Is “cutting-edge” biotechnology taking American agriculture backwards into a more toxic past?
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The appeals court in the Osgata matter held that Monsanto is legally bound not to sue farmers or sellers of seeds that are inadvertently contaminated with up to one percent of seeds carrying Monsanto’s patented traits. 
Legislation proposed in New York would require labeling of food or food products that contain a genetically modified material. With a deadline for a vote looming, can New Yorkers keep the bill alive? 
The European Commission recently said it will ban three neonicotinoids for the next two years citing “acute high risks” to bees associated with this pesticide. The EPA only recommends more tests. 
What has the existing patent system in agriculture yielded? Seed industry consolidation, increased seed prices, loss of biodiversity, and the stifling of independent research and scientific inquiry. The latest about intellectual property in agriculture. 
Cholesterol decreasing juice, anti-cancer green tea, and cherries as James-Bond agents to neutralize cancer — believable or not? FDA’s confusing food labeling rules are criticized for allowing many companies to make misleading claims on food labels. 
Calling antibiotic resistance in the population a “major public health crisis,” Rep. Slaughter introduced legislation to prohibit the use of antibiotics for sub-therapeutic purposes in food animals. 
Another study finds inert ingredients in glyphosate formulations to be toxic human cells, questioning regulators’ focus on the active ingredient during the risk assessment process. 
One of the causes of antibiotic resistance in humans is the overuse of antibiotics on industrial animal farms. Despite the urgent public health crisis, neither the FDA nor lawmakers have stemmed the overuse of such important medicines for purposes of growth and disease prevention, not treatment. 
In a case of national prominence, farmers, seed selling businesses and agricultural organizations are fighting for their right to seek legal protection from accusations of patent infringement by the agri-giant Monsanto should they become contaminated by Monsanto’s GMO seed. 
European Food Safety Authority’s analysis of neonicotinioids acknowledged a number of serious risks to bees associated with their use. The agency recommended that, among other things, these systemic pesticides be only used on crops not attractive to honey bees. Food and supplement makers complain they are under siege all the while making deceptive health claims and doing little to improve nutrition. The Center for Science in the Public Interest has been behind many of the lawsuits over unsubstantiated and misleading labeling. 
A recent study found that a combination of two pesticides impairs the natural foraging behavior of bumblebees, increases worker mortality as well as increases the propensity of bumblebee colonies to fail. The term “GMO” is an acronym that more Americans recognize because of the events that transpired in 2012. Here are the stories that concerned, disappointed and inspired us during this past year. Thank you for reading and have a healthy and happy New Year! Public Employees For Environmental Responsibility sued for the release of FDA’s records that would demonstrate the effectiveness of the agency’s voluntary approach of phasing out the use of medically important antibiotics on animal farms. Guess what they revealed. 
A judge recently ordered Fish and Wildlife Services to halt the planting of genetically engineered crops on the national wildlife land in the Southeast Region. Similar result eluded environmental groups in a related lawsuit over GMO use on refuge lands in the Midwest Region. 
There was no shortage of vitriol against a new long-term GMO study showing cancers in rats fed GM maize, as well as those fed Roundup, in amounts well below the officially set safety limits. Is the orchestrated response to discredit Seralini et al anti-science? Despite overwhelming popular support during the campaign season, early indications show that California’s Proposition 37 has been defeated by opponents of our basic right to know what’s in our food. Truth in labeling lawsuits are gaining prominence as increasingly consumers are taking giant food companies to task about their potentially misleading food labels. 
Reactions to EPA’s refusal to suspend the registration of clothianidin, given the mounting scientific evidence that this systemic poison poses an imminent hazard to bees, have been strong and unequivocal. 
The EPA went to great lengths to reject a citizen petition seeking to suspend the use of a systemic pesticide that scientific studies link to massive bee die-offs. What happened? 
Advocacy takes different forms. Harrington Investments and PANNA are trying to foster greater public awareness about Monsanto’s unsustainable corporate practices by engaging in shareholder advocacy. 
The recent Minnessota Supreme Court decision raised quite a few eyebrows and we look closely at the legal issues associated with pesticide drift and this case. A new report shows an intense worldwide grassroots opposition to the dominance of multinational biotech companies like Monsanto who make big promises but fail to deliver. |
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