After ignoring numerous warnings from independent scientists for years,
the "nonstick" chemical used in Teflon has now officially
been categorized as a "likely carcinogen" by the U.S. government’s
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). EPA scientists found four different
types of tumors in lab animals exposed to the chemical. The agency announced
it plans to collect millions of dollars in fines from DuPont, the maker
of Teflon, for concealing studies indicating related health and environmental
risks for over two decades.
/old_articles/foodsafety/dupont070105.cfm

OCA
SUPPORTERS TALK & CONGRESS LISTENS
In the last issue of Organic Bytes (#60), the OCA reported that the
EPA was allowing pesticide companies to conduct toxic chemical testing
on low-income Americans. We provided you, our 250,000 subscribers, with
an action alert to contact your Congressional representatives. Thanks,
in part, to a landslide of thousands of emails and letters generated
by the OCA online community and our allies, Congress voted last week
to place a moratorium on these practices. Congratulations to everyone
who took part in this action! /old_articles/Politics/humans070105.cfm

In the wake of recent news reports that the government had attempted
to cover-up another case of Mad Cow disease, an internal feud has erupted
inside the USDA. The most recent case of Mad Cow Disease was detected
in a Texas cow that was slaughtered in November of 2004. At that time,
the USDA claimed tests for the disease on the suspect cow were negative
and that the cow was healthy. But several weeks ago, after a public
outcry by the OCA and other public interest groups and internal USDA
accusations of improper testing, USDA Inspector General Phyllis K. Fong
reopened the case and ordered new tests on the remains of that cow,
the results of which turned out to be positive. The USDA has since admitted
that its testing procedures are not stringent enough, but instead of
creating policy that would upgrade testing for Mad Cow, the agency has
begun to focus its energies on attacking Fong. This week, USDA Secretary
Mike Johanns, who was appointed to his position by President Bush earlier
this year, said Fong had no right to reopen this case and should not
have implemented further tests for Mad Cow disease. According to Johanns,
Fong’s discovery of the second case of mad Cow disease in the U.S. is
behavior that will not be tolerated within the agency. /old_articles/madcow/coverup070605.cfm

Scientist have found that the amount of energy that corn-based ethanol
provides is actually less than the amount of energy it takes to grow
the corn and manufacture the ethanol in the first place. In contrast,
sugar beets produce two times as much energy, and sugar cane yields
eight times as much energy as is needed to produce the ethanol. Legislation
has passed in the U.S. that subsidizes corn-based ethanol production.
Should this legislation be revoked in favor of other types of biofuels,
or should it stay in place to support U.S. corn farmers? Talk about
it in OCA’s web forum. /old_articles/chat/index.php

The candy industry is setting its sights on fitness buffs and kids.
At this summer’s largest candy trade show, several new lines of "energy
enhancing" candies were released in an effort to capture a piece
of the $3 billion/year consumers spend on performance boosters. New
product lines included jelly beans packed with 120 milligrams of electrolytes
and taffy pieces containing the equivalent of one coffee cup worth of
caffeine in each bite. "I don’t think that the new products belong
in the candy aisle," said Cynthia Sass, a registered dietitian
and spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association. "The use
of stimulants is an even greater concern because they can cause dangerous
increases in a person’s heart rate and blood pressure." Larry Graham,
president of the National Confectioners Association, disagrees, saying
the candy industry has every right to "build healthful benefits
into their candy." /old_articles/toxic/candy.cfm

Consumers and farmers in California and New England have been taking
action over the past year to protect their local communities from genetic
pollution by passing local, city, and county ordinances banning genetically
engineered (GE) crops. Cities, counties and townships that have passed
such laws say this regulatory need stems from the fact that organic
farmers and non-GMO (genetically modified organisms) farmers have been
increasingly losing money every year as GMO pollen from neighboring
fields contaminates their crops. In response to these ordinances, the
biotech industry and corporate agribusiness are striking back with a
vengeance. At least 12 states have recently passed "Monsanto laws"
taking away the rights of cities and counties to ban GE crops. Now legislators
in California, the nation’s most important agricultural producer, are
responding to the lobbying power of the biotech industry and are threatening
to pass a controversial law that would take away local rights to regulate
GMOs. The OCA is actively involved in trying to stop these "Monsanto
Laws" from being passed . Get involved: /old_articles/ge-free.htm

GOOD
NEWS AND BAD NEWS: The Environmental Protection Agency has announced
new stricter regulations on a number of carcinogenic chemicals. The
adjusted standards finally take into account the fact that children
are far more vulnerable to toxic chemicals, such as pesticides, than
adults. /old_articles/school/epatoxic040605.cfm

FISH
FARMS SPREAD LICE: Canadian researchers have discovered farmed salmon
are spreading sea lice to wild salmon. The scientists found unusually
high levels of lice in a 19 mile radius surrounding a salmon farm. "Conservatively,
this means that the parasite footprint of the farm is 150 times larger
than the farm itself," said study co-author John Volpe. /old_articles/foodsafety/salmon33105.cfm

NEW
YORK FIREMEN EAT MAD DEER: Mad Deer disease has now spread across
the country to New York, where scientists report that the state’s first
confirmed infected white tail deer was donated to the Verona (NY) Fire
Department and eaten at a banquet. Although the Oneida County Health
Department claims it is "unlikely" a deer infected with Chronic
Wasting Disease (CWD) can transfer the fatal illness to humans, they
are recommending that everyone who attended the event contact the New
York State Health Department immediately. /old_articles/madcow/firemen040505.cfm

TRUTH
IN LABELING: Thanks to consumer pressure, the Whole Foods Market
grocery chain has finally announced it will begin to label its private
label products in a manner that allows consumers to see which ingredients
may contain genetically modified organisms. CEO John Mackey said of
the policy, "If we don’t do this, who will?" Noting the possibility
that labeling could invite legal actions, Mackey stated that it would
be a "lawsuit worth fighting." /old_articles/ge/wholefoods040705.cfm

30
MILLION ORGANIC CONSUMERS IN USA: The organic market is exploding!
The Natural Marketing Institute has released a report indicating that
23% of U.S. shoppers are now organic consumers. In 2004, the organic
market grew by a full 18%, due to consumer concerns about their health
and the environment. /old_articles/organic/23percent32905.cfm