch:

We can all agree that factory farms on land are bad for our health, our communities, and the environment. What many don’t know is that there are threats to create and expand factory farms in our oceans.

Just as multinational corporations have forever changed the way food is grown on land—to the detriment of public health, the environment, local communities, and food quality itself—they are now poised to do the same at sea.

Similar to land-based factory farms, factory fish farms are floating sea cages crammed with fish that are often fed unnatural diets and treated with antibiotics and other drugs. Worst of all, just like factory farms on land, these create a lot of waste—only the waste from factory fish farms goes directly into the ocean.

There is currently a bill in Congress that would permit factory fish farming in all US federal waters (HR 4363). Some proponents of the bill are selling it as eco-friendly, but there is nothing green about factory farms.

We launched a petition last week to stop factory fish farms in US federal oceans and already have about 12,000 signatures, but would like to deliver 20,000 to Congress. Can you join our effort to stop factory fish farms in our oceans?

We have an important opportunity to take a stand and say we don’t want this failed model in our oceans. We’re collecting petition signatures to deliver to the decision makers who are pushing this terrible idea.

Sign the petition to stop factory fish farms in US oceans.

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Protecting Organic Food From GE Crops and Other Things Monsanto

February 3, 2010 by

I recently started following @WithoutMonsanto on Twitter.

@WithoutMonsanto’s real name is April Davila, and she writes the blog A Month Without Monsanto. April started her blog after a friend posted a link to an article in the Huffington Post, “Monsanto’s GMO Corn Linked to Organ Failure, Study Reveals,” on her Facebook page. She says that “after reading the article, my instinct to stick it to the man compelled me swear off all things Monsanto for good. How hard could it be?”

Apparently, it’s going to be quite hard because according to April almost “everything from last night’s steak, to the Cheez-Its on our desk, owe their existence to Monsanto” … and unfortunately, she’s right. April’s month without Monsanto starts March 1st … I know I’ll be tuning in. Good luck, April!

Oh, and while we’re on the topic, here’s a little something to ponder from the Food Team at Food & Water Watch:

“Many people are concerned about eating genetically engineered foods because of possible health risks. Unfortunately, the US Department of Agriculture is getting closer to approving Monsanto’s genetically engineered (GE) alfalfa, despite the fact that it’s likely to contaminate other crops, including organic alfalfa. Almost all organic dairies are dependent upon organic alfalfa, and organic standards don’t allow the use of GE crops.


The USDA has studied the possible contamination issues with this perennial crop. They admit there could be problems, but claim they don’t know if the contamination of organic alfalfa would matter to consumers of organic food. This is ridiculous, since avoiding genetically engineered ingredients is one of the biggest reasons people seek out organic foods.

We need to tell the USDA loud and clear that consumers want foods that are free from genetic engineering. Click here to tell the USDA that consumers do care, and they should reject genetically engineered alfalfa.

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