Liberation Wellness

"For LIFE"

Raw Milk Freedom, Soon To Be Found?

Posted by Kevin Brown on May 30, 2012

Federal agents raided a local market in Los Angeles, with guns drawn.

Officials combed through Rawsome Foods, swat team style, and arrested owner, James Stewart.  His crime:  selling raw milk.  Sound odd?  Bizarre even?  Not really.

“The farmers and the people who help produce it, are often treated like drug kingpins,” said raw milk activist, Claudia Keel. “They’re being arrested.  There are swat teams coming in. It’s crazy.”

Keel is part of a group in New York City called Weston Price. The organization advocates for the production of traditional foods. Raw milk fits into that category, since it’s an untreated food. The milk is taken from the cow and transferred into a carton or bottle, without being pasteurized. Those who love raw milk, swear by and go to great lengths to get it.

However, raw milk, or “Moo Shine”, as some call it, isn’t that easy to get. Farmers risk being thrown in jail just to sell it.

The sale of raw milk is prohibited in 20 states including New Jersey. Unpasteurized milk can only be bought and sold on dairy farms approved by the state, in New York. People can sell raw milk at retail stores or from their farm in Connecticut, but federal law prohibits the sale of raw milk across state lines. An infraction of the law could lead to jail time.

The Raw Milk Freedom Riders is a nationwide group dedicated to overturning what they claim is the FDA’s ban on interstate raw milk sales.

“Rah Rah Rah Rah, leave our food alone,” they chant at a protest.

The Long time raw milk activist and New York mom, Jill Cruz, is a part of the Raw Milk Freedom Riders.

“They were trying to make a statement,” Cruz said.

Recently Cruz took part in this protest, where riders defiantly broke federal law by transporting raw milk from Pennsylvania into Silver Spring, Maryland.

“We all rallied in front of the FDA,” Cruz said. “We don’t want the government telling us ‘you can’t eat this’ and ‘you can eat this’ and ‘you should eat this’. No. I don’t think anybody wants that.”

Dean of Cornell University’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Doctor, Kathryn J. Boor, said it’s not about making criminals out of raw milk drinkers, but about basic public health.

“The big problems with drinking raw milk, is the possibility that raw milk or unpasteurized, may have been contaminated on the farm or whether when it was placed in the container, or in that drive home if the product isn’t properly refrigerated,” Dr. Boor said.

Food and Drug Administration officials warn of the hazards of drinking raw milk. In fact, they say since it’s not heated to kill harmful bacteria, which is basically what pasteurization does, raw milk can carry dangerous bacteria such as salmonella, e. coli and listeria, all of which are responsible for causing numerous foodborne illnesses. Nevertheless, advocates balk at the FDA’s health warnings. They say the key to drinking safe raw milk is to know the supplier, and argue pasteurization destroys the health benefits of drinking milk.

“It kills all the bacteria,” Claudia Keel said . “It changes the proteins in the milk. It deactivates a lot of the protective factors in the milk.”

Dr. Jose Sotolongo, a Urologist and raw milk drinker, said he has some degree of lactose intolerance and finds pasteurized milk is much more difficult to tolerate, and that drinking raw milk is safe.

“If you know the source, and I know this farm gets inspected on a regular basis and they culture the cows, and the source to make sure that there are no harmful bacteria, then it’s perfectly safe, it’s actually quite safe,” Dr. Sotolongo said.

Dr. Sotolongo is one of many devoted customers who buys his raw milk from F & C Brooks and Sons Farm, in Stone Ridge, New York.  It holds the distinction of being one of a handful of farms approved to sell raw milk.  Owner Cindy Brooks, a raw milk drinker herself, takes pride in how they treat their cows.

“We’re very cautious about the cleanliness of their living environment, where they stay,” Brooks said. “We’re making sure that no bacteria is getting up inside their utters.”

Farmers still have had their fare share of troubles from raw milk inspectors.  Prior to selling raw milk, F & C Brooks and Sons Farms was inspected only one time in their first year operating as a dairy farm, but were visited by inspectors 12 times in just the first 6 months once they decided to start selling raw milk .

The American Dairy Association said they follow advice from the Federal Drug Administration and the Center for Disease Control.

