************************UPDATE**************************
Just when I thought I heard it all, this is the headline I read today, Sweet times for cows as gummy worms replace costly corn feed.
We all no there is a terrible drought in the Midwest and that means a shortage of corn and soy. So whats happens when there is a shortage? Prices go up. Animals still gotta eat and that takes money. If the price of feed is too expensive for the rancher to buy, what’s a rancher going to do? I guess think outside the box and feed their cattle candy.
So far, the FDA has left any testing of the safety of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) to the biotech companies like Monsanto. It has been reported that Monsanto responded saying “its not their job to study the effects of gmos; that job belongs to the government“, so a team of researchers at the University of Caen, Institute of Biology, France; and the Department of Neurological, Neuropsychological, Morphological and Motor Sciences at University of Verona in Italy conducted their own two-year study. Here is what they discovered:
These studies were done using GM soy and corn considered herbicide tolerant to Roundup (R), or engineered to produce a modified Bt toxin insecticide (like the Bt corn currently for sale in Walmarts), or both. This is the first study that links eating food containing GMOs and cancerous tumors — and not just to allergies, as had been earlier reported. Tumors ranged from mammary in female rats to tumors in the liver and kidneys of male rats. Within just 24 months of feeding rats Bt corn, 80% of them developed tumors and most had at least three tumors on various parts of their bodies. Some of the female rats developed tumors as early as 7 months and within 4 months for males.
All of the rats were given small doses of the GMO corn. 70% of the females and 50% of the males died prematurely. Food containing GMOs are available in supermarkets right now — and before this study was done, they were only studied for 90 days!
Do you know that the majority of baby formula on grocery store shelves contain soy? Do you know how fragile a baby’s immune system is? Since there is no current requirement by the FDA to label anything that contains GMOs, there is no way a parent will know if she/he is feeding her child a consistent diet of genetically modified food.
This alone is exactly why we need Prop 37 to pass! The American public is a walking science experiment and we are participating without our consent! And since I have the podium, its my opinion that any agency that allows these chemicals to continue to be used in our food supply constitutes criminal negligence.
Note: the following video is somewhat graphic; be forewarned.
I attended an OC Coalition meeting tonight in Anaheim and they discussed the props with us- 37 was talked about- labeling is good but that its unfair cause China or other countries wont be required to label with the passing of this- even if they send things to America, but US will be required to- I heard lawyers are lined up now drooling and waiting to sue, only American companies, other countries won’t be affected.
Major funding the supporters of prop 37 are Mercola Health Industries, The Organic Consumers Fund, and Dr Bonners Magic Soaps. Opponents are Council for Biotechnology Information, the Grocery Manufactures Association and Pioneer Hi-Bred International.
This doesn’t seem right. It seems that if this is true, foods will be way more expensive in the US and no one anywhere in the world will want to buy from America.
I think that you got some bum information there. First of all, U.S. products are already labeled for GMOs in Europe and elsewhere. Second, if you do business in the U.S., you have to follow our labeling requirements. Go into an international foods market like Wholesome Choice or 99 Ranch or Seafood City or one of the various South Asian, Middle Eastern, or East Asian markets around and see if they have the same sort of “Nutritional Facts” label that you see on your Cheerios and your Cheez-Wiz — and they do have them.
I don’t know where people like the ones you heard from get these ideas — but I think I know why they spread them around. If something isn’t unfair, sometimes you just have to make up the unfairness, and if it provides a chance to bash furriners, so much the better. (That’s not a slam on you or others who attended the presentation, but on those who presented and/or those who briefed them.)
I believe what Merijoe/OC Coalition is likely referring to on the imported food is in 110809.2(b) (yes, I read the true text of bill as I was curious, but it is also w/o bias). It is a bit of a leap, to make the conclusion made but I believe that is the source of the conclusion. Essentially, food is deemed to be part of that exemption as long as the supplier/producer makes a sworn statement that it is not GE’d. There is no testing required for that exemption it seems as one can simply rely upon the sworn affirmative statement. Like so many things, it possibly is a stretch, but plausible …especially if the person responsible for the statement is in a foreign land and likely not able to be prosecuted by CA officials very easily.
