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Attack on Right to Know: "No Hormone","Cruelty Free", Illegal

Forwarded message:
From:   alliance@MR.Net (Ronnie Cummins)
To:     surow@objectstream.com
Date: 97-05-12 12:43:01 EDT

Action Alert: Congressional Attack on Consumers' Right to Know Regarding
Genetically Engineered Foods, Bovine Growth Hormone, and "Cruelty Free"
Cosmetics

Ronnie Cummins, Pure Food Campaign
Tel. 218-226-4164 or 218-226-4155  Fax 218-226-4157
email: alliance@mr.net       http://www.geocities.com/athens/1527
May 12, 1997

Members of Congress are expected to reintroduce this spring a so-called
"FDA Reform" bill, H.R. 1411, in the House and Senate which--among its
provisions--will attempt to undermine consumers' rights to know what has
been done to food products, animal drugs, and cosmetics. Specifically,
"national labeling uniformity" provisions in "section 28" of the
forthcoming "Drug and Biological Products Modernization Act of 1997" will
make it nearly impossible for consumers to know whether food has been
genetically engineered or not, whether toxic pesticides and other
carcinogenic residues remain on food products, and whether cosmetics have
been produced in an animal "cruelty free" manner. The bill, co-sponsored by
138 members of the House of Representatives in 1996 in the form of a
similar bill, H.R 3200, would outlaw local and state "rBGH-free" labeling
and advertising and make it all but impossible to require mandatory
labeling of genetically engineered foods and crops. Section 28 basically
prevents states or local legislative bodies from initiating labeling laws
relating to food safety, genetically engineered foods or "cruelty free"
cosmetics.

Critics point out that H.R. 1411 appears to be yet another manifestation of
the new global economic order under the GATT agreements, whereby local,
state, and national laws in regard to food safety, genetic engineering,
pesticides, and disclosure of food or cosmetic production methods are
eliminated or weakened in order to facilitate the rapid penetration and
monopolization of global markets by giant transnational corporations--in
this case multinational chemical, factory farm, biotechnology,
pharmaceutical, and cosmetics firms. This type of anti-consumer right to
know legislation becomes necessary for industry as consumer alarm over
genetic engineering, factory farming, food safety, cloning, and animal
cruelty intensifies. A 1997 industry poll found 93% of American consumers
demanding mandatory labeling of genetically engineered foods, and 54%
desiring organic production methods. Similar polls have found 80% of
consumers expressing concern about food safety and pesticide residues, with
66% opposed to the cloning of animals. Consumers demanding animal "cruelty
free" cosmetics, foods, and "dolphin safe" tuna have likewise had a major
impact in the marketplace.

The Pure Food Campaign has begun working with consumer activists and public
interest organizations across the U.S. to demand that "section 28"
regarding "national uniformity" consumer labeling be removed from H.R.
1411. Citizens are urged to contact their state legislators (whose powers
to enact pro-consumer food safety and "cruelty free" labeling laws will be
taken away) and federal Representatives and Senators to demand a written
guarantee that they will not support any bill with language or provisions
that would eliminate or reduce consumer choice in labeling. While
contacting legislators, people are also urged to point out that it is
outrageous that the FDA is not requiring national mandatory labeling of
rBGH and all genetically engineered foods, since this is what 93% of the
population wants.

If you want to organize a grassroots lobbying campaign in your area, please
contact the PFC. We can put you in contact with others in your region who
share your concerns. And finally, as we kill the anti-consumer provisions
of this bill, we must begin to build a mass movement for mandatory labeling
of all gene-foods,and mandatory disclosure of all relevant production
methods and country of origin information for food, animal drugs,
cosmetics, and other consumer products.