“We do not lobby,” said Brenda Betram. “We are prohibited from lobbying. Right now the science and research conducted by associations like the FDA and CDC clearly state that we should only drink pasteurized milk. And so therefore the Dairy Association promotes that advice,”

Raw milk advocates in New Jersey continue to push for new measures that would make it legal to sell in the garden state. It does not appear, though, that the federal law that prohibits farms from distributing raw milk across state lines will change any time soon.

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Is It A Crime To Drink Milk?

Posted by Kevin Brown on May 30, 2012

You would think that the government has enough to do trying to stop the spread and sale of illegal drugs and overage drinking of alcohol. But no, the Food and Drug Administration must have time on its hands because it waged an aggressive battle against milk and has just won a fight against the creamy white stuff that most of us think is pretty healthy. The FDA won a two-year battle to shut down an Amish farmer named Daniel Allgyer who was selling fresh raw unpasteurized milk to eager customers in Washington, D.C.

The FDA claims that unpasteurized milk is unsafe and it was exercising its authority to stop sales of Allgyer’s milk across state lines. The milk battle came to a climax after a full investigation complete with a 5 a.m. surprise inspection and a straw-purchase sting operation against Mr. Allgyer’s Rainbow Acres Farm. Some of Allgyer’s customers have been buying his fresh milk for six years and they accuse the government of interfering with their parental rights to feed their children.

I’m particularly interested in this case because I brought up all my six children drinking raw fresh milk. Every Saturday, I would drive to a farm about an hour away from my home in Alton, Illinois, and buy 12 gallons of raw milk and 12 dozen fertile eggs. That lasted our family for a week, until the following Saturday. Nobody ever got sick. People asked me why I preferred raw milk, and my answer was, it is delicious. The taste difference between raw milk and pasteurized milk is just about as great as the difference between fresh fruit and canned fruit. I hope the government busybodies apologize to Mr. Allgyer and return to the important and necessary tasks that the government should be doing.

Contributing Editor, Phyllis Schlafly, is the Founder and President of Eagle Forum, a national radio show host, and a best-selling author.

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Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund

Posted by Kevin Brown on May 29, 2012

Become a Member  |  Donate   |  Renew  |  Shop for Activist Wares  |  Join Our Mailing List
Buy Tickets Today!
5th Anniversary Celebration
Join us to celebrate the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund’s 5th Anniversary!

This event will be held on Saturday, July 7, Independence Day weekend, at P.A. Bowen Farmstead, the southern Maryland farm, creamery and home of Sally Fallon Morell and Geoffrey Morell. Sally is the author of Nourishing Traditions and President of the Weston A. Price Foundation.
Celebration Farmstead Lunch & Tour: 11:00 am – 4:00 pm
Premium Tour & Breakfast Upgrade: Begins at 8:30 am
Register early and save.  
Early Bird Registration closes June 20.
Please share this announcement with friends and family. More details and updates posted at farmtoconsumer.org/5years
Celebration Farmstead Lunch/Tour
Join the fun! The Celebration Farmstead Lunch & Tour Event includes the following:

  • one-hour tour of a small, diversified, rotationally pastured, sustainable farm with farm managers, Mike and Barb Haigwood. The tour begins with Sally Fallon Morell in her state-of-the-art milking parlor.
  • creamery demonstration video and sampling of delicious farmstead raw milk cheeses;
  • delectable farmstead lunch, featuring P.A. Bowen Farmstead pulled pastured pork, local grass-fed beef with fresh salads, sides and dessert made with local fruit and vegetables by local chef Trish Weaver of Dreamweaver Catering;
  • acoustic bluegrass music by southern Maryland’s Gary Rue and band;
  • program featuring leaders in our food rights movement;
  • fun and games for the young, and young at heart
  • mini-marketplace for agtivist tee shirts and other FTCLDF items, Weston A. Price Foundation educational materials, fine crafts from local artists, local wine tasting and more;
  • P.A. Bowen Farmstead Store stocked with farmstead cheese, pastured meat, poultry and eggs; bring your coolers!
  • cash kombucha, artisanal wine and beer bar; and
  • cool door prizes including a $100 shopping spree at P.A. Bowen Farmstead store.
Tickets: $75 for adults and $25 for children before June 20;  after that date, prices increase by $40 for adults.
This event is limited by the capacity of this small sustainable farm for the first 400 guests.
This is a BYORM Event: Bring Your Own Raw Milk! According to Maryland law, it’s illegal for Sally to sell or serve you her delicious, nutritious raw milk, so feel free to bring your own!
Premium Tour & Breakfast Upgrade
If you are in the mood to beat the crowd, dine on a gourmet farm breakfast and enjoy a special two-hour tour with Sally Fallon Morell as your guide, then the Premium Tour & Breakfast Event upgrade ticket is for you!

