Organic Bytes: Monsanto Madness, GMO Breast Milk, Nuclear Meltdown

 

SUBSCRIBE & Read Past Issues | OCA Homepage Monsanto Madness, GMO Breast Milk, Nuclear Meltdown #271, April 7, 2011 In this issue: Quote of the Week: Don M. Huber, Ph.D. News Story of the Week: Monsanto is Poisoning Us All: 117 Peer-Reviewed Scientific Studies Expose Hazards of Monsanto's Roundup Herbicide & "Roundup Ready" GMOs Alert of the Week: Stop Genetically Modified "Humanized" Milk Cows! Millions Against Monsanto: Meet Me in San Francisco (or Chicago, Seattle or New York) Videos of the Week: More Videos from the March 26, 2011, Rallies for the Right to Know "Terminator Seeds" by The Ameros Little Bytes Quote of the Week "Any change in any of these factors impacts all the factors. No one element acts alone, but all are part of a system...When you change one thing, everything else in the web of life changes in relationship." -Don M. Huber, Ph.D., emeritus soil scientist of Purdue University, March 24, 2011 News Story of the Week Monsanto Is Poisoning Us All: 117 Peer-Reviewed Scientific Studies Expose Hazards of Monsanto's Roundup Herbicide & "Roundup Ready" GMOs In a previous issue of Organic Bytes, we reported that Don M. Huber, Ph.D., emeritus soil scientist of Purdue University, wrote a letter to USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack about a newly discovered virulent pathogen that proliferates in soil treated with Monsanto's Roundup herbicide. The Monsanto pathogen is taken up by plants, transmitted to animals via their feed, and is passed on to human beings by the plants and meat they consume. The pathogen has yet to be described or named, though that work is almost complete. At a March 24 seminar sponsored by Knox County Extension and the Center for Rural Affairs in Nebraska, Dr. Huber said that all the research and data would be published in a matter of weeks. In his presentation, Dr. Huber summarized 117 peer-review scientific studies that show the hazards associated with Monsanto's Roundup herbicide and the "Roundup Ready" GMO crops that have increased its use: * Compromised plant defense mechanisms; plants more susceptible to disease. * Reduced availability and uptake of essential nutrients. * Increased virulence of pathogens that attack plants. * Lower yields. Huber warned that ignoring these emerging realities may have dire consequences for agriculture such as rendering soils infertile, crops non-productive, and plants less nutritious. He said it could also, and apparently already is, compromising the health and well-being of animals and humans. Read More PLEASE DONATE Donate to OCA & Receive Access to Yoga, Fitness and Meditation Videos Online The Organic Consumers Association is happy to be partnering with My Yoga Online to provide OCA donors with a month's worth of instructional web fitness videos at no cost with any size donation. Your donations help us continue to do the important work that you read about each week in Organic Bytes and each day on our website. OCA highly recommends this resource for anyone who is online and has a computer! Choose the type of fitness video, ability level and length that works for you. Check out the My Yoga Online website to browse their dynamic library of hundreds of yoga, health and wellness videos and articles. Just put "yoga offer" in the comments of your donation!  Please Donate Alert OF THE WEEK Stop Genetically Modified "Humanized" Milk Cows! Researchers at the China Agricultural University say they have forcefully inserted genetically modified human genes into cows to produce a breast-milk-like substance. The research was funded by the Beijing GenProtein Biotechnology Company which hopes to soon sell its genetically modified dairy products in supermarkets. Like cows injected with genetically engineered bovine growth hormone before them, these new "humanized" dairy cows are likely to suffer poor health while producing milk that is nutritionally inferior and more likely to trigger an allergy or increase cancer risks in the children or adults who drink it. Cloned and genetically modified animals also suffer greater health problems, increased mortality and a high number of still births. Food produced from these animals is dangerous for humans because the insertion of foreign