FEED - July 2005
Contents
1. Overuse leaves drug useless against avian influenza
2. USDA criticized on mad cow investigation
3. House acts to ban fluoroquinolone-treated chicken in school lunches
4. Whole Foods will label food GE-free
5. What you can do (1): Participate in a Farm Bill forum
6. What you can do (2): Help save the Conservation Security Program
1. Overuse leaves drug useless against avian influenza
Farmers in China have been using an antiviral drug meant for humans to control avian influenza in their chickens since the late 1990s. As a result, the subtype of avian influenza that is considered most likely to trigger a human pandemic has developed resistance to the drug. It's the first time overuse in animal agriculture of an antiviral, rather than an antibiotic, has compromised the efficacy of a human drug in a major way. The Chinese government encouraged farmers to use the drug, called amantadine, although such use is banned in the United States and many other countries. The only remaining drug that could be used to treat humans, oseltamivir, is prohibitively expensive and difficult to obtain. The situation is a dramatic example of why UCS advocates against the inappropriate use in animal agriculture of drugs that are valuable in human medicine. Read a Washington Post article about the story.
2. USDA criticized on mad cow investigation
The second case of mad cow disease in the U.S.—the first in a U.S.-born cow—was confirmed in June. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has been criticized for: not releasing the news until last month, although initial tests were done last November; mislabeling the sample; and not running a confirmatory test sooner after one test was positive and another produced an inconclusive result. The positive reading of mad cow was finally confirmed by a laboratory in England. The USDA screens only one cow in 90 for mad cow disease, while Europe screens one cow in four and Japan screens every cow it slaughters. The USDA also allows risky practices to continue, such as feeding chicken litter that may contain cow parts back to cattle. Read the New York Times article about the case.
3. House acts to ban fluoroquinolone-treated chicken in school lunches
The House of Representatives passed a measure in June intended to prevent the federal school lunch program from buying chicken treated with fluoroquinolones, a class of antibiotics that includes Cipro and other vital drugs for humans. The measure, an amendment to the Fiscal Year 2006 agriculture appropriations bill, was sponsored by Representative Sherrod Brown (D-13th/OH). Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY) will offer a similar amendment in the Senate. Routine treatment of farm animals with antibiotics spurs the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria that can infect humans. The Food and Drug Administration has been trying to end the use of fluoroquinolones in chickens since 2000, but has been blocked by legal appeals by manufacturer Bayer Corporation. To read more, visit http://press.arrivenet.com/pol/article.php/651092.html.
4. Whole Foods will label food GE-free
Whole Foods Market and Wild Oats grocery stores both committed in 2001 to using only non-genetically engineered (GE) ingredients in their company brand products. Now Whole Foods, the world's largest supplier of natural and organic foods, has announced it will label its products, including all organic food, GE-free. Growers and producers who sell to Whole Foods will have to substantiate their non-GE practices through documentation and independent laboratory tests. Read Whole Foods' policy.
5. What you can do (1): Participate in a Farm Bill forum
Members of the public are invited to give input on the 2007 Farm Bill at a series of forums hosted by Mike Johanns, the Secretary of Agriculture. This is a great opportunity for you to tell Secretary Johanns what you want U.S. agriculture to look like and what role the USDA should play. For example, you might want to tell him you want the USDA to assist farmers in making the transition to organic, to encourage farmers to act as environmental stewards, and to establish programs reducing the use of antibiotics in animal agriculture. Remind him that agribusiness is not his only constituent. It's our USDA too.
Farm Bill sessions that have been scheduled so far:
· July 26th, noon-3 pm (CST)—North Dakota State Fair, Minot, ND
· August 3rd, 4-7 pm—Minnesota Farm Fest, Redwood County, MN
· August 4th, 11 am-2 pm—Wisconsin State Fair, West Allis, WI
More forums will be scheduled at sites around the country. You can also submit comments at http://www.usda.gov/farmbill.
6. What you can do (2): Help save the Conservation Security Program
The USDA is requesting public comments on the Revised Interim Final Rule for the Conservation Security Program, a voluntary stewardship incentives program that rewards farmers for conservation practices that protect water and soil, improve habitat, and increase energy efficiency. USDA is hobbling the program by funding too few farmers in too few areas of the country. This innovative program needs your support. Comments are due by September 9, 2005. For detailed information about the program and suggestions for writing effective comments on this rule, visit http://www.msawg.org/sac/csp/alert_csp_ifr2.shtml.
