Congress Feels Heat Over "Sneak Attack" on Organic Standards

[nosmokes]

Congress Feels Heat from Consumers Over "Sneak Attack" on Organic Standards by Food Processors & Grocery Chains

October 12, 2005

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT:

Ronnie Cummins [phone]
Ryan Zinn [phone]

Congress Feels Heat from Consumers Over "Sneak Attack" on Organic Standards by Food Processors & Grocery Chains
More Than 250,000 Write Congress to Stop Industry "Rider"

Agricultural Appropriations Bill Could Allow Hundreds of Synthetic Substances & Non-Organic Ingredients in Organic Production without Public Comment and Strict Review
Washington, D.C - As Congress finalizes the 2006 Agricultural Appropriations bill in the House/Senate Conference Committee, more than a quarter million consumers have mobilized in the last three weeks from a broad cross section of the U.S. to stop an industry-sponsored "Sneak Attack" on Organic Standards contained in a "rider" to the bill. Members of the Organic Consumers Association (OCA) have bombarded Congress with over 150,000 letters and 30,000 phone calls, heading off passage of the "Sneak Attack" rider in the U.S. Senate. Members of other groups including Citizens for Health, Health Freedom, Consumers Union, Public Citizen, the National Cooperative Grocer Association, and the Center for Food Safety have cumulatively generated more than 110,000 additional letters to congress against the industry rider.

The Sneak Attack rider would lower organic standards by allowing Bush administration appointees in the USDA National Organic Program to approve hundreds of synthetic substances and processing aids in organic products. Even worse, these proposed regulatory changes would reduce future public discussion and input and undermine the National Organic Standards Board's (NOSB) traditional lead jurisdiction in monitoring standards and controlling what substances are allowed on the "National List" of approved ingredients. What this means, in blunt terms is that USDA bureaucrats and industry lobbyists, not consumers, would have near total control over what can go into processed organic foods and products.

The backlash is also growing among many retailers, co-ops and some makers of organic foods. Eden Foods, a longtime organic industry brand leader and processor issued a statement on October 3 condemning the "Sneak Attack." Since then 200 businesses have joined OCA's campaign to Save Organic Standards. "Eden Foods strongly objects," said Eden Chairman and President Michael Potter. "As the oldest and a founding member of the organic foods industry that has never employed shortcuts, we believe that the fast, cheap, and easy route is counter productive in organic food production." A copy of the Eden Foods statement along with OCA's petition for businesses may be found online at http://www.organicconsumers.org/organic/edenfoods100305.cfm .
Newly emerging organic industry giants such as Kraft, Dole, Dean Foods/Horizon, Whole Foods Market, Wild Oats, Aurora, Smucker, and General Mills seek a streamlined "expedited" approach to modifying organic standards and inclusion of synthetic substances in processed organic foods in order to meet the booming public demand for organics, now a $15 billion industry. "The Organic Trade Association's credibility on organic standards has been severely tarnished by their 'Sneak Attack rider' and new cozy relationship with Kraft and other food giants who apparently care more about their bottom line than they do about strict public review and maintaining strict organic standards. These American food giants, with freshly painted organic facades, appear to be looking for an easy way to brand their products as 'organic' when in fact the rider they support would seriously undermine current organic standards," stated Ronnie Cummins, co-founder and National Director of the OCA. "After 35 years of hard work, the U.S. organic community has built up a multi-billion dollar alternative to industrial agriculture, based upon strict organic standards and organic community control over modification to these standards. For the sake of the earth and the health of all Americans, we must stop this sneak attack by industry and preserve strict organic standards,"
More information may be found at http://www.organicconsumers.org
###

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

1. Is there anything these fucking sons of bitches won't spoil for

the rest of us? Never mind, I already know the answer.

[indepat]

21. There is absolutely nothing those sobs won't spoil for corporate greed

[KittyWampus]

2. Why can't there be an analog to "Kosher"? Where those of us believing in

the value of foods being grown, processed and produced without synthetics can identify what meets our own standards?

[loudsue]

3. Horizon??? Whole Foods Market??? Wild Oats??? TRAITORS!!!

Those FUCKERS!!!!! I had no idea they were behind this mess!

I'm boycotting the shit out of those assholes!

GAWD THIS MAKES ME FURIOUS!!!

