
Center For Food Safety: Consumer, Environmental, Farmer and Animal Welfare Groups Protest Clause that Wipes Out State and Local Authority on Meat, Poultry, Biotechnology
For Immediate Press Release
Washington, June 19, 2007 - Forty consumer, environmental, farmer and animal welfare groups today announced their opposition to a sweeping provision in the 2007 Farm Bill that wipes out critical state and local authority to protect food safety, the environment, and humane animal treatment. The provision, Section 123 of Title I, was quietly inserted in the House bill several weeks ago by the Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry Subcommittee.
Consumers Union, the Sierra Club, the Humane Society of the United States, the Center for Food Safety, the Union of Concerned Scientists and three dozen other organizations today called for deletion of Section 123, in a letter sent today to the House Agriculture Committee. The full Committee will hold its mark up of the 2007 Farm Bill later this month.
"At a time when we have seen repeated food safety failures at FDA and USDA, we need more food safety protection, not less," states Jean Halloran, Director of Food Policy Initiatives at Consumers Union (publisher of Consumer Reports). "This clause would tie the hands of states on meat, poultry and genetically engineered food," she said.
Section 123 would prevent states and localities from passing any laws prohibiting commercial use of USDA-inspected products. "This could prevent a local health inspector at a supermarket from condemning rodent-contaminated meat or poultry that has begun to go bad," states Jean Halloran.
"Section 123 will subvert the principles of federalism and states' rights," states Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of the Humane Society of the United States. "If this appalling and outrageous measure is approved, agribusiness will accomplish what it could not achieve in state legislatures - the evisceration of state laws to protect horses from slaughter and a raft of other democratically approved animal welfare reforms.
"Section 123 would also get in the way of state laws on biotechnology. No state could prohibit use in commerce of a product that USDA has determined is "non-regulated." Both supporters and opponents of the measure agree that this refers to genetically engineered crops, which USDA "deregulates" after considering whether they might be a plant pest. "California, Arkansas and Missouri have passed laws creating state committees that review whether genetically engineered rice should be grown in the state," notes Joe Mendelson, Legal Director of the Center for Food Safety. "These laws, which farmers support, would be preempted."
"This poorly conceived provision should be dropped immediately," states Mendelson. "Just in the last several months we have seen problems with melamine in animal feed and ground beef contaminated with E. coli. Section 123 takes us backwards by removing existing protections we have at the state and local level. We need increased, not decreased food safety efforts," he said.
This dangerous attempt to radically alter doctrine would prevent states and communities from passing laws against some of the most cruel and inhumane factory farming practices, including confinement by crate in the veal and pork industry and foie gras production, as well as horse slaughter and other inhumane practices such as the mistreatment of animals at puppy mills. Additionally, the policies will create an unfair playing field - one
that works at the expense of local markets, family farmers, and the
environment.
Learn More Here:

Food & Water Watch
Full Farm Bill Proposal in PDF
Farm Bill discussion drafts (prepared in anticipation of business meetings to be held by Subcommittees of the Committee regarding the 2007 Farm Bill)
And take Action by sending emails or making phone calls to your state reps and senators easily with:
Farm Sanctuary
The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine
Action Farmland Trust
The Humane Society
The Consumers Union
Healthy Farm Bill (for every 100 messages sent from your state, The Farm & Food Project will hand deliver a package of healthy, local food to State Senators and Representatives:)

He who practices Ahimsa develops strong will-power. In his presence, enmity ceases. In his presence, cobra and frog, cow and tiger, cat and rat, wolf and lamb, will all live together in terms of intimate friendship. ~Swami Sivananda
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