The section I am referring to is on page 112 (the marked page on the bottom of the pamphlet, not of the adobe file)
http://vig.cdn.sos.ca.gov/2012/general/pdf/text-proposed-laws-v2.pdf
A raw agricultural commodity or food derived therefrom that has been grown, raised or produced without the knowing and intentional use of genetically engineered seed or food. The key word here is without the knowing. Lets say a farmer does not grow gmo foods but accidently his food crop does contain gmos, he will not be held liable. Or he feeds his animal gmo feed without knowing it contains gmos. Why would he label if he didn’t know his food contained gmos.
I think MeriJoe knows this to be true. Me thinks MeriJoe is not who she portrays herself online.
yeah she is actually
btw, shes’ the one who dropped me off at the Kellogg protest Sunday.
Say what? I’m just a curious soul and very genuine, if I knew, I wouldnt make the statements I just made.
Would love to meet you in person, It’s fine to be passionate about something but people are important too-so I’ve learned, don’t lump us all together.
Thanks for your input, it helps me to think
You got your 1st sentence correct Inge…the problem with the exception, if there is one, and likely is what is causing some to say that foreign food is easily excepted is that all it takes is a sworn statement stating that it is not GE’d. If someone is in the US and they make that statement and it is proved to be knowingly false, then the teeth of the courts can easily impose discipline. However, if the person is out of the country, in China for example, then the US courts do not have the same powers. So, someone in China just has to make a sworn statement and it qualifies for the exemption.
I heard, not with organics.
I’ve asked you before, Merry, but I’m still really curious – what IS this “OC Coalition?” Who’s in it? Could I join?
Vern -We talk about propositions, we have speakers, we meet and greet new politicians, we eat dessert and drink coffee, we find out about what’s happening politics wise around town and if they need help, etc.
So can me and Inge go? Where is it and when? Coalition of who?
It’s probably too red of a group for your liking.
Communist? Or Republican? I want to go.
“Coalition” of what? Don’t they want to hear a variety of views? When and where is the next meeting?
I stand corrected MeriJoe. I agree that its good to ask questions. Not long ago a woman from No on Prop 37 wanted us to write articles against the Right to Know. Vern told her to contact me, which she never did, so I was suspicious that you were that woman. I am all about transparency no matter what the subject. And as for your group, I think its good to ask questions from them as well. I do not belong to groups per se because I question everything, especially when I smell something fishy. I don’t follow party lines or participate lock step.
Since I understand where you are coming from, I am more than happy to answer questions and if I don’t know the answer I will find out from someone else.
The bottomline here is that we have a right to know what we are eating and if I choose to eat a GMO food thats ok. If I choose not to, then thats ok. Its all about transparencey and lets face it Monsanto has a BAD track record when it comes to ethical business behaviors and ZERO transparency.
Yes, MeriJoe,I agree with Vern. Who is this coalition? I want to join. Please send me their information asap. Thank you..
Oh, China already labels GMOs. You can go to ANY online store that sells herbs or food and clearly see the label.
Do they label their products that are readily sold in US brick and mortal stores (i.e. grocery stores and markets) though?
GMOs are not labeled, thats the problem. The only waay to know for sure is to buy organic or products that are certified non-gmo. Many stores do not carry organic foods either. Did I mention that Monsanto promotes the labeling of GMOs in the UK and Europe? 50 countries require labeling and the numbers are growing. Oh and there are quite a few countries who ban the growing and importation of GMO foods all together.
Sorry, for my lack of clarity…you had said that China already labels GMO’s and that when you buy on-line you will see them labeled, so I was asking whether Chinese food products that are purchased at Ralphs/Albertsons/711/Ranch99 (local markets) are labeled or not.