Premium upgrade event guests will be greeted at 8:30 a.m. and escorted to a delicious al fresco farm breakfast on a tree-shaded knoll overlooking the P.A. Bowen Farmstead.
Following breakfast, Sally will lead a two-hour tour of her farm, including stops at pastured pork, pastured poultry, grass-fed dairy cows and her state-of-the-art milking parlor.
At the conclusion of the tour, the guests will join in the activities of the Celebration Farmstead Lunch Event, with the option for an early lunch seating.
This event can accommodate only 100 guests.
Upgrade Tickets:  Add $100 to the Celebration Farmstead Lunch Ticket for adults and $50 additional for children.
The Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund, a 501(c)(4) nonprofit [EIN 20-8605130], defends the rights and broadens the freedoms of family farms and protects consumer access to raw milk and nutrient dense foods.
P.A. Bowen Farmstead Sign
Reserve your tickets

online or by phone at 703-208-FARM (3276).
Early Bird Discount Ends June 20, 2012.
Contact
Event Registration 

Gene’ Walls
703-208-FARM (3276)
Event & Logistics Info
Cathy Raymond
cathy@farmtoconsumer.org
P.A. Bowen Farmstead Info
Barb Haigwood
PABowenfarmstead@gmail.com
301-579-2727
Location
P.A. Bowen Farmstead
P.A. Bowen Farmstead

15701 Doctor Bowen Rd
Brandywine, MD 20613

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Durbin Fails In Attempted End Run Against DSHEA

Posted by Kevin Brown on May 29, 2012

NEWS RELEASE

DURBIN FAILS IN ATTEMPTED END RUN AGAINST DSHEA


          The Durbin amendment, # 2127, to S.B.3187 to reauthorize the FDA Prescription Drug and the Medical Device User Fees has failed on the Senate floor. The Durbin amendment would have heaped yet more reporting requirements on supplement manufacturers with those companies who launched, reformulated, or discontinued supplements having to report those products and any changes within thirty days of the launch, reformulation, or change.  What does any of this nonsense have to do with food safety?  Absolutely nothing.  It’s all about making supplements more expensive and less affordable for the average consumer.

          The NHF closely followed and lobbied against the Durbin amendment. Both Senators Harkin and Hatch opposed the Durbin amendment, pointing out that his contention that supplements should be regulated like drugs violated all of the provisions of the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994 (DSHEA) and was neither needed nor wanted. The Durbin amendment was supported by the Consumer Union and Center for Science in the Public Interest, both quack anti-supplement groups lobbying Congress.

          The amendment was voted down with 77 Senators voting to table, i.e., kill the amendment, and only 20 voting in support of Durbin’s anti-health freedom, anti-dietary supplement attempt to end run the DSHEA law. The NHF and the health-freedom community have once again forced the Senator’s hand, and he has failed to deliver. The final bill passed the Senate by a vote of 96 For and 1 Against (without the Durbin amendment). The legislative and political games are not over in that the House Energy and Commerce Committee and the full House have yet to consider and pass a bill. Even then, any bill differences will have to be resolved in a joint House/Senate conference and re-passed by both chambers. Keep in mind that Congressman Henry Waxman is still around and could carry on the Durbin attempts to regulate dietary supplements like prescription and over-the-counter drugs.

          Unfortunately, the Rand Paul amendment to prohibit FDA agents from carrying firearms and making arrests with court-ordered warrants for health-claim product violations was also voted down with 78 voting to table and kill the amendment and 15 voting to support the amendment.

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Will You Be Health Freedom’s Next Hero?

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Click here for the permanent link to this news release, use this link to inform others.

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National Health Federation: Established in 1955, the National Health Federation is a consumer-education, health-freedom organization working to protect individuals’ rights to choose to consume healthy food, take supplements and use alternative therapies without unnecessary government restrictions. The NHF is the only such organization with recognized observer-delegate status at Codex meetings.

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The Organic Watergate

Posted by Kevin Brown on May 21, 2012

The Organic Watergate
By Cornucopia Institute | Press Release

The nation’s leading organic farming watchdog, The Cornucopia Institute, is challenging what it calls a “conspiracy” between corporate agribusiness interests and the USDA that has increasingly facilitated the use of questionable synthetic additives and even dangerous chemicals in organic foods. In its new white paper, The Organic Watergate, Cornucopia details violations of federal law, ignoring congressional intent, that has created a climate of regulatory abuse and corporate exploitation.

When Congress passed the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990 it set up an independent advisory panel, the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) that, uniquely, has statutory power. Any synthetic input or ingredient used in organic farming or food production must be reviewed by the NOSB to assure that it is not a threat to human health or the environment.
The Cornucopia report charges the USDA with “stacking” the NOSB with agribusiness executives that all too often have “sold out” the interests of organic farmers and consumers.

“The organic community came together and actually asked the government, in order to maintain a level playing field and organic integrity, to regulate our industry,” said Mark A. Kastel, Codirector of The Cornucopia Institute. “How many other industries have ever asked the federal government for tough regulations and enforcement?”
In order to placate concerns of federal involvement in the nascent organic industry, Congress specifically earmarked the majority of the 15 seats on the NOSB for farmers, consumers, scientists and environmentalists as a way to balance the power of commercial interests involved in organic food manufacturing, marketing and retail sales. “Many in the industry generally thought this system of shared power, with
regard to synthetics in organics, was working until we received a wake-up call at the NOSB’s meeting late last year in Savannah, Georgia,” Kastel noted.

At the Savannah meeting a giant Dutch-based multi-national conglomerate, Royal DSM N.V./Martek Biosciences, partnered with the nation’s largest dairy processor, Dean Foods, to muscle through approval of DHA/ARA synthetic nutrient oils. The additives, derived from genetically mutated algae and soil fungus, are processed with petrochemical solvents, grown in genetically engineered corn, and formulated for use in infant formula, dairy and other products with a myriad of other unreviewed synthetic ingredients. “All these elements of the Martek Biosciences products, along with outstanding safety and efficacy concerns, made them inappropriate and illegal in organics,² said Charlotte Vallaeys, Director of Food and Farm Policy for Cornucopia. “So after witnessing this travesty, we decided to take a closer look at how other synthetic additives have been approved for use in organic foods in the past.”

What The Cornucopia Institute investigation found is disturbing to many
organic industry stakeholders. Since the NOSB was not constituted by Congress to be a scientific body, it relies on legally mandated technical reviews, by impartial scientists, of any synthetic materials that are petitioned for use in organics.
Cornucopia found that a small handful of scientists, working for corporate agribusiness, supplied the “independent” analyses to the board. In one example, an executive for Ralston Purina/Beech Nut, Dr. Richard Theuer, authored 45 of 50 technical reviews during a two-year period in the 1990s.

As a case study Cornucopia used the food ingredient carrageenan, a stabilizer and thickening agent that was initially approved for use in
organic food in the mid-1990s. Theuer, and two other agribusiness-related food scientists, reviewed carrageenan without emphasizing its impacts on human health and the environment. Carrageenan, derived from seaweed, has been widely used in conventional foods for decades. “Carrageenan is a well-documented inflammatory agent that has been found, in thousands of experiments in human cells and animals, to cause harmful effects, and low molecular weight carrageenan has been recognized by the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer and the National Research Council of the United States as a possible human carcinogen,” said Dr. Joanne Tobacman, a leading researcher on carrageenan and its human health impacts at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Low molecular weight, or “degraded,” carrageenan has been found, by industry research, to contaminate food-grade carrageenan. Other research has indicated that digestion, heating, bacterial action, and mechanical processing can increase the amount of degraded carrageenan obtained from higher molecular weight carrageenan. “Due to its unique chemical characteristics, there is no safe form of carrageenan,” Dr. Tobacman added.

“Those of us in the industry, who are committed to the value of wholesome, nutritious foods that has been the hallmark of the organic industry, need the NOSB and the USDA to carefully and impartially review synthetic ingredients like carrageenan,² said Michael Potter, President of Eden Foods, a Clinton, Michigan based manufacturer long viewed as an organic leader. In an effort to remediate this ongoing scandal, in a letter to USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack, Cornucopia demanded that one of the newest appointees to the board, an executive at the giant California berry producer, Driscolls, be removed since she was placed in a slot Congress reserved for an individual who “owns or operates an organic farming operation.”

