Carolina Farm Stewardship Association

in this section: Take action - Donate to the Center for Food Safety's Legal Defense Fund

Feb. 2, 2011
Keep Up the Fight Against GE Alfalfa
Carolina Farm Stewardship Association stands with other organic and sustainable food and farming groups and businesses in opposing the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) decision to allow commercial planting of Monsanto's genetically engineered (GE) Roundup Ready alfalfa. USDA made this decision despite the risks to organic and conventional farmers the agency acknowledges in its own Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).

Many organizations have done an excellent job communicating and clarifying the serious effects this decision will have on the organic sector, particularly organic meat and dairy, as well as consumers’ right to know if food contains GE ingredients. We recommend The Center for Food Safety ( http://www.centerforfoodsafety.org) and the National Organic Coalition (http://www.nationalorganiccoalition.org/GEAlfalfa/GEAlfalfapressrelease1-27-11.pdf.)

The Center for Food Safety provides a clear summary of the key issues:
Liability, Implementation and Oversight — Citing over 200 past contamination episodes that have cost farmers hundreds of millions of dollars in lost sales, CFS demands that liability for financial losses incurred by farmers due to transgenic contamination be assigned to the crop developers. CFS also calls on USDA to take a more active oversight role to ensure that any stewardship plans are properly implemented and enforced.

Roundup Ready alfalfa will substantially increase herbicide use – USDA’s assessment misrepresented conventional alfalfa as utilizing more herbicides than it does, which in turn provided a false rationale for introducing herbicide-promoting Roundup Ready alfalfa. In fact, USDA’s own data shows that just 7% of alfalfa hay acres are treated with herbicides. USDA’s projections in the FEIS show that substantial adoption of Roundup Ready alfalfa would trigger large increases in herbicide use of up to 23 million lbs. per year.

Harms from glyphosate-resistant weeds – USDA’s sloppy and unscientific treatment of glyphosate-resistant (GR) weeds ignored the significant contribution that RR alfalfa could make to their rapid evolution. USDA failed to analyze how GR weeds fostered by currently grown RR crops are increasing herbicide use; spurring more use of soil-eroding tillage; and reducing farmer income through increased weed control costs.

(For a thorough summary of the issues, see CFS's letter to Sec. Vilsack urging USDA to base its decision on sound science and the interests of farmers, rather than pesticide manufacturers. http://www.centerforfoodsafety.org/2011/01/27/usda-decision-on-ge-alfalfa-leaves-door-open-for-contamination-rise-of-superweeds/)

Take Action:
The legal fight against GE alfalfa has had many successes, and because the USDA is ignoring its own findings in approving GE alfalfa, there is a good chance that the courts will again step in. We urge you to donate to the Center for Food Safety’s legal fund to ensure that we can continue this fight:

https://secure3.convio.net/cfs/site/Donation2?1311.donation=form1&df_id=1311

Organic Supporters Have Not ‘Surrendered’
There have been highly inflammatory, unsubstantiated claims that organic advocates and businesses have caved in to GE interests. Those claims harm our movement by dividing us, playing into the hands of the biotech industry. For an insight into the reality of the situation, in addition to the resources above, this article is helpful: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/gary-hirshberg/speaking-with-one-voice-t_b_816447.html.

Thanks for all you do to support healthy, local, organic farmers and food.



	Home CFSA Member Login 2011 Sustainable Agriculture Conference Find local food Internship Referral Service Sustainable Ag Resources About Us Join CFSA! Projects Event Calendar Blog Store Contact Join us on acebook Follow us on witter	in this section: Take action - Donate to the Center for Food Safety's Legal Defense Fund Feb. 2, 2011 Keep Up the Fight Against GE Alfalfa Carolina Farm Stewardship Association stands with other organic and sustainable food and farming groups and businesses in opposing the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) decision to allow commercial planting of Monsanto's genetically engineered (GE) Roundup Ready alfalfa. USDA made this decision despite the risks to organic and conventional farmers the agency acknowledges in its own Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). Many organizations have done an excellent job communicating and clarifying the serious effects this decision will have on the organic sector, particularly organic meat and dairy, as well as consumers’ right to know if food contains GE ingredients. We recommend The Center for Food Safety ( http://www.centerforfoodsafety.org) and the National Organic Coalition (http://www.nationalorganiccoalition.org/GEAlfalfa/GEAlfalfapressrelease1-27-11.pdf.) The Center for Food Safety provides a clear summary of the key issues: Liability, Implementation and Oversight — Citing over 200 past contamination episodes that have cost farmers hundreds of millions of dollars in lost sales, CFS demands that liability for financial losses incurred by farmers due to transgenic contamination be assigned to the crop developers. CFS also calls on USDA to take a more active oversight role to ensure that any stewardship plans are properly implemented and enforced. Roundup Ready alfalfa will substantially increase herbicide use – USDA’s assessment misrepresented conventional alfalfa as utilizing more herbicides than it does, which in turn provided a false rationale for introducing herbicide-promoting Roundup Ready alfalfa. In fact, USDA’s own data shows that just 7% of alfalfa hay acres are treated with herbicides. USDA’s projections in the FEIS show that substantial adoption of Roundup Ready alfalfa would trigger large increases in herbicide use of up to 23 million lbs. per year. Harms from glyphosate-resistant weeds – USDA’s sloppy and unscientific treatment of glyphosate-resistant (GR) weeds ignored the significant contribution that RR alfalfa could make to their rapid evolution. USDA failed to analyze how GR weeds fostered by currently grown RR crops are increasing herbicide use; spurring more use of soil-eroding tillage; and reducing farmer income through increased weed control costs. (For a thorough summary of the issues, see CFS's letter to Sec. Vilsack urging USDA to base its decision on sound science and the interests of farmers, rather than pesticide manufacturers. http://www.centerforfoodsafety.org/2011/01/27/usda-decision-on-ge-alfalfa-leaves-door-open-for-contamination-rise-of-superweeds/) Take Action: The legal fight against GE alfalfa has had many successes, and because the USDA is ignoring its own findings in approving GE alfalfa, there is a good chance that the courts will again step in. We urge you to donate to the Center for Food Safety’s legal fund to ensure that we can continue this fight: https://secure3.convio.net/cfs/site/Donation2?1311.donation=form1&df_id=1311 Organic Supporters Have Not ‘Surrendered’ There have been highly inflammatory, unsubstantiated claims that organic advocates and businesses have caved in to GE interests. Those claims harm our movement by dividing us, playing into the hands of the biotech industry. For an insight into the reality of the situation, in addition to the resources above, this article is helpful: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/gary-hirshberg/speaking-with-one-voice-t_b_816447.html. Thanks for all you do to support healthy, local, organic farmers and food.
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