This is in reference to the implication that at the OC Coalition meeting attended by Merijoe that there was indication that foreign food products may be able to get through an exemption where the distributor essentially just has to say that they are not GE’d.
Yes, I believe I have heard you mention about Monsanto labeling in other countries.
This should answer your question about lawyers:
Greater Legal Certainty For Businesses: According to an independent legal analysis by James Cooper, JD, PhD, of George Mason University School of Law, Proposition 37 has been narrowly crafted in a way that provides “greater legal certainty” for businesses than other California consumer disclosure laws. It won’t invite frivolous lawsuits. What it will do is help California consumers make more informed choices about the food they eat.
read this article to find out the real story who is behind No on Prop
http://www.appetiteforprofit.com/2012/08/13/big-tobacco-shills-trying-to-stop-gmo-labeling-in-california/
So we can afford the potential for more cancers but not this? Surely that should not be a consideration.
Truthful labeling is something very important to me. I do not, for instance, buy imported fish (farm raised or wild caught). I also don’t buy American farmed fish, and only buy certain kinds of fish that are 1) sustainable (and in healthy fisheries) and 2) American wild caught.
I have my reasons for these decisions which are both environmental and in regard to health.
I shouldn’t have to worry that profit comes before health, though it seems increasingly that I DO need to worry about it.
I, for one, will be supporting Prop. 37.
*For folks that think they like popcorn…..here are a few facts: Unless the product (popcorn) is listed as Organic – it is GMO corn. If you wondered why the taste of your
Orville Redenbacher popcorn has been different for several years….now you know.
2ndly, the “Best used date” is not what is listed on the package. Once you open the popcorn…the actual shelf life is 3 months…..not over or near a year or more. The popcorn breaks down…won’t pop properly and on top of that secretes pesticide residuals……
The GMO labeling initiative is very important and should be a total slam dunk.
http://www.motherjones.com/tom-philpott/2012/09/romney-monsanto-bain
Fact:No popcorn is currnetly being genetically engineered. so you can safely eat popcorn (organic or conventional) and be assured that it is not GE.
Sandy, read this
http://www.allnaturalpopcorn.com/gmo-free-popcorn.htm
Now be a good girl and tell your boss that your story just got blown up. Nice try though.
*Sandy, you are completely ….full of it.
Call Orville Redenbacher yourself…..mjisrepresentation joker!
800.243.0303
*Simply ask the question: Is any Orville Redenbacher popcorn GMO?
We called and we suggest you do the same.
http://www.motherjones.com/tom-philpott/2012/09/romney-monsanto-bain
Read this….if you dare and remember they are just talking about Round-up plus the latest Diacram products……..which is really….not so good to digest.
*God we hate misrepresentations…….of Big Pharma, Big Chema and the lot. Sandy
doesn’t even know that unless it says Organic…….you can be sure it is GMO. Show us a label with Organic Popcorn….and we will add butter…thank you very much!
This just in… France launches a full investigation into GMOs after the study
http://www.riseearth.com/2012/09/france-launches-major-investigation.html#.UFzhMaMlKSo
USA to follow suit….as soon as my hunchback brother straightens up!
“In a recent California legislature forum, I heard a professor from the University of California, Davis, say that GMOs were no different from centuries old plant modifications, citing as an example that English Walnut trees were grafted onto Black Walnut root stock to produce more robust trees. How stupid does he think we are? Fish genes in tomatoes, to make them more stable in grocery stores, and Bts implanted in cotton plants, to eat out the stomachs of insects that feed on cotton, are only two examples of the grotesque mash-ups being perpetrated and then patented by chemical companies.
The reason the companies that manufacture and sell these products are so opposed to labeling is they know that if we are given a choice between GMO products and non-GMOs they will be in deep trouble. Why else would they be spending $32 million (and still counting) to defeat Prop 37?
P.S. The professor was not required to say where his grant money comes from.”
merijoe: Just because someone else (or several countries in this case) choses to fail to allow their citizens to be able to take better charge of the safety and quality of the food they consume, it does not mean that we in California need to surrender our ability to be informed to best protect our health. (It might have been economically advantageous for years for China to dispose of its “extra” female babies by tossing them in their rivers, but no one over here proposed following suit to boost our economy!)
The problem appears that other countries sell to US and that means people buy. I agree, they can do what they want as long as it stays there, but it doesn’t stay there.
*Hormones in the Beef and Chicken started all this. First came vitamins for cattle…which wasn’t actually a bad idea till they used so many it ruined their livers and bladders….and such….. Colonel Sanders was a major client to start.
The old argument that farmers have been altering the seeds for thousands of years was based upon splicing one type of wheat to another to make a heartier breed that could make it through the tough winters around the world.
The modern chemical companies have gone one step further. Include Pesticides right into the seeds. Soy and Corn and Wheat – our major crops now have a variant of Round-up weed killer or 14 other unnamed pesticides gene pooled into these crops.
Pesticides are poisons….undigestible and certainly change the flavor and food value ingested.
2000 years ago….farmers did not do this!
In light of your vociferous opposition to GMO corn for human consumption, would you like to walk back your adamant approval for corn fed beef?
One has to assume that the cows can’t read the labels on the feed bags, and that those labels don’t say organic. Therefore one can reason that the cows are eating GMO corn.
Maybe you think that all of the bad stuff in the GMO corn that made the mice look like something out of science fiction movie, just magically passes through the cattle and falls out in their poop.
What do ‘ya say there cowboy?
Here is another article by Food and Water Watch
http://www.foodandwaterwatch.org/factsheet/how-much-will-labeling-genetically-engineered-foods-really-cost/
*Demo – What year did our cattlemen have to start feeding their cattle, chickens and pigs :Corn Feed”? In what two states did this start? When did the GMO Corn Feed
start to infiltrate the National Animal Feed Domestic Supply? Is there still non-GMO
Corn, Soy and Wheat available? Why do Dupont and Monsanto make sure small farmers are either forced into Corporate Farm Franchises or go out of business, using only the approved seed and feed and why does Bill Gates want all of Africa on the same system?
Grass fed cattle bring about 30% less yeild per animal. Additionally, much of the grass that is ingested is not “Open Prairie”……and has been treated many times with serious pesticides that match the amounts in the Corn Feed.
The term Organic can mean something – if the farmers doing the growing refuse the Corporate Feed.
Please watch our show: “Food for Thought” with Evaggelos Villanatos from our
web site: http://www.cuttingedge-atalkshow.com
Look in our Archives as well. You might actually learn something…
I looked in the OJB archives and here’s what I found…back on May 24th here’s what you wrote…..
“Ever heard of Kobe Beef? Ever hear of Agentine Beef. The World’s best quality! All corn fed.”
So that’s you promoting corn fed beef. Now I’m going to type slowly here…
In light of your vociferous opposition to GMO corn for human consumption, would you like to walk back your adamant approval for corn fed beef?
Oh wait, to many big words in there…..how about this?
Do you eat corn fed beef?
I agree heartily that everything we eat should be labeled. Who could not? But all the stuff I’ve read conflates GMOs with a pesticide called “Roundup.” The samples examined in the study herewith were GMOs treated with Roundup. And I could find nothing that suggested that it was the pesticide, not the GMOs, causing the problems. And one study means hardly anything. The group’s results must be duplicated by other studies. Many other studies because SCIENCE. I don’t want to eat anything bad for me (except whiskey), but neither do I want people succumbing to the same sort of brainless paranoia we’re seeing in people who won’t vaccinate their kids.
Anita, Would you like to volunteer to be the next guinea pig? Oh, wait you already are! You just don’t know it!
Anita, these GMO’s are modified to be resistant to Roundup, so they can plant the GMO and then spray it with Roundup to kill any weeds that die upon exposure to Glyphosate ( the active ingredient in Roundup).