“We have seen the USDA, in the past, appoint an executive from General Mills, as an example, to a consumer slot on the board. This gross scoffing at the law Congress passed as a safeguard against corporate domination needs to end right now,” Kastel said. “We expected better from the Obama administration. Either the USDA will immediately remediate this problem or we will defend the organic law in federal court.” Cornucopia’s white paper documents the long-term abuse of congressional intent, by stacking the board with agribusiness operatives, an illegal practice that has stretched over the past three administrations.

Another request in Cornucopia’s letter to Secretary Vilsack was to reform the selection of independent scientists reviewing synthetics in organics, stating that the industry needs an impartial board and the board needs truly impartial expert advisors. “I wish I was making this up, but one of the newest contractors to fulfill this review function is The Organic Center, the nonprofit offshoot of the
Organic Trade Association, an agribusiness lobby group,” Kastel added. “This is the proverbial fox watching the organic chicken coop. “The Organic Center’s board is chaired by Mark Retzloff, President of Aurora Dairy, a giant factory farm milk producer bottling private-label organic milk for Walmart, Costco and Target. Aurora was found by the USDA in 2007 to have “willfully” violated 14 tenets of federal organic law – likely the largest scandal in organic industry history.

Other members of the Organic Center’s leadership reads like a Who’s Who of giant corporations involved in organics, including four individuals associated with Dean Foods and their WhiteWave division (Horizon and Silk). “The Organic Center board members have worked, over the years, for many of the very companies seeking approval for use of synthetics in organic food,” noted Cornucopia’s Vallaeys. “Talk about a conflict of interest.” Despite these problems, Cornucopia’s report is bullish on organics and hopeful that the situation at the USDA can be turned around. There are fewer than 300, mostly benign, non-organic and synthetic compounds that have been approved for use in organics. That number is dwarfed by the many thousands of chemicals used in conventional food production, many of them highly toxic and carcinogenic.

“We implore consumers not to reject organics because a handful of corporations have acted recklessly and the USDA has failed to do their
legally mandated job. Organic farmers, and their ethical processing partners, need your support now more than ever,” Kastel added. “And health conscious families deserve authentic organic food.” The Cornucopia Institute is collecting signed proxies, downloadable from their website’s home page, asking organic industry stakeholders, including farmers and consumers, to sign the proxy and join in the demand that the USDA operate the organic program legally.

The growing dispute over synthetic ingredients is likely to be a hot topic
at the next meeting of the National Organic Standards Board, set for May
22-25 in Albuquerque, NM.

“We know that carrageenan is up for review at this meeting and we hope the
NOSB will revisit their controversial decision on Martek’s DHA/ARA. We urge
the board to take this opportunity to reinforce consumer confidence in the
organic label,” said Kastel.

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Kevin Brown Speaking At The Family Days On The Farm!

Posted by Kevin Brown on May 21, 2012

Posted in Big Agriculture, Family Wellness, Food freedom, heart disease, liberation diet, liberation wellness, Nutrition, raw milk, weston price | Tagged: , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

You’re Participation Is Critical!

Posted by Kevin Brown on May 17, 2012

This is not sponsored by the Weston A Price Foundation; we are sending this to our members as a courtesy.

SOMETHING HISTORICAL IS ABOUT TO HAPPEN – BUT YOU’RE PARTICIPATION IS CRITICAL

I’m pleased to announce that the Money Bomb Against Monsanto has been officially launched!

Volunteers and staff from the California Right to Know Campaign are submitting nearly 1 million signed petitions from registered voters across the state of California to county officials, to place Right to Know Genetically Engineered Food Act on the Ballot for November 6.
Starting May 1, and extending through May 26, a broad coalition of farmers, health groups, and organic food manufacturers, will attempt to raise one million dollars (i.e. “The Money Bomb”). Donations can be made online, via regular snail mail, and over the phone. All donations will support state GMO-labeling campaigns and their defense from biotech bully lawsuits.

