FEED - September 2009
Contents
1. Kennedy's bill to preserve antibiotics lives on
2. Federal government to examine competition in agriculture
3. EPA approves complex engineered crop behind closed doors
4. Conservation Stewardship Program open to farmers nationwide
5. Time magazine calls for sustainable farming
1. Kennedy's bill to preserve antibiotics lives on
Public health and consumer advocates are mourning the loss of Senator Edward Kennedy, a longtime proponent of healthcare reform who was also the lead sponsor for the Preservation of Antibiotics for Medical Treatment Act. The bill would preserve the efficacy of valuable antibiotics by limiting their nontherapeutic use in agriculture. Senator Kennedy championed this legislation in Congress for nearly a decade. While we will greatly miss his leadership, UCS continues mobilizing support for the bill on Capitol Hill. Read more about Senator Kennedy's leadership on antibiotics (pdf) and call on Congress to pass the Preservation of Antibiotics for Medical Treatment Act.
2. Federal government to examine competition in agriculture
The Department of Justice and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) are collaborating for the first time on a series of joint public workshops in 2010 that will address competition in agriculture. It's a move warmly welcomed by small and mid-scale farmers, whose livelihoods are threatened by the increasing dominance of the market by a few companies such as Monsanto, Smithfield, and Cargill. The control that these companies exert over the market can lead to problems like reduced innovation, higher prices, increased pollution, and lower quality standards. The goal of the workshops is to promote dialogue among stakeholders, including farmers, economists, consumer groups, academics, and members of the public. Independent farmers hope that they are a sign that the government is moving to break up the monopoly power of industrial agribusiness. Read more from National Public Radio.
3. EPA approves complex engineered crop behind closed doors
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has approved the most complex genetically engineered (GE) crop ever to enter the U.S. food supply, without notifying the public or inviting public comment. SmartStax, a variety of corn containing eight new genes—six for insect resistance and two for herbicide tolerance—is significantly different from the three-gene corn varieties that the agency previously approved. Monsanto and Dow Chemical, the joint developers of SmartStax, expect the new variety to be grown on three to four million acres next year, the largest launch ever of a GE crop. The EPA excluded the public from the SmartStax decision process on the grounds that it had already approved other varieties containing the individual genes. The agency also bowed to industry pressure to lower safeguards against insect pests becoming resistant to the new genes. Read more from Bloomberg.
| "We are disappointed that the new administration's first approval of a major new GE crop was done behind closed doors. SmartStax raises important risk issues such as the potential for pests to develop resistance to the new gene combination that should have been addressed in a transparent, participatory process." ~ Jane Rissler, Deputy Director/Senior Scientist |
4. Conservation Stewardship Program open to farmers nationwide
Farmers across the country are enrolling in the new Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) authorized by the 2008 Food and Farm Bill. When Congress was debating this legislation, UCS fought hard to ensure that this valuable program received funding. The CSP pays farmers for adopting conservation practices like planting native grasses and pollinator habitat, composting crop residues instead of burning them, mulching, preserving wetlands, and rotating their crops to preserve soil fertility. The original CSP authorized in the 2002 Food and Farm Bill limited participation to a few watersheds in each state each year, but the current Food and Farm Bill extended the program to farmers and ranchers anywhere in the country and set aside funding to enroll almost 13 million acres each year, creating a significant opportunity to conserve natural resources. Read more from the USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service, which administers the program.
5. Time magazine calls for sustainable farming
A recent cover story in Time magazine echoes what UCS scientists and others have been saying for years: it's time to shift our food production system to a smarter, greener model that protects our soil, air, and water and safeguards the health of consumers. As the message becomes mainstream, it builds momentum for a transition away from outdated industrial agriculture methods toward modern organic and pasture-raised farming. The magazine paints a picture of a better system that Americans can support through their purchasing decisions, but which will also require policy changes UCS has advocated, including legislation to keep antibiotics working (such as the Preservation of Antibiotics for Medical Treatment Act) and an overhaul of the flawed subsidy system that props up CAFOs (confined animal feeding operations). Read the article in Time.