GMO seeds and Roundup are used together, as they are both patented and manufactured by Monsanto.
Since you bring up SCIENCE, I thought that you might be interested in the track record of this group.
“On two occasions, the United States EPA has caught scientists deliberately falsifying test results at research laboratories hired by Monsanto to study glyphosate.[119] The first incident involved Industrial Biotest Laboratories (IBT). The US Justice Department closed the laboratory in 1978, and its leadership was found guilty in 1983 of charges of falsifying statements, falsifying scientific data submitted to the government, and mail fraud.[120] In 1991, Don Craven, the owner of Craven Laboratories and three employees were indicted on 20 felony counts. Craven, along with fourteen employees were found guilty of similar crimes.” From Wikipedia
So I’m not real trusting of people telling me that it’s okay to eat this crap,
when they’ve been found guilty of falsifying the SCIENCE.
Like you, I am willing to take my chances with an occasional Maker’s Mark. I know what the effects of those ingredients are going to be.
Bullshit. Just as I suspected:
http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/loom/2012/09/21/from-darwinius-to-gmos-journalists-should-not-let-themselves-be-played/
Anita, so are against labeling? Am I correct? You found one article, and you want to believe its true, even if mountains of other articles say GMOs at the very least need to be studied more before the public eats them.
So the bottom line is your are against Americans knowing what they are eating? Even though 50 countries require labeling? Even though Monsanto encourges labeling in UK and Europe? So you think Americans don’t have the same rights? Am I correct?
Inge, read Anita’s first comment here. He is FOR labelling. (Yes, Anita is a HE, like Alice Cooper – a smart, hard-drinking liberal from Newport.) He just likes to make sure we have ALL our facts straight.
I would like to publicy thank Monsanto for giving me cancer in my asshole!
I thought I was eating healthy. I haven’t bought fast food in at least 30 years.
If I knew that the so called ‘natural’ foods I was eating could make me sick, meaning it was LABELED. I maybe would not have had to endure a f**ked up 2011! Not to mention all the medical costs I am saddled with.
This is not about some abstract debate. For me this is real life. My life and I take that very personal. Monsanto is allowed to do whatever it wants, just like in the past with DDT, PCB, and Agent Orange and for me thats not OK!
If I knew of an appropriate curse Yiddish or otherwise, I would mail it to the CEO special delivery! As far as I am concerned, this company alone, has the capability of killing more people than any war.
And as for Anita, I fact check everything before I write about it. She/he can go online and find out all this information. I stay away from ALL end-of-world; endtimes; radical nutcase blogs to find out my information.
Goddam right!
Read this article Anita,
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/20/business/energy-environment/disputed-study-links-modified-corn-to-greater-health-risks.html?adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1348196384-jfeiDGpTSd0Eamyhra20bA
*Demo – it is lovely that we have our own resident Chemical Engineer available to decypher Monsanto’s philosophical – via chemical expressions.
Are you joking….the seed is NOT resistant to Round-up —–it contains the Round-up gene so that birds and such do not ingest the seeds they plant. It also kills all the little insects that have a tendency to eat these crops…..both in the ground and when they rise.
Try not spouting your fountain of knowledge without the documentation….which you
always fail to provide. Your comments are pure speculation and guess-ta-ments. Good grief Demo use Google…..and answer our questions about Corn Feed – when and if it was ever used and is still being used.
Bull Ships…You write …
“Are you joking….the seed is NOT resistant to Round-up —–it contains the Round-up gene so that birds and such do not ingest the seeds they plant. It also kills all the little insects that have a tendency to eat these crops…..both in the ground and when they rise.”
You have no idea what the ‘eff you are talking about. Roundup is a chemical not a gene. You IDIOTS ! Roundup is a chemical called glyphosate.