ACTION TO TAKE

1. READ the Message from Dr. Mercola and WATCH the video at

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2012/05/01/monsanto-vs-gmo-labeling.aspx

2. DONATE to the Money Bomb on GMOs by May 26, 2012 at
www.organicconsumersfund.org/donate/moneybomb.cfm

3. SIGN the Labeling Petition at
www.organicconsumers.org/monsanto/action.cfm

4. SPREAD the word and EDUCATE yourself and others; for more information on GMOs, go to  www.responsibletechnology.org

More details and links are posted at  www.farmtoconsumer.org/aa/aa-07may2012.htm

THE RIGHT TO KNOW GENETICALLY MODIFIED FOOD ACT
Act will require food manufacturers to identify genetically engineered ingredients on the labels of foods sold in California.

When California voters pass this ballot initiative, the Label Genetically Engineered Food Act will also not allow the common practice of mis labeling genetically engineered foods as “natural” or “all natural.” It’s imperative to understand why this initiative is so important and how it can affect all Americans, regardless of where you live.

California has the eighth largest economy in the world, so passing a labeling law for genetically engineered foods in California can have the same impact as passing a federal law.

Large food companies are unlikely to accept having dual labeling; one for California and another for the rest of the country. It would be an expensive logistical nightmare, not to mention a massive PR problem.

To avoid the dual labeling, many would likely opt to not include using any genetically engineered ingredients in their product, especially if the new label would be the equivalent of a skull and crossbones. Those who opt not to replace GE ingredients from the get-go will likely find themselves unable to sell their products, as a majority of consumers reportedly will not buy foods once they know they’re genetically engineered. Unable to sell their products, such companies will eventually be forced to stop contaminating our food with genetically engineered ingredients, or risk going out of business.

This is what happened in Europe and over 40 countries around the world. It can happen in the U.S. This is why we can’t leave California to battle the biotech giants on their own. They need your help!  Donating funds to this campaign may be the best money you’ll spend all year to safeguard your health, and the health of your children.

Do you know which foods are genetically engineered when you go grocery shopping for your family? Wouldn’t you want to know? Genetically engineered foods have been on the market since 1996. It’s time they tell us what’s in the food we’re eating on a daily basis. Making a generous  donation to this campaign is the best chance every American has at this point to make that happen!

THE PROVERBIAL DAVID VERSUS GOLIATH
Naturally, the biotech industry is not about to let this pass without a fight. Monsanto, the Farm Bureau, the Grocery Manufacturers Association, along with corporate agribusiness, are all raising millions of dollars to spread their propaganda in an effort to defeat the California Ballot Initiative, just like they did a decade ago in Oregon. At that time, a cabal of corporate giants, including Monsanto and DuPont, calling themselves The Coalition Against the Costly Labeling Law, outspent the pro-labeling group 30-1, and successfully defeated the labeling initiative by scaring voters into believing that labeling genetically engineered foods was unnecessary and would raise food prices.

They did it again in Washington state last month, where campaign contributions to three of the eight politicians on the Senate Agriculture Committee-Democrat Brian Hatfield, and Republicans Jim Honeyford and Mark Schoesler-guaranteed the bill’s demise in committee. Right now, the biotech industry is also working to defeat similar GE labeling bills in Vermont, Hawaii, Connecticut, and other states. According to the Union of Concerned Scientists, Monsanto spent $8 million on their lobbying efforts in 2010 alone, and gave more than $400,000 in political contributions. Monsanto also spent $120 million on advertising, to convince consumers that genetically engineered foods are safe – despite the overwhelming scientific evidence showing otherwise.

Let’s send them a message, loud and clear:  We have the right to know what they put into our food!

You can do so by making a  donation right now. The money will be used to counter the industry propaganda so that we can win this ballot.

WE’RE DROPPING THE MONEY BOMB!
About twenty years ago, the FDA decided to deny consumers the right to know whether their food was genetically altered or not. This shameful regulation was spearheaded by Michael Taylor, a former Monsanto lawyer who transferred into the offices of the FDA. Taylor is not the only ex-Monsanto employee that ended up in a position of power within the US federal government and its regulatory agencies, and this is precisely why previous efforts to get genetically engineered foods labeled have been blocked.

Not so this time!

Ballot Initiatives like the one in California is one way for citizens to  take back control  from compromised politicians and government officials and bypass them entirely. To sweeten the deal further, a group of “Right to Know” public interest organizations and organic companies have pledged to match the first million dollars raised in this nationwide “Drop the Money Bomb on Monsanto Campaign.”

