PRESS RELEASE
January 27, 2011

National Organic Coalition ‘Gravely Disappointed’ With USDA Decision To Allow Unrestricted Planting Of Genetically Engineered Alfalfa

Resolute in Continuing to fight for Organic Integrity

The National Organic Coalition (NOC) today is shocked and disappointed over the decision by USDA Secretary Vilsack to de-regulate Genetically Engineered (GE) Alfalfa.

“We appreciate the measures that the Secretary has announced to explore ways to develop the science to protect organic and other non-GE alfalfa farmers from contamination. However, to institute these measures after the GE alfalfa is deregulated defies commonsense,” said Michael Sligh, founding member of NOC. “Logically, efforts to develop the science of prevent GMO contamination should precede, not follow, any decision to deregulate GE crops.”

De-regulation with no oversight, enforcement or penalties by USDA is a green light for business as usual. Potential contamination from yet another genetically modified crop without independent health and environmental testing, or plans for liability, compensation, and labeling is of grave concern to organic farmers and consumers alike, according to NOC spokespersons.

“Organic and others are now left, once again having to take all the precautions while biotech takes little responsibility,” said Liana Hoodes, NOC Director.

In December, Secretary Vilsack brought some stakeholders together to discuss organic, non-GE, and biotech “living together”, but no conclusions were reached. The National Organic Coalition participated in some of these meetings and presented concrete recommendations. “We remain resolute in our pursuit of full implementation of these recommendations to protect the interests of organic growers and consumers, said Hoodes.

“It is time for the US government to support more than just the biotech approach to agriculture. Approving the unrestricted planting of GE alfalfa is clearly a case of USDA caving in to special interests over public good.”

NOC spokespersons went on to state that the American public has noted in poll after poll that they want the right to know how their food is produced, and demand that GE foods be labeled to preserve their choice.

The National Organic Coalition has a detailed paper outlining its necessary pre-requisites to any approval entitled: GMO Contamination Prevention: What Will It Take? available here.  

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

Michael Sligh: 919-929-7099; msligh@rafiusa.org

Liana Hoodes: 914-443-5759; Liana@NationalOrganicCoalition.org

NEW ORGANIC PASTURE RULE EMBRACED BY ORGANIC COMMUNITY; HEIGHTENS NEED TO STOP GENETICALLY ENGINEERED ALFALFA

Tell USDA “No” to GE Alfalfa:

USDA extends commenting period until March 3

IOWA CITY, Iowa – Feb. 16, 2010 – The new USDA pasture rule has been widely embraced by the organic community and greatly strengthens the integrity of the USDA Organic Seal. This is an important change that should be celebrated by the organizations and consumers across the country who commented on the issue and made it clear that consumers expect that organic livestock have access to pasture. Your voice does count!

And, we can do more. The new ruling also heightens the need to stop the USDA’s proposed deregulation of genetically engineered (GE) alfalfa. Such deregulation may result in the permanent contamination of organic grazing fields.

National Cooperative Grocers Association (NCGA), a business services co-operative for 112 natural food co-ops nationwide, opposes the deregulation of GE alfalfa and encourages consumers nationwide to tell the USDA they oppose the allowance of GE alfalfa into the nation’s food supply. A public commenting period, originally set to expire Feb. 16, has been extended to March 3.

“The new rule provides clarity on the pasture requirements for organic livestock. It is a huge win for organic farmers and producers in that it strengthens the integrity of the USDA Organic Seal and increases consumer confidence in organic products,” said Robynn Shrader, chief executive officer for NCGA. “Yet, the proposed deregulation of GE alfalfa is poised to undermine these gains by making organic pastures very difficult to maintain.”

The new organic pasture rule establishes grazing access requirements for organic animal producers. NCGA strongly supports the new pasture rule as it ensures organic animals are raised on pasture and given access to the outdoors. Yet, the pasture rules make organic producers of meat, milk, eggs and other animal products more vulnerable to the deregulation of GE alfalfa.

The increased risk is due to the presence of alfalfa in most organic pastures and the likelihood that GE alfalfa would cross-pollinate and contaminate organic pasture – consequently contaminating the organic food source for certified organic livestock. The USDA requires that all organic livestock be fed a diet of organic, non-GE feed.

On Dec. 14, 2009, the USDA released its draft environmental impact statement (EIS) of Monsanto’s genetically engineered (GE) Roundup Ready alfalfa. The EIS was produced by the USDA in response to a court decision demanding more thorough analysis of the potential environmental, economic and health impacts of GE alfalfa before approving deregulation. This is the first time the USDA has ever completed an EIS on a GE crop.