Here is the description from Monsanto’s own website:
Roundup Ready® Soybeans were commercialized in 1996, followed by alfalfa, corn, cotton, spring canola, sugarbeets and winter canola, which contain in-plant tolerance to Roundup® agricultural herbicides. This means you can spray Roundup® agricultural herbicides in-crop from emergence through flowering for unsurpassed weed control, proven crop safety and maximum yield potential.
Many of Monsanto’s agricultural seed products are genetically modified for resistance to herbicides, such as glyphosate, which Monsanto sells under the brand, “Roundup” – Monsanto calls these seeds “Roundup Ready”. Monsanto’s introduction of this system (planting glyphosate-resistant seed and then applying glyphosate once plants emerged) provided farmers with an opportunity to dramatically increase the yield from a given plot of land, since this allowed them to plant rows closer together. Without it, farmers had to plant rows far enough apart to control post-emergent weeds with mechanical tillage.
They might know what they are talking about, since they manufacture these products.
So there’s the documentation you pompous ass/asses !
Obviously you are spending way too much time at the QW, and suffering from early wet brain syndrome to accuse me of writing inaccuracies, when every one of your articles contains at least one blatant falsehood ( the last one was that Salman Rushdie lived in England under a witness protection program, that same night I watched him on Bill Maher which is taped in the Fairfax District in Los Angeles. Rushdie has lived in the US for the last 12 YEARS !).
So put down the comic books, or what ever is polluting your mind with ridiculous ideas….”GMOs contain the Roundup gene so birds won’t eat them.” How deluded do you have to be to be to write crap like that ?
Idiots.
*By the way, we forgot…..where did you get your Degree in Chemical Engineering again? What year? Who was your favorite professor?
Do you believe in Quantum Physics? How high are the Himalayas? You seem to know a lot. We are very impressed.
Good questions. They remind me of this response you once penned:
“*How bad is there breath? Are they exposing themselves? Do they like stinky cheese? Do they belong to a left wing organization? Do they belong to a right wing organization? How many friends are in the audience with the same armament? Is there a clip in the UZI? Has the person ever shot a gun in their life? Do they know which way to load the clip? Can they take off the safety before people rush him and beat his to death with a bag of Skittles? How close is the fat guy with a Big Gulp…that could drown the guy before he shoots anyone. How many silver knives does he have in his backpack for backup? Did the guy ever kill anyone with either the UZi or the Silver knife before this encounter? Is the guy with the UZI have training with this firearm and is it licensed to be owned by that person? Is either one an ex-Navy SEAL?”
This is a pattern with you. When your mistaken ideas get exposed, you hop on the crazy train. Well done, again!
Ship Heads…
You ask for documentation, I give you documentation to prove my point.
Your response, as Anon aptly points out is non responsive gibberish appropriate for a five year old.
“How high are the Himalayas?” you ask. Not quite as high as you.
When you get back to sea level, maybe we can have an intelligent conversation.
*Demo – Good…you eat ’em!
Let us know in three or four years how that works out for you!
“*Demo – Good…you eat ‘em!”
Everyone who reads what I write knows that I don’t eat GMOs, or corn fed beef.
Also most of the food I eat is organic, the fish is wild caught not farm raised, and rarely do I ingest dairy. I’m wheat free and avoid sugar of any kind, but especially corn syrup.
Is that clear enough for you?
*Demo – with all your Hog Wash….we are sure you definitely use a back scrubber! You probably think it is a Lufa!
Weeeeeeelllllllllllllllllll … I’m just about ready to close comments here. Vern, what do you think?
Nah. It’s comical in a pathetic way. And I don’t think Demagogue is the sort to get his feelings hurt.
I’m thinking that the Shippies are still looking down on the Himalayas. I will concede to them the last word on their embarrassing arguments.
This should be pathetic.
I just found this article. I guess farmers have finally had enough being pushed around by Monsanto’s mafia tactics.
http://worldtruth.tv/5-million-farmers-sue-monsanto-for-7-7-billion/