Contents

1. Scotts Company fined $500,000 for negligence on engineered bentgrass 
2. Pennsylvania may ban milk labels important to consumers 
3. Agricultural pollution linked to frog deformities  
4. Food and Farm Bill moving in Senate 
5. Locavore is 2007 word of the year

1. Scotts Company fined $500,000 for negligence on engineered bentgrass

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) hit the Scotts Company with the maximum penalty of $500,000 for allowing an experimental turf grass to become established in the wild. Scotts' negligence allowed the creeping bentgrass, which was genetically engineered to tolerate the herbicide glyphosate (Roundup), to escape from field trials in Oregon and interbreed with wild relatives. This is the company's second offense: Scotts was also fined in 2004 for not notifying the USDA on two occasions that winds had blown seeds out of its test plots. The company agreed at that time to take additional steps to control the escaped bentgrass. The transfer and persistence of herbicide-resistant genes in weedy species—and the potential costs to farmers, other landowners, and the environment—is one of the Union of Concerned Scientists' major concerns about growing these crops. See our pages on risks of genetic engineering and bentgrass, or read the USDA's press release.

2. Pennsylvania may ban milk labels important to consumers
The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture announced earlier this fall that it would ban labels on milk that state the milk is free of antibiotics, pesticides, or synthetic hormones. The department claimed that so-called absence labels were confusing. Advocacy groups are outraged about the new rule, which would deny consumers information they need in order to purchase milk products from cows raised without antibiotics, synthetic hormones, or pesticides. The ban was to have taken effect January 1, 2008, but has been temporarily shelved due to an outpouring of protests from consumers and advocacy groups. Read more, or read an editorial in The New York Times.

3. Agricultural pollution linked to frog deformities
New experimental evidence from a multi-university study indicates that frogs and other amphibian populations may be at risk from the large amounts of nutrient pollution generated by industrial agriculture. The authors of the study show that increased nutrients in bodies of water leads to excessive algal growth, which supports larger populations of certain snails. The snails carry parasites that cause severe limb deformities and death in frogs—and more snails mean more of the parasites. With the increasing industrialization of agriculture, ever more massive amounts of nutrients flow into waterways around the world each year, both from fields treated with synthetic fertilizers and manure from CAFOs (confined animal feeding operations). This new research suggests that the trend may intensify the pressure on amphibians, which are key species in many ecosystems. Read the abstract in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

4. Food and Farm Bill moving in Senate
The federal Food and Farm Bill, which will decide how our nation’s food is produced for the next five years, is finally moving forward in the Senate. Programs and funding for agricultural research, crop subsidies, food stamps, farmers markets, organic farming, and conservation of natural resources are all hanging in the balance. This critically important piece of legislation passed the House, but has been held up in the Senate for the last month over disagreements on which amendments could be offered. Now, with an agreement on amendments in place, votes on the Food and Farm Bill are expected next week. We thank all those who participated in our action alert last month, and encourage you to keep reminding your senators that the Food and Farm Bill should support conservation programs, organic farming, and other sustainable farming practices.

5. Locavore is 2007 word of the year
The New Oxford American Dictionary chose locavore, a person who seeks out locally produced food, as its word of the year. The local foods movement is gaining momentum as people discover that the best-tasting and most sustainable choices are foods that are fresh, seasonal, and grown close to home. Some locavores draw inspiration from the 100-mile diet or from advocates of local eating like Barbara Kingsolver. Others just follow their taste buds to farmers' markets, community supported agriculture programs, and community gardens. Check out Local Harvest to find sustainably grown food near you, and make a New Year's Resolution to be a locavore in 2008!