This was posted on my breast cance list:
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PROBLEM FOR THE FOOD IRRADIATION INDUSTRY:
Consumers weren't buying irradiated foods.
SOLUTION THAT THE FOOD IRRADIATION INDUSTRY CAME UP WITH :
Well, fool the people, then.
Change the labeling -- take out the word "irradiated" and call it something else. Call it "cold-pasteurized." THEN they'll buy it, not realizing that it's the same old irradiated food they didn't want.
You can stop them from doing this label-changing, stop them from mis-labeling and misleading the public, though. See below:
HELP! Stop the US Congress from fooling consumers by allowing irradiated food to be called "cold pasteurized."
We all want accurate labels on the food we eat. At present, whole irradiated foods must be labeled with the words "irradiated"or "irradiation." Although public support is nearly unanimous for those words, the food industry has been trying to change those words. One method is to sneak in an amendment to an unrelated bill in Congress. The U.S. Senate has included language in its version of the Farm Bill that allows irradiation to be called "pasteurization." The House version does NOT include such language. The bill is currently in a conference committee where members of both chambers will decide on a compromise bill to be presented again for a vote in both chambers. Please call or fax the House members of the conference committee and tell them to take out the language that allows irradiation to be called by other misleading terms. Also, tell them to take out the language that allows irradiated food to be purchased for the school lunch program.
Call the Capitol Switchboard NOW at (202) 224-3121 and ask to speak with any one of these House members below! If you are from their district or their state, mention it. Sample Phone Statement: "I'm calling to urge Representative ______ to remove Sections 079E and 442 of the Senate version of the Farm Bill from the final bill because we have the right to know what we are eating."
If any of the Conference Committee representatives below are yours, it is VERY important for you to call!
Faxes are more effective, especially if you are a constituent.
Representative ** FAX Number **
Joe Barton (R-TX)(202) 225-3052
John Boehner (R-OH)(202) 225-0704
Saxby Chambliss (R-GA) (202) 225-3013
Eva Clayton (D-NC) (202) 225-3354
Larry Combest (R-TX) (202) 225-9615
Gary Condit (D-CA) (202) 225-0819
John Dingell (D-MI)(202) 226-0371
Calvin Dooley (CA) (202) 225-9308
Terry Everett (R-AL)
Bob Goodlatte (R-VA)(202) 225-9681
Tim Holden (PA)(202) 226-0996
Frank Lucas (OK) (202) 225-8698
Jerry Moran (KS) (202) 225-5124
Collin Peterson (PA) (202) 225-1593
Richard Pombo (CA)(202) 226-0861
Charles Stenholm(TX)(202) 225-2234
Billy Tauzin (R-LA)(202) 225-0563
More details:
Section 1079E would allow food irradiation companies to use the word "pasteurization" to describe their process. This would be misleading for consumers! Irradiation and pasteurization are NOT the same process, but due to low consumer acceptance, the food irradiation industry has been trying to pressure the FDA to allow them to use the phrases "cold pasteurization" or "electronic pasteurization" instead of "irradiation" for five years. This section in the Farm Bill is a sneaky way to achieve this goal. Right now, foods that have been
approved for irradiation must carry the disclaimer "treated with irradiation" or "treated by irradiation." Tell the Conference Committee that you have a right to know if your food has been irradiated and want to retain the current labeling requirements!
Section 442 directs the Secretary of Agriculture not to prohibit the purchase of irradiated food for the various nutrition programs it administers, including the National School Lunch Program and the Child Nutrition Act of 1966. The sale of irradiated food his been dismal, and therefore the food irradiation industry has been looking to the government to bail it out.
This section would do just that, by dumping irradiated food on unsuspecting school children. To make matters worse, irradiated food served by schools does not have to be labeled! Tell the
Conference Committee that it should not use children as a dumping ground for irradiated food. American parents have a right to know what their children are eating!
Sample Letter for Faxing
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Honorable Representative _____
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington DC 20515
Dear Representative ________
Consumers have a right to know what they are purchasing and feeding their
families. Therefore, I urge the conference committee on the Farm Bill to
remove Sections 1079E and 442 that were made part of H.R. 2646, as amended by
the Senate.
For the past five years, the food irradiation industry has been trying to
mislead consumers by co-opting the word "pasteurization" to describe their
process.
Irradiation and pasteurization are two separate and unique processes. Section
1079E of the Senate version of the Farm Bill attempts to hide those
differences. As a citizen concerned about the food I eat, I strongly believe
that I have a right to know if my food has been irradiated.
Consumer data has repeatedly shown that consumers prefer the current labeling
requirements for irradiated food. For example, during the summer of 2001, the
FDA conducted focus groups of consumers on this labeling issue. Consumers
participating unanimously rejected replacing the term "irradiation" with
"pasteurization" and reacted with phrases such as, "sneaky," "deceptive," and
"trying to fool us." In a January 2002 nationwide poll of 1000 consumers
conducted by Lake, Snell, Perry and associates, only one quarter of those
surveyed preferred changing the current labeling requirements to "cold
pasteurization" or "electronic pasteurization."
Section 442 of the Senate version of the Farm Bill directs the USDA to start
purchasing irradiated food for the various nutrition programs its runs. I am
opposed to having the National School Lunch Program purchase foods that have
been irradiated and using school children to prop up the irradiation
industry. This proposal is also troubling because irradiated food served in
schools does not have to be labeled.
Please remove Sections 1079E and 442 that were made part of H.R. 2646, as
amended by the Senate.
Sincerely,
Your name and address
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PLEASE FORWARD THIS EMAIL ON TO FRIENDS WHO CARE
For more information see http://OrganicConsumers.org/irradlink.html
Thank you for your participation and support.
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