ACT NOW TO STOP GM ALFALFA!
Added on January 20, 2010
Appeal to farmers and consumers - Act now to stop GM alfalfa. (Note that this is NOT just an issue for residents of the US, as GM alfalfa will make its way into Canada as well!)
Send your comments to the US Department of Agriculture by February 16, 2010.
Its not yet legal for Monsanto to sell its GM alfalfa seeds in Canada but a US injunction on planting in that country could soon be overturned. If GM alfalfa is planted in the US, it will quickly contaminate our food system as well as Canadian alfalfa crops. It will also lead to the legalization of GM alfalfa in Canada (Canada approved Monsanto's GM Roundup Ready alfalfa in 2005 but it still needs variety registration as a last step before commercialization here).
The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) was court-ordered to conduct an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on alfalfa and GM alfalfa plantings were halted until this EIS was satisfactorily completed. This draft EIS is now out for comment until February 16. Farmers and their organizations in Canada are encouraged to send comments about the expected impact of GM alfalfa contamination. Consumers are also asked to express their concern.
Our strong action could stop GM alfalfa and result in an unprecedented ruling about the real contamination risks of GM.
Please take one of these three actions.
1. Send comments from the web: Our partner in the US, The Center of Food Safety, has launched an action where consumers and farmers can send comments from their website http://ga3.org/campaign/alfalfaEIS
2. Coordinate with us to write your substantial comments - Please also send us your comments and cc them to the Minister of Agriculture and Agriculture Critics from other Parties. Contact Lucy Sharratt, CBAN Coordinator at 613 241 2267 ext.6 or coordinator@cban.ca
3. Sign your group to the "No to GMO Alfalfa" statement http://www.cban.ca/alfalfa
The "No to GMO Alfalfa" Campaign in Canada is coordinated by the Organic Agriculture Protection Fund of the Saskatchewan Organic Directorate and the Canadian Biotechnology Action Network
For more information: http://www.cban.ca/alfalfa coordinator@cban.ca 613 241 2267 ext. 6
Tell the US Government That You Care About GE Contamination of Organic Food!
In 2006, the Center for Food Safety (CFS) sued the Department of Agriculture (USDA) for its illegal approval of Monsanto’s genetically engineered (GE) Roundup Ready alfalfa. The federal courts sided with CFS and banned GE alfalfa until the USDA fully analyzed the impacts of the plant on the environment, farmers, and the public in a rigorous analysis known as an environmental impact statement (or EIS). USDA released its draft EIS on December 14, 2009. A 60-day comment period is now open until February 16, 2010. This is the first time the USDA has done this type of analysis for any GE crop. Therefore, the final decision will have broad implications for all GE crops.
CFS has begun analyzing the EIS and it is clear that the USDA has not taken the concerns of non-GE alfalfa farmers, organic dairies, or consumers seriously. USDA’s preliminary determination is to once again deregulate GE alfalfa without any limitations or protections for farmers or the environment. Instead USDA has completely dismissed the fact that contamination will threaten export and domestic markets and organic meat and dairy products. And, incredibly, USDA is claiming that there is no evidence that consumers care about such GE contamination of organic!
USDA also claims that consumers will not reject GE contamination of organic alfalfa if the contamination is unintentional or if the transgenic material is not transmitted to the end milk or meat product, despite the fact that more than 75% of consumers believe that they are purchasing products without GE ingredients when they buy organic.
USDA claims that Monsanto’s seed contracts require measures sufficient to prevent genetic contamination, and that there is no evidence to the contrary. But in the lawsuit requiring this document, the Court found that contamination had already occurred in the fields of several Western states with these same business-as-usual practices in place!
USDA predicts that the approval of GE alfalfa would damage family farms and organic markets, yet doesn’t even consider any limitations or protections against this scenario. Small, family farmers are the backbone and future of American agriculture and must be protected. Organic agriculture provides many benefits to society: healthy foods for consumers, economic opportunities for family farmers and urban and rural communities, and a farming system that improves the quality of the environment. However, the continued vitality of this sector is imperiled by the complete absence of measures to protect organic production systems from GE contamination and subsequent environmental, consumer, and economic losses.
Tell USDA That You DO Care About GE Contamination of Organic Crops and Food! http://ga3.org/campaign/alfalfaEIS
This alert was published by the Organic Agriculture Protection Fund of the Saskatchewan Organic Directorate and the Canadian Biotechnology Action Network. January 2010.
Lucy Sharratt, Coordinator
Canadian Biotechnology Action Network (CBAN)
Collaborative Campaigning for Food Sovereignty and Environmental Justice
431 Gilmour Street, Second Floor
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, K2P 0R5
Phone: 613 241 2267 ext.6
Fax: 613 241 2506
coordinator@cban.ca
www.cban.ca
Join the Global Rejection of GE Wheat! www.cban.ca/GEwheat
Donate today to support the campaign www.cban.ca/donate