:kick::kick::kick::kick::kick::kick::kick::kick::kick:

[NashVegas]

5. Big Time

I've been watching Horizon (remember Happy Cow?) ever since they started trading their stock publicly. I knew it was bad news when they got bought by Dean.

[AllyCat]

37. I didn't know that about Horizon! I rarely buy their stuff bcz it's more $

than just about every other organic brand. We'll stick with Organic Valley for dairy products or the local producers.

Smucks!! I hate corporatization with a passion. Now I might not even be able to get safe food anymore.

[FrannyD]

8. me too

Does anybody know where else I can buy Rosie Chicken in the East Bay? So I can abandon Whole Foods. And I'll need my Heidi turkey for Thanksgiving too. Everything else is doable.

[Blasphemer]

10. Sad, isn't it?

The thing is that in some areas Whole Foods or Wild Oats are the only options. It's easy enough to boycott a specific manufacturer but the grocery chains involvement makes it that much harder. One way or another, these bastards get the consumers.

[Eurobabe]

27. That's fucking great, WILD OATS???

They're getting a piece of my mind on their website now...

[gulfcoastliberal]

31. Whole Foods CEO is a big Repug Donor & Admirer

Read an article about the dude. Just another repuke cashing in on the organic market segment. A real scumbag.

[texpatriot2004]

34. I didn't know that about Whole Foods. How sick is that. n.t

[AllyCat]

38. Union busters here in Madison.

I rarely go there. Can get better prices and a cleaner conscience at the co-op down the street.

[gulfcoastliberal]

42. Good practice. I always patronize local coops. Never big boxes.

NT

[FrannyD]

43. hard to believe

I've read much about him too, but for some reason thought he was okay. I hate when that happens. I read women ran much of the show there and that makes sense, since most women do the food shopping and cooking. But here's some more negatives from Buy BLue...

http://www.buyblue.org/node/2182/view/ratings/tid/141

[Dover]

46. Who....John Mackey? I would be very surprised if that were true.

Do you have a link to back that up?

I live in Austin where Whole Foods is headquartered, and I'm going to get to the bottom of this.

[gulfcoastliberal]

47. I read in in a magazine article within the last year or 2...

Don't have Lexus/Nexus so I can't point out which one. But it basically talked about the paradox of a republican CEO deciding on a "health food" store empire. If memory serves me correctly, it might have been Gourmet or another cooking mag. But the article definitely stated his republican allegiance and how it was odd. No doubt this guy is secretly supporting watering down the Organic seal standards, I do believe he is a big-time union-buster as the other poster mentioned. He is not a good fellow.

[Dover]

48. Well here's something recent about his philosophy ....

FROM John Mackey's Blog on his Whole Foods website (read the whole page and look at the comment about this legislative decision posted by a customer on the bottom. Add your own comment if you are so inclined):


John Mackey, the founder and CEO of Whole Foods, is one businessman who disagrees with Friedman. A self-described ardent libertarian whose conversation is peppered with references to Ludwig von Mises and Abraham Maslow, Austrian economics and astrology...

..snip...


In 1970 Milton Friedman wrote that "there is one and only one social responsibility of business-to use its resources and engage in activities designed to increase its profits so long as it stays within the rules of the game, which is to say, engages in open and free competition without deception or fraud." That's the orthodox view among free market economists: that the only social responsibility a law-abiding business has is to maximize profits for the shareholders.

I strongly disagree. I'm a businessman and a free market libertarian, but I believe that the enlightened corporation should try to create value for all of its constituencies. From an investor's perspective, the purpose of the business is to maximize profits. But that's not the purpose for other stakeholders-for customers, employees, suppliers, and the community. Each of those groups will define the purpose of the business in terms of its own needs and desires, and each perspective is valid and legitimate.

My argument should not be mistaken for a hostility to profit. I believe I know something about creating shareholder value. When I co-founded Whole Foods Market 27 years ago, we began with $45,000 in capital; we only had $250,000 in sales our first year. During the last 12 months we had sales of more than $4.6 billion, net profits of more than $160 million, and a market capitalization over $8 billion.

