Udder Revenge – Bovine Diversity, Disease and the Public Good. “In every society,” Dr. Poff told me, “the animals are seen as having great significance. The idea that cows should have a say in something as important as genetically engineered food is important to consumers.” Dr. Poff will help conduct the workshops to determine which topics should be included in the campaign. “I think the first rule is to make sure that consumers can participate in the decision making,” she said. I asked her if that meant consumers could take part in a poll. She laughed, “Well, you can put questions on the list. I’m not sure how scientific it will be.” When I asked if there was any way to encourage organic farmers, she replied, “We have just taken part in a small fund raising for Farm Aid with singer song writer Neil Young. We have a big movement there. He has a great interest in saving family farms.” “We’re hoping to get the support of small food producers. “ The Organic Trade Association, which says it has more than $200 million in sales, would like to create a “Co-op label” on milk that would be regulated by the Organic Consumers Association. “There is potential for a number of organic organizations to work together to come up with a third or fourth certification label,” said Michael DiNoto, vice president of the Organic Trade Association. The cooperative label would be designed so that consumers “can rely on a certification label to ensure that their choice is not undermined by other products on the market,” he said. “Our goal is to empower people with food that meets organic standards and that is non-G.M.O. I have not seen any evidence that small farms that are organic are going to be able to compete with the corporate giants. We’re not really happy with the G.M.O.s because there is no disclosure on these things. There is a concern that the organic label can be tainted.” Organic consumers “do not want to be lumped together with corporate agriculture,” said Dr. Kloppenburg. “You can’t ignore the economic system that sustains and nourishes the public interest.” He would like to see organic farmers protected in a way that no other farmer could be. “Organic is in the consumer interest,” he said. “We’re really hoping that our elected officials come up with policies that will deal with this in an appropriate manner.” When I asked about the OTA’s campaign to protect cows against mad cow disease, he said, “We would all like to see the mad cow disease problem solved, and it would be wonderful if we could protect our cows from their illnesses.” His words were echoed by Dr. Poff, who said, “I would love to see labels on meat so that consumers can buy more humane meat, or a third label. We do have the problem of not knowing what we’re eating.” “Consumers do not need an additional label,” Dr. Kloppenburg told me, “because they can always ask. The consumer is more protected by just knowing more about what they are eating.” “Consumers do not need an additional label,” Dr. Kloppenburg told me, “because they can always ask. The consumer is more protected by just knowing more about what they are eating.” “Consumers should not have to resort to labels to make a good choice. This is a public health matter, the safety of consumers.” “I think the government should mandate a safety measure that is just mandatory. The way to get industry to respond is to make it cost-effective.” “There is a real need for more information to consumers,” Dr. Kloppenburg said. “I think the government should mandate a safety measure that is just mandatory. The way to get industry to respond is to make it cost-effective.” I asked Dr. Kloppenburg if he considered organic farmers to be organic farmers. “They do not have any particular connection with government policy or laws and regulations,” he replied. “There are people that go into farming who have a love for the land and who like living in the country and growing things. Those people will be organic farmers no matter what the government does, or what labeling is required, or whether they use synthetic fertilizers or not. The organic label should be protected in law as part of the food supply and not have something forced upon it by government, or by industry that might be viewed as a way to try to compete in the marketplace with other products that people might want.” “Consumers should not have to resort to labels to make a good choice. This is a public health matter, the safety of consumers. We should work hard to change the status quo, but the safety issue of foods should be public.” The opinions expressed herein or statements made in the above column are solely those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of WTMJ Radio, its staff or management. WTMJ Radio makes no representations about the suitability of the information presented. Material presented is subject to change or deletion without notice. Opinions expressed herein are not necessarily those of WTMJ Radio. This entry was posted on Thursday, April 1st, 2010 at 7:59 am and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.