“The resulting EIS lacked true scrutiny and concern regarding the possible contamination of the organic food industry,” added Liana Hoodes, Director of the National Organic Coalition, a national alliance of organizations, including NCGA, who work to provide a “Washington voice” for organic agriculture. “It fails to fully consider the full range of potential impacts on small farmers, organic consumers and human and environmental health. Fortunately, as with the pasturing standards review, USDA is allowing for consumers to voice their opinions.”

NCGA urges consumers to speak out during the newly extended commenting period ending on March 3. “We strongly encourage consumers to voice their opinions to the USDA to underscore their opposition to this deregulation, in protection of farmers, the USDA Organic Seal, the land and their own food choices,” Shrader concluded. After the comment period, the USDA will vote for full or partial approval of GE alfalfa. A full approval would allow GE alfalfa to be grown and sold without restriction. A partial approval means GE alfalfa could only be grown under permit from the USDA, as is currently allowed.

Consumers can comment directly to the USDA  or through the Center for Food Safety’s online campaign.

About National Cooperative Grocers Association

National Cooperative Grocers Association (NCGA), founded in 1999, is a business services cooperative for consumer-owned food co-ops located throughout the United States. NCGA is owned by 112 food co-ops operating more than 140 stores in 32 states with combined annual sales of over $1 billion. NCGA helps unify natural food co-ops in order to optimize operational and marketing resources, strengthen purchasing power, and ultimately offer more value to natural food co-op shoppers everywhere. Additionally, NCGA is a winner of the dotCoop Global Awards for Cooperative Excellence in recognition of the application of cooperative values and principles to drive cooperative and business success. For a map of co-op member locations, visit www.ncga.coop. To learn more about co-ops, visit www.go.coop.

For more information, contact:

Eric Davis

612.372.6465

eric@modernstorytellers.com

Unfortunately, when visiting our co-operative partners, regardless of which country we’re in, landscapes like the one below are becoming all too common. Here’s a familiar scene from our trip last week to Nicaragua:

But, there’s also a lot being done in farming communities to protect and restore the environment that keeps us hopeful.

Here’s a photo of Marvin Tonico’s farm in the community of Filas Verdes. He is a member of Fuente de Oro (Fountain of Gold), one of eight organic coffee co-operatives that are affiliated through the Tierra Nueva (New Land) Union of Cooperatives located in Boaco and Matagalpa.

You can see the row of coffee in the background, the different species of shade trees above. In the foreground are the “live barriers”, rows of plants used to prevent soil erosion.

Here’s another photo of young coffee bushes planted under the shade canopy:

Farmers’ markets are springing up in food co-operative and church parking lots and on Main Streets throughout the country. More people are joining CSAs (community supported agriculture) and choosing locally grown products in their grocery stores. And as this trend continues, more and more consumers are starting to ask hard questions about where their food comes from and how its grown, who is growing it and under what conditions, and equally important of course, who’s making the decisions that control our food choices and who’s making the profits from those purchases?

The “buy local” movement implies that people are acknowledging all the hard work that goes into producing high quality, healthy, flavorful products and they want to support their local farmers. They want to know the farmers, how the food was grown and be assured that it’s both healthy for them and safe for the planet. To me, it says that we as consumers are choosing to re-personalize the food system; that we want to be a part of a movement that supports community and the planet and that we are ever more ready to resist the trend for corporate control of our food system and our values.

But what happens when we want to purchase products which aren’t grown locally – such as coffee, tea, chocolate or bananas? How do we translate “buy local” values for imported products? When I think about this desire for good, healthy food; for connections to the growers; and for honest, transparent business practices where farmers, workers, and consumers are all treated with respect and fairness, it sounds just like what we’ve been talking about and working for at Equal Exchange ever since our co-operative business was founded over 20 years ago.

In fact, it’s exactly the reason Equal Exchange has chosen to partner exclusively with small-scale farmer co-operatives when we buy our coffee, tea, and chocolate products. It may be more difficult to go direct, to visit remote, isolated communities, to communicate long-distance by shaky fax and telephone lines that are often down, across language and cultural barriers and time zones, than it would be to purchase our products through a broker or a large plantation owner with all of modern technology at their disposal.

But we do so, because ironically, although our products come from rural communities in Latin America, Africa and Asia, we share the same interests, values, and principles as the “buy local” advocates. We see our farmer partners as local actors in their own co-operatives and in their own communities, working together to create positive change and to resist agricultural and trade policies that also threaten them. We want to know our partners and we want our consumers to know our partners.

It’s why we lead dozens of trips to source each year so that consumers can see firsthand who the farmers are, how their products are grown, and what the farmers’ dreams and challenges are. Of course, we also want the farmers to know where their products are ending up, who’s enjoying them and how, and to make the notion of foreign “consumers” more real and human to them – this is the food system we are co-creating and the larger community and network that we and our partners and allies are helping to foster.