But we have not achieved our tremendous increase in shareholder value by making shareholder value the primary purpose of our business. In my marriage, my wife's happiness is an end in itself, not merely a means to my own happiness; love leads me to put my wife's happiness first, but in doing so I also make myself happier. Similarly, the most successful businesses put the customer first, ahead of the investors. In the profit-centered business, customer happiness is merely a means to an end: maximizing profits. In the customer-centered business, customer happiness is an end in itself, and will be pursued with greater interest, passion, and empathy than the profit-centered business is capable of...cont'd

http://www.wholefoods.com/blogs/jm/archives/2005/09/

______________________________________________________________


Here's some info on the Whole Food Employees forming a Union (scroll down):

http://twincities.indymedia.org/index.php?limit_start=472

________________________________________________________________

And I haven't found any info on donations to the Republican Party but here's one invitation to an event for business owners by Tx. Repub. Gov. Perry that Mackey declined:

http://www.tpj.org/page_view.jsp?pageid=337&pubid=194

[Dover]

49. John Mackey on Unions, etc. - A 'New Age Capitalist' (Forbes)

...Mackey reserves most of his bile for the unions and for what he considers their partners in crime, government and the regulators.


Consider his stance on the proposed Organic Foods Production Act, which would position the government as the arbiter of what constitutes an "organic" product. Better, he contends, to have a private body functioning similarly to the way that Wall Street's rating agencies grade commercial and municipal paper.


But not just anyone. The Earth Island Institute is hounding him to certify that his shrimp are caught using turtle-friendly nets (most are farm-raised). Oh, by the way, he notes, they'd like to charge a fee for that certification.


The United Farm Workers union is pestering his stores over his refusal to sign a petition that would guarantee the "rights" of strawberry pickers. Not a chance. "The UFWis trying to coerce us because we won't sign their damned petition," he says -- the union is just trying to organize.


People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals is after him for selling farm-raised ostrich meat. "The fact of the matter is, we deal in dead animals, and animal-rights people are against that," he says bluntly.


"We seem to be the lightning rod for every advocacy group. "But bring 'em on, he dares: "Think about it. We're getting an incredible amount of publicity we don't have to pay for."




http://www.forbes.com/global/1998/0406/0101049a_print.html

[54anickel]

4. Oh good God! It's all nothing but marketing to these assholes, isn't it?

Organic has taken off and now the big guys want a piece of the market, but it's too costly for them to actually become organic, so instead let's just lower the bar. All image and facade, no substance - sort of like this mal-admin and the resident they've labeled president.

[CatholicEdHead]

11. Yes it is all marketing

It is all about expanding profits with little effort.

[KittyWampus]

12. sort of like hybrid cars...

[apnu]

41. So you'd rather have an all gas guzzling car?

In hybrids at least there is some savings, to the pocket, enviroment, and technology improvements.

The only thing that makes this 'sort of like hybrid cars' is the fact that there's a bill (that was passed) that seeks to undermine the hybrid car movement. This seeks to do the same thing, undermine the organic market.

[Luminous Animal]

6. It never fucking ends. (n/t)

[SoCalDem]

13. Find a local farmer, have him raise your meat

grow your own veggies.. I guess that's the only solution..We actually did this in New mexico.. I grew all our veggies and we bought a hind quarter and put it in the freezer.. I barely shopped at all..Mostly cleaning supplies and paper goods..

The guy who sold us the hind quarter also threw in a bunch of homemade sausgae, and some pork chops & home cured bacon..

[CatholicEdHead]

15. Even easier, look for local farmers markets

Those in many urban areas do offer a wide sprectrum so you can pick up the basics every weekend or two. I do know the St. Paul and Madison, WI ones are pretty nice.

[Luminous Animal]

26. I live in California

and fortunately, California's standards are more stringnet than the Fed's standards. I don't eat meat but I do belong to a local organic food distribution organization. Also, I shop at local organic food markets and farmer's markets.

What is pissing me off about this stealth legislation is that those people who do not have the luxury of accessing locally produced organic food who want to eat organic will now find their food legally contaminated.

[cantstandbush]

7. People should know this is what they get from the DeLay-Bush regieme

They can thank DeLay and the rest of the Republicans for this.

[FrannyD]

9. And the retards that voted for them

[pinniped]

14. These freaks tried something like this with the wild salmon numbers.

Article from last year:

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2004/03/26/MNGQG5RO7F1.DTL&hw=wild+salmon&sn=017&sc=321
-------

These freaks of nature simply do not give a shit about anything except money. They want to exterminate wild salmon populations, redefine organic standards, and clone steaks and chops. Sickening.

[goforit]

16. America has got to fight back!!!

[hvn_nbr_2]

17. "Expedited" approach to meeting demand!? WTF?

...seek a streamlined "expedited" approach to modifying organic standards and inclusion of synthetic substances in processed organic foods in order to meet the booming public demand for organics

So let me see if I got this right. There's a big demand for gold. So the lead and copper lobbies pass a law that says lead and copper may now be called "gold." Presto! The demand for gold is now satisfied. Excuse me while I :puke:

[loudsue]

33. That's a perfect example of what they're doing here!

How can we rid ourselves of the corporate monster that IS our government?

They have NO SHAME, NO SENSE OF DECENCY, and they don't even give a flying fuck what products are actually driving the market!! Organics is becoming more and more popular, and they want to rape the whole thing.

Rape. That's how I feel. Like I've been raped, along with Mother Nature.

I couldn't POSSIBLY hate these people any more than I do!! :nuke:

:kick::kick::kick:

[KansDem]

18. Since when are Kraft, Dole, Smucker, and General Foods...

...considered "organic?" Only if high-fructose corn syrup is classed as "organic!"

How long till we see "organic red dye #40," or "organic aspartame," or "organic artificial flavorings?"

[Miss Chybil]

19. I signed the letter and forward the link to my friends. nt

[niallmac]

20. Organic means LOCAL and that's not CORPORATE

The pug money pigs are not happy with a profit here and there. They need the entire market.
We buy local organic as much as possible. Products that come from small local farms run by families that are happy to have the business they have. Once again the small independent farmer is under attack. The soul sucking greedy pious elitist pigs see the trend and want to suck it all up into a nationally distributed industry. Can't do that if you don't fill it full of salt and chemicals. I always wondered why my mom never poured the entire salt container into our tomato soup like campbells does. Well, my mom wasn't shipping her soup all over the U.S. of A,

The ONLY salvation for the individual and quality (read Zen and The Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Pirsig) and a living breathing culture beyond yogurt is local economies.

Corpororate America has brought me a future I never asked for and like many on this thread I am infuriated that they dare invade this attempt to have a choice other that Kraft cheeze.

If the CORPs want to know, I am president of Screw You Inc.

[tlcandie]

23. EXACTLY a future of nothing BUT cheese product or chicken

parts/pieces... meaning noone knows what is in the stuff you are putting in your mouth UNLESS you grow it in your own garden, BUT WAIT..

Isn't Monstanto trying to fix that so that the seeds you buy are all tainted, too?

How rich...Black market organics coming soon? :sarcasm:

[callady]

22. One of many aspects involved is confinement dairies

Tell USDA to Stop Allowing Factory Style, Intensive Confinement Dairies to Call Themselves "Organic"

Action Alert 10/11/05

USDA’s organic program sides with factory dairy farms Ask Secretary Johanns to intervene Way back in the year 2000, concerned consumers and farmers asked the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) to address a new and troubling trend—factory farms producing “organic” milk in confinement conditions.

The board responded in 2001 by adopting a guidance document that would have helped farmers and certifiers understand what is expected of them and closed loopholes being exploited by industrial-scale farms. The USDA sat on this document, never posting it on their web site or enforcing its provisions.

This spring The Cornucopia Institute filed legal complaints with the USDA alleging that a growing number of factory farms were ignoring the organic law that requires ruminants (dairy cows) to have “access to pasture.” Finally, after years of delay, the USDA asked the NOSB to revisit their recommendations. The board responded by passing a rule change and new guidance document.

Again! The USDA has thrown a monkey wrench into enforcing organic integrity. They rejected the language adopted unanimously by the NOSB, a respected and diverse expert advisory panel (saying it was “ambiguous”), and now have refused to allow the board to vote on new language at their next meeting this November. Years of delays continue as the factory farms expand.

http://www.organicconsumers.org/organic/confinement101105.cfm

[meganmonkey]

24. Good - If you haven't yet, PLEASE write your representatives!

We cannot let this rider pass!!!

:kick:

[Rainscents]

25. I will never, ever buy Horizon product again!

Most their shit is already only 70% organic anyway, why don't they just go none organic! Horizon product carry black stamp, which mean, it's only 70% organic.

[mcg]

28. Cascadian_Farms/Muir Glen bought by General Mills

http://bschool.washington.edu/ciber/PDF_WORD/Cascadian_Farm_case_Laverty.pdf

Unfortunately I have no other choice of organic frozen fruit.
However, reading the following web page I think it's ok to by
their frozen fruit:

http://www.rawpaleodiet.org/frozen-berries-1.html

[spanone]

29. FUCK YOU AND YOUR ADMINISTRATION GEORGE BUSH*

[natrat]

45. more like fuck anything republican/corporatist

[HuffleClaw]

30. a press release counts as LBN ?

not to discount the facts in question, its just one more sneaky trick by this criminal administration. a bone to corporate producers so they can LABEL stuff as 'organic' it looks like. well, its not the first time they've been caught hiding things in bills and it won't be the last. of course, organic foods isn't quite as 'sexy' as tailor-made protection against lawsuits but its still a concern.

[Cookie wookie]

32. Really sorry to hear that about Whole Foods which is

where I have been shopping primarily. Interestingly enough, lately their "organic" vegetables and clean chicken haven't tasted organic or clean. I've been eating organic since the 70s and I know when it is and isn't. So I was starting to wonder if Whole Foods was sneaking in some nonorganic because they didn't have a big enough supply. Appears my instincts and tastebuds were right.

Woe! It was easy to get organic in California but in Georgia ....

Now what? There are some family farms but they were really struggling last I saw them. One had the most wonderful organic eggs but went out of business.

[nosmokes]

35. georgia shouldn't be that hard.

you may hafta settle for transitional for a few things, but depending on how close you are to atlanta or savanah, it should be fairly easy for you to find a CSA (community supported agriculture) or farmer's markets, and break the chains w/ agricorp for good. it depends on what level of committment you're willing to put into it. but remember, while the changes seem huge at first, after a bit it becomes as natural as going to the store all the time and it pretty much evens out in the wash. check out the link below to help find CSAs or farmer's markets.

http://www.organicconsumers.org/purelink.html">local harvest and it has some more links to other directories. my advice is if there's a famer's market near you to start frequenting that and get to know some of the growers and when you find one or two you really like that have CSAs then sign up with them.

[Cookie wookie]

39. There is a small farmers market that is a 28 mile

round trip from my home, open 9-noon on Saturdays throughout the summer, but closed in the winter. I have been committed for the past 30 years to getting organic food. It was just great, I thought, to be able to get it from Whole Foods on the way home from work, combining a trip and saving on gas and there was more variety, good pricing, and I could get it throughout the winter.

California (where I used to live) really did and does have more variety of organic vegetables and fruit year round than Georgia, of course, because of the weather.

I started my own garden but abandoned it two years ago because the evoting issue was taking all my free time plus I have a problem with deer getting into the garden and eating all the goodies. Will probably have to put up a better fence and get back to growing and canning my own at least until we beat back this evil crew in Washington.

Am thinking this morning that I may take a break in evoting work to see if I can organize flyering. It might be nice to stand out in front of Whole Foods a few times, handing out flyers with the information published above. Really need to know gather more facts first.

I agree wholeheartedly with supporting community organic farms.

[peacetalksforall]

44. I stopped going to Whole Foods on my own because of getting

bad food (even raw carrots, if that's possible). I am in shock about Whole Foods and Wild Oats. I've spent a lot of money in their stores. I regret every penny of it.

I've bought Cascadian and Muir Glen - no more. General Mills is hardly a health conscious corporation.

I wouldn't even buy a vitamin in those store from now on. I have some Muir Glen that I might dispose of.

This is really disgusting.

Everyday in every way I am justified in ranting aginst big corporations. I never thought it would include health food stores. Their version of organic is rotten. We now learn that their only health concern is for their pocketbook.

Traitors! I'm glad I have an alternative.

[Treclo]

36. Since I travel constantly,

I have no choice but to trust that the words "Certified Organic" actually mean something when I'm shopping in a new town. And in much of the country, COG is hard enough to find half the time, anyway.

I had no idea about Whole Foods...I need to stop traveling and grow a garden.

[Earth_First]

40. I'm glad to hear this...

I hope that the consumer action stops this legistlation dead in it's tracks. We are an organic foods family who were distressed to see that they were attempting to tamper with our food supplies.

Keep up the good work folks!

I am disappointed in Horizon, however. Until reading this, they have been who we purchase our milk from. Not any longer. Thanks for the information DU!