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CALIFORNIANS FOR GE-FREE AGRICULTURE NEWSLETTER No. 24, APRIL 2007
IN THIS ISSUE
NEWS:
RESEARCH:
TAKE ACTION:
- Support AB 541, California's GE Bill
- Join the call for a ban on GE pharmaceutical crops from Union of Concerned Scientists
- Help build the California GE-Free Network
NEWS
Genetic Engineering Bill Clears Judiciary Committee, Gets Tabled in Agriculture Committee
In mid-February, Assemblymember Jared Huffman (D-Marin/Sonoma) introduced AB 541, a bill to protect farmers, the environment and consumers from the risks associated with genetic engineering in agriculture. The bill passed through the Assembly Judiciary Committee on April 10th, and on April 25th it was tabled until 2008 in its second committee, the Agriculture Committee.
AB 541 addresses the problems arising when genetically engineered plants cross-pollinate or otherwise contaminate non-GE crops. It establishes that the GE crop manufacturer - and not the farmer who properly planted the GE crop - is the responsible party if contamination occurs and causes economic damages to others. The bill also establishes a notification system for GE crops, and prohibits the open-air production of food crops genetically engineered to produce pharmaceutical drugs, a practice that puts consumers at an unacceptably high risk of inadvertently eating pharmaceutical drugs.
This is the third time in three years that a bill dealing with GE has stalled in a legislative committee. In 2005, Assemblymember Laird introduced a bill (AB 984) dealing with the liability problem; it failed to get a motion and was later withdrawn. Then in 2006, a Monsanto-backed bill (SB 1056) that would have stripped county rights to pass GE restrictions died in committee in the face of considerable opposition. These bills and other events in California - the narrowly averted planting of pharmaceutical GE rice in 2004, the wave of county bans in 2004 through 2006, and most recently the rice contamination scare - point to the need for statewide policies.
Assemblymember Huffman and the bill's sponsors remain committed to finding a solution to the risks associated with genetic engineering, and will continue to work with members of the Agriculture Committee and the bill's opponents to advance the dialogue. The bill will be taken up again in January of 2008.
AB 541 has the support of all of California's sustainable, organic and family farming organizations, as well as many other groups (including: California Farmers Union, Community Alliance with Family Farmers, California Certified Organic Farmers, Center for Food Safety, Earthbound Farm, Lundberg Family Farms, Occidental Arts and Ecology Center, Rice Producers of California, California Church IMPACT, Consumers Union, Sierra Club California, Planning and Conservation League, and dozens of others). AB 541 is opposed by lobbying groups representing the interests of the chemical biotech industry and conventional industrial agribusiness.
For information on how you can support AB 541, please see the Take Action section below.
RESEARCH AND INFORMATION
Does Africa Need a Genetically Modified Solution to Diarrhea? Friends of the Earth Africa
www.eraction.org/publications/medicinerice.pdfThis report questions the need for a new variety of genetically modified rice used to treat diarrhea. The rice, which is produced by Ventria Bioscience, has been engineered to produce recombinant human milk proteins to be extracted from the rice for a variety of uses including in oral rehydration solutions to treat diarrhea, particular in the developing countries.
This pharmaceutical (pharma) rice has received preliminary approval from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) for large scale planting in Kansas even though the US Food and Drug Administration has refused to approve Ventria's recombinant pharmaceutical as safe.
However, FOE Africa pointed out that the GM rice in unnecessary because diarrhea is an illness that has well-known causes and there exist proven and inexpensive solutions to address the illness. The GM rice produced by Ventria is therefore unnecessary and a distraction from existing solutions such as providing access to safe water and improved sanitation, to save children suffering from the illness.
A related report was just released by the Center for Food Safety, concluding that pharmaceutical rice is not a safe or cost-effective solution for infants suffering from diarrhea and discussing the potential adverse health impacts of the rice-grown drugs. This report is available at:
www.centerforfoodsafety.org/pubs/Pharmaceutical%20Rice-FINAL.pdf
TAKE ACTION
Support AB 541, California's GE Bill
Assemblymember Jared Huffman has introduced AB 541, The Food and Farm Protection Act. The bill would establish California's only state laws related to genetic engineering (GE) in agriculture and protect California farmers, consumers, and the food supply. AB 541 already has the support of many agricultural, environmental, health, faith and business organizations.
You can help in any of the following ways:
- Send a letter to the Assembly Agriculture Committee - a sample letter is located at
gepolicyalliance.org - Solicit support for AB 541 from within your circle of contacts.
- Send a thank you note to Assemblymember Huffman for his impressive leadership to date.
- Make a donation to Cal GE-Free to support our role in advancing this bill
(calgefree.org/joinus.html).
Sign the UCS Petition to Ban Pharm Food Crops Outdoors
The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) is circulating a petition to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) regarding federal policy on genetically engineered pharmaceutical and industrial crops. The petition, posted at www.ProtectOurFood.org, calls on the USDA to (1) prohibit the use of food crops grown outdoors to produce drugs and industrial chemicals, (2) tighten regulations on the use of non-food crops for these purposes, and (3) encourage the development of safer alternatives.
Sometime this year, the USDA is expected to release an Environmental Impact Statement on its biotechnology rules including the environmental and health impacts of pharma crops, with new rules to follow. With biotechnology companies pressuring the department to maintain the lax regulatory status quo, UCS will use this petition to convey the view of a broad range of organizations and individuals that public health and food safety can only be assured with a ban on outdoor production in food crops.
As one of the first groups to sign on to this effort, Cal GE-Free urges you add your support by signing on at www.ProtectOurFood.org. If you have questions or need more information, please contact Karen Perry Stillerman at .
Help Build the California GE-Free Network
As one of the largest agricultural economies in the world, California has the opportunity to become a leader in safeguarding our public and private lands, fisheries, forests, schools, gardens, and nurseries, from GE contamination. If GE is an issue that you are concerned about and you want to get involved in local action:
- If you are not already a member, sign-on to the Cal GE-Free list serve www.calgefree.org to receive this newsletter and action alerts.
- Consider a donation to Californians for GE-Free Agriculture.
To make make a tax-deductible donation, send a check payable to Cal GE-Free at: 15290 Coleman Valley Rd., Occidental, CA 95465
or go to
www.calgefree.org/joinus.html#donate