genes into DNA strands remains an inexact science. These foreign genes hit the DNA strands in random spots, changing the way they are expressed (turned on and turned off) and creating proteins never before ingested by human beings. These novel proteins could prove dangerous for large segments of the human population who find they are allergic to them. Take Action Millions Against Monsanto Meet Me in San Francisco (or Chicago, Seattle or New York) To gear up for the Millions Against Monsanto actions on World Food Day, October 16, 2011, we're calling for regional anti-GMO summits at each of the Green Festivals around the country: San Francisco: April 9-10, 2011 Chicago: May 14-15, 2011 Seattle: May 21-22, 2011 New York: October 1-2, 2011 We need volunteers in each city to host gatherings at their homes or community centers, to put up OCA staff and volunteers in their homes and to work in the Millions Against Monsanto booths. To volunteer, please click here. The first is this weekend in San Francisco: San Francisco Green Festival Concourse Exhibition Center 635 8th Street (at Brannan Street) Join Organic Consumers Association's political director, Alexis Baden-Mayer, filmmaker Deborah Koons Garcia (The Future of Food), Pamm Larry (Label GMOs: It's Our Right To Know, a 2012 CA Ballot Initiative) and your fellow Millions Against Monsanto activists to brainstorm and solidify ideas for the Truth-in-Labeling campaign. Find more information here. MILLIONS AGAINST MONSANTO BOOTH: Booth #1020 Booth Hours: Saturday, April 9, 2011, 10am-7pm Sunday, April 10, 2011, 11am-6pm Volunteer to staff the booth (please let us know which hours you're available) RALLIES FOR THE RIGHT TO KNOW & GMO FOOD DUMPS: Let's take Millions Against Monsanto out of the Green Festival and into the streets at actions targeting Whole Foods & Trader Joe's. They say they support mandatory GMO labels, but they admit to selling unlabeled genetically engineered foods. We're marching to their stores from the San Francisco Green Festival. Bring signs, banners, noise-makers, costumes, & musical instruments! Leave from the Organic Consumers Association booth (#1020): 7pm Sat, 6pm Sun. RSVP on Facebook (please invite your friends!) RSVP via email Videos of the Week More Videos from the March 26, 2011, Rallies for the Right to Know Activist journalists are still posting video reports from the March 26, 2011, Rallies for the Rallies for the Right to Know. We're posting them on the OrganicConsumer's YouTube Channel. Check out the latest on OrganicConsumer's Rally for the Right to Know Playlist on YouTube! Videos of the Week Millions Against Monsanto Song: "Terminator Seeds" by The Ameros Watch & Listen Little Bytes Nuclear Meltdown: What's Really Happening READ MORE Peak Electricity: March 11, 2011? READ MORE April 4: Remembering Martin Luther King and His Assassination READ MORE USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack: Biofool of the Year READ MORE Is a Real Resistance Movement to the Big Banks Finally on the Rise? READ MORE Message From Ouur Sponsors Dr. Bronner's Magic All-One! 5 Generations and 150 Years of Soapmaking Excellence Marking the 60th Anniversary of the company, Dr. Bronner's Magic Soaps is pleased to announce that all classic liquid & bar soaps are now not only certified under the USDA National Organic Program, but also certified Fair Trade! In addition, we are pleased to introduce a revolutionary new range of high-quality organic products, from hair rinses to shaving gels – all certified under the same USDA program that certifies organic foods. Visit us on the web Become an OCA Sponsor! Every issue of Organic Bytes now goes to 265,000 organic consumers with a thousand new subscribers each week. Please help us and your business by letting our subscribers know who you are and that you support the work of the OCA. Please contact us if you want more information! Please forward this publication to family and friends, place it on web sites, print it, duplicate it and post it freely. Knowledge is power! Organic Bytes is a publication of Organic Consumers Association 6771 South Silver Hill Drive - Finland, MN 55603 - Phone: 218-226-4164 - Fax: 218-353-7652 Subscribe & Read past issues and print- friendly PDF versions of Organic Bytes Connect with us: