Milk labeling
update, and a great opportunity to help PASA!
Dear PASA members,
It’s days like this that make doing this work worthwhile!
By now most of you know that yesterday the Pennsylvania Department
of Agriculture rescinded its ban on dairy product labels that
tell consumers the cows involved were not injected with rBST/rBGH.
The ban would otherwise have gone into effect on February 1.
The actual announcement of the decision is attached to this
email, and here is a link to the story that appeared today in
the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette regarding the decision:
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08018/850269-85.stm
This is truly a cause
for celebration for all of us, especially those who responded
to our alerts by sending letters and emails or making phone
calls to Governor Rendell’s office and the Pennsylvania
Department of Agriculture. Following our alert on Tuesday of
this week, I heard directly from the department that they had
fielded as many as 50 calls from PASA members by noon on Wednesday!
There were many individuals and groups, both within Pennsylvania
and across the country, who worked together on this issue, but
we can be proud as PASA members to have played a significant
role in achieving the eventual result.
This is also a day for reflection and humility. There were many
farmers on both sides of this issue right from the start, and
the damage done to the agricultural community in Pennsylvania
will take some time to heal. In the midst of the fight, we also
witnessed the specter of food from cloned animals rise before
us with the sudden approval of this controversial process coming
from the FDA. It is clear we have won only one small point in
an ongoing struggle for quality, credibility and justice in
our farming and food systems – we’ll be talking
more about this at our upcoming conference. For now, let us
reflect warmly on the fact that, while short of perfection,
yesterday’s announcement preserved the right of farmers
to communicate with eaters about the way food is being produced
in a straightforward way. If you think about it, this is just
about as fundamental as it gets.
Again, my sincere thanks to all who had a hand in helping reason
to prevail on this issue. There will be more days like this
to come, but let’s make sure to enjoy this one while it’s
here.
Have a great weekend everyone…will be seeing most of you
very soon!
Brian Snyder
Executive Director, PASA
To continue to write letters to Governor Rendell and/or
your legislators on this issue here is their contact information:
Governor Edