Originally published August 19 2011
Biotech industry at war over GMOs; millions of dollars funneled to lawmakers
by PF Louis
(NaturalNews) A meeting among several key executives and CEOs of organic food producers, distributors, and retailers was held in Anaheim, CA in March, 2011. It was part of the Natural Products Expo West. The meeting focused on the USDA and the biotech industry's GMO allowances. Essentially, a war against GMOs was declared with different speakers proposing various strategies, all with a sense of urgency.
Know the Evil Enemy
Natural News readers recently voted Monsanto as the most evil corporation of the year. It's hard to argue that majority opinion. (Source #1 below)
Monsanto's stated agenda of totally monopolizing agricultural seeding started in the late 1980s. That's when the Bush Senior administration granted fast track product approval to the industry, which translates to minimal or no third party oversight and no long term testing.
Monsanto's earlier legacy includes a list of chemical toxins that pollute the environment and food additives that endanger human health. The planetary trail of diseased and dead bodies numbers in the millions. For a complete time line of Monsanto's atrocities see "Monsanto's Dark History: 1901 - 2011." (Source #2 below )
Even with its destructive track record, Monsanto has managed to successfully push its current agricultural agenda with intense lobbying, cleverly manipulating the revolving corporate/government doors of the FDA and USDA, and even attempting to bully key government officials of other nations.
The overseas bullying has become necessary because most other nations are resistive to GMOs and, unlike the USA, require labeling of GMO products. So Monsanto is using a ruthless mercenary security group, Xe, formerly known as Blackwater, to locate and "influence" key GMO resistors throughout the world.
During the Anaheim Expo conference, Gary Hirschberg, president of Stonyfield Farms pointed out how the biotech industry has heavily infiltrated all three branches of American government, with 22.4 million dollars going to some influential members of congress. Therefore, GMO warfare suggestions concerned with directly appealing to the USDA, FDA, Congress, and President Obama seem rather futile. The foxes own the henhouse.
Foxes and Revolving Doors
The model for revolving door mastery is Michael Taylor, who was recently appointed by President Obama as Food Safety Czar for his administration. From Marion Nestle's book Food Politics, we learn that Michael Taylor was a lead attorney for King & Spalding, the law firm representing Monsanto after leaving his position as counsel to the FDA.
From that private law firm, Taylor managed to return to the FDA as Deputy Commissioner for Policy in 1991. Monsanto Mike was able to influence the approval of rBGH (recombinant bovine growth hormone), which forces cows to yield more milk while causing infections that require antibiotics. So many milk and other dairy products became contaminated with the synthetic hormone rBGH, antibiotics, and infected cow blood and puss.
Taylor also managed to enforce this contamination for a few years by prosecuting dairy farmers who dared label their products with "No rBGH." This Mafioso conduct is not new to Monsanto. Farmers whose fields have been contaminated by GMO seeds or pollen from elsewhere have been prosecuted by Monsanto for patent violations.
In 1994, Taylor wound up in the USDA as administrator of its Food Safety and Inspection Service. After returning to King & Spalding, Monsanto's contracted law firm, the talented Mr. Taylor became Vice President for Public Policy with Monsanto. That title translates to chief lobbyist. Now Obama has tapped Michael Taylor to be the Food Safety Czar.
Michael Taylor is not the only Monsanto person to worm into either the FDA or USDA. There are many others in key decision making positions from Monsanto and other biotech companies wielding their influence in both agencies. (Source #3 below)
Grass Roots Guerilla Warfare
Jeffrey Smith of The Institute for Responsible Technology has tirelessly promoted consumer education and boycotting GMO products. Thanks again to Michael Taylor, GMO labeling is excluded from food labeling laws. Taylor and company maintain there is no essential difference between genetically modified foods and their conventional counterparts. This is a total lie. (Sources #4 & #5 below)
So the Institute for Responsible Technology has organized educational tools for those who don't know which foods to avoid. Smith's plan is to create a enough boycotting of GMO products to create a tipping point that discourages food supplier from using them. (Source #6 below)
Meanwhile, the Organic Consumers Association (OCA) with its "Millions Against Monsanto" campaign is recruiting and organizing at local levels to promote GMO labeling requirements. Some states have proposed, but not yet approved, laws that are intended to require GMO labeling. (Source #& below)
It is also wise to get out of the organic food box in this war against GMOs. Conventional farmers who had initially subscribed to Monsanto's Roundup Ready seeds and herbicide contract are fed up with that arrangement. They have been saddled with more problems than solutions. Add them to the conventional farmers who have had their crops contaminated by GMOs, and now we have a sizable army.
Going directly against the feds to ensure our rights for healthy foods is a loser. The war against GMOs can be won through guerilla warfare involving organic food farmers and suppliers, conventional farmers, knowledgeable consumers, and activists who can influence lawmakers at the State level. This all needs to be coordinated for us to have a chance.
Sources for this article include:
1) Natural News Vote on Most Evil Corporation http://www.naturalnews.com/030967_Monsanto_e...
2) "Monsanto's Dark History: 1901 - 2011" http://bestmeal.info/monsanto/company-histor...
3) OCA List of Monsanto's successful revolving door exploits http://www.organicconsumers.org/monsanto/gov...
4) GMO Whistle Blower Risks Career to Tell All http://www.naturalnews.com/031825_GMOs_threa...
5) Explaining the core GMO gene virus that destroys human health http://www.naturalnews.com/028025_GM_foods_i...
6) Institute for Responsible Technology http://www.responsibletechnology.org/
7) OCA's Millions against Monsanto http://organicconsumers.org/monsanto/index.c...
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