So  click here , and help us raise 1 million dollars to win this historic campaign! These “Right to Know” groups include:

The Organic Consumers Association
Mercola.com
Food Democracy Now
Nature’s Path
Lundberg Family Farms
Eden Foods
The Organic Consumers Fund
Institute For Responsible Technology

CAN WE WIN?
Yes, I believe we can! But we need to get the word out, which requires a strong campaign to educate the citizens of California to vote for the initiative on November 6. According to Ronnie Cummins of the Organic Consumers Association, we stand a good chance of winning in California because:

This time, we have far more scientific information and greater public awareness on our side. GE contamination is now a mainstream media issue. Monsanto has become the most hated corporation in the world.
This time, we have overwhelming public support. Polls show that more than 8 out of 10 voters in California want mandatory GE labeling.
This time, we have built the strongest coalition of concerned food consumers in history, for the exclusive purpose of passing this law.

THE TIME FOR ACTION IS NOW!
Today, I ask you to invest in this Initiative. Invest in your future. And invest as generously as you can.  If you’ve already sent in your donation, thank you! If not, please  contribute to this historic and critical campaign today.  And then please forward this email to your friends. Share it on Facebook and Twitter. Print it out, hand it to all your friends. Every action counts!

As stated by Ronnie Cummins with the Organic Consumers Association:
“Monsanto is one of the most powerful, arrogant and destructive companies in the world. For decades, they have controlled the world’s food supply by buying off politicians and regulatory agencies, intimidating small farmers, manipulating the outcome of scientific studies, lying to consumers – and threatening to sue states like Vermont if they dare to pass a GMO labeling law.
… Despite Monsanto’s claims to the contrary, scientists are clear: genetically engineered food has been linked to a wide range of health hazards, including kidney and liver damage, infertility, auto-immune disorders, allergies and autism, accelerated aging, and birth defects…
We have the right to know if the food we buy has been genetically engineered…. It’s time to take back our food. Our farms. Our power. It’s time to show Monsanto what ordinary people like us can do when we come together. It’s time to drop the money bomb on Monsanto.”
Hundreds of thousands of people making small donations can help the coalition behind this initiative run a dynamic, effective campaign to bring down Monsanto and the rest of the Biotech Bullies.

So please, join us, and make a donation right now!  You can donate online, by phone, or by dropping a check in the mail.

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The FDA Is Pressing Ahead

Posted by Kevin Brown on May 17, 2012

NEWS RELEASE

THE FDA IS PRESSING AHEAD – ACT NOW – FIGHT BACK


May 16, 2012

          As was recently reported by another health-freedom group, the FDA has once again become very active and has sent “warning letters,” breaking its promise not to enforce the draft Guidance on New Dietary Ingredients (NDIs).  Actually, the FDA had previously said it was cracking down on such supplements, so this was not a surprise. The FDA has already issued warning letters of this sort. So, this is not new “News.”  If Daniel Fabricant can be believed, this FDA action has no direct relation with the draft Guidance on NDIs (as he discussed just this in a webinar with industry some months ago). These are warning letters and not withdrawal-from-the-market-enforcement letters.  There is a difference, although it does not mean that we should not work even harder to kick the props out from under this draft Guidance.

          But, this FDA action to get tough on warning letters is just another example of why the National Health Federation’s legislation, the Dietary Supplement Protection Act (H.R.3380), is needed and needed now.  And, not sitting on the sidelines while oppression from the FDA continues.

          Many of you have been great supporters and have called and petitioned your Congressional representatives to co-sponsor H.R.3380, but many of you reading this have not.  Please get onboard with this cause and legislation and get others to back this legislation.  Contrary to rumors, H.R.3380 can pass.  If it does not, then it will be a major setback for all of us.

          We need a tsunami wave of consumer outrage to hit the FDA and Congress and force this legislation to be enacted.  Just recently, the Family Farm bill was withdrawn due to the deluge that Congress received from the grassroots groups of individuals, farmers, and others who vehemently opposed this bill.  The bill basically told farmers under what conditions their own children could work on their own farms, a definite overreach by government if there ever was one.  The issue also became too politically risky for Obama in an election year.  But, what is most important is that it was stopped by American citizens persistently demanding their rights.

          As an American, you must fight back against the FDA and let them hear your voice.  You may never have another chance to make this issue right.  Do not stay in the shadows, hoping that someone else will speak for you, they will not.

          Join the NHF in demanding our dietary-supplement rights via H.R.3380.

For more on this issue from NHF National Lobbyist Lee Bechtel [CLICK HERE]

CLICK HERE TO ACT NOW – http://www.thenhf.com/DSPA

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Will You Be Health Freedom’s Next Hero?

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Click here for the permanent link to this news release, use this link to inform others.

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National Health Federation: Established in 1955, the National Health Federation is a consumer-education, health-freedom organization working to protect individuals’ rights to choose to consume healthy food, take supplements and use alternative therapies without unnecessary government restrictions. The NHF is the only such organization with recognized observer-delegate status at Codex meetings.

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Website: www.thenhf.com                    E-mail: contact-us@thenhf.com

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The History Of Butter

Posted by Kevin Brown on May 16, 2012

Butter – the everlasting delight of the gourmand, the faithful ally of the culinary arts, the constant symbol of good living.

Through time and across the globe, butter has had a sacred quality. From the ancient Fertile Crescent to the present day, butter has symbolized the powerful, life giving and sacred, the good, the happy, the healthy and pure. It has sustained lives, cultures and civilizations for millennia.

Butter is a culinary treasure as old as King Tut’s tomb. “She brought forth butter in a lordly dish” (Judges 5:25). A jug of wine, a loaf of bread – and butter! Pure butter is produced today essentially as it was in King Tut’s time, though butter made of milk from cows instead of camels or water buffaloes.

It takes 21 pounds of fresh, wholesome cow’s milk to make each pound of butter like the pat of butter on waxed paper (at right) at a French farm in Brittan

 

continue reading here…http://www.webexhibits.org/butter/

Posted in Big Agriculture, Family Wellness, Food freedom, heart disease, liberation diet, liberation wellness, Nutrition, raw milk, weston price | Tagged: , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Connecticut Bill

Posted by Kevin Brown on May 11, 2012

Food Policy Fund

The state of Connecticut was on the eve of a historic vote.  With 90% of Connecticut residents in favor of GMO labeling, pre-vote tallies indicating that a bi-partisan majority of legislators were in favor of the bill, and an unprecedented awareness of GMOs in CT, everything seemed to be falling into place for CT HB 5117, An Act Concerning Genetically Engineered Food.

Unfortunately, in a devastating turn of events, before the bill had a chance to make it to the floor for debate and a vote, in a closed door meeting, Governor Malloy and his attorneys interfered in the legislative process by removing Section 2 of the bill.  Section 2 was the heart of the bill, the section that called for mandatory labeling of all products produced with the process of genetic engineering, leaving HB 5117 meaningless.  Governor Malloy chose to put the interests of the monstrous biotech industry in front of the rights of the people of Connecticut.

The Governor has yet to make a statement about his actions, but individuals within the administration indicated that the reason for removing Section 2 from the bill was because of concerns that the bill put CT at risk for being sued based on the outlandish and outdated concept that GMO labeling would be unconstitutional and violate the merchants’ right to remain silent and not disclose what products contain GMOs.

While it is yet to be determined whether governor Malloy is afraid of the biotech industry or actually in their pocket, one thing is clear, HB 5117 landed on the Governors desk because it was about to pass the CT House Legislature.  Legislators and activists in the Right To Know CT campaign alike are outraged that they were robbed of due process.

DO NOT allow Governor Malloy to get away with this.  This can happen in your state too!

Call, write, Facebook, and Twitter Governor Malloy to tell him we know what he did and we are demanding that he put our right to know in front of the interests of the biotech industry.

Phone – 860-566-4840 or 1-800-406-1527
e-mail – http://www.governor.ct.gov/malloy/cwp/view.asp?a=3998&q=479082
Twitter – @govmalloyoffice
Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/GovMalloyOffice

Send a message to our government and the industry.  STOP buying products with GMOs today.  If our government is not going to protect us we need to protect ourselves.  Go to www.nongmoshoppingguide.com to learn how to avoid GMOs.

DONATE >

Thank you,

Tara Cook-Littman and the Institute for Responsible Technology Staff

*Photos courtesy of Tara Cook-Littman
The IRT Food Policy Fund is a 501(c)(4) non-profit organization engaging in advocacy and legislative lobbying activities.

Please donate to help IRT Food Policy Fund engage in advocacy and legislative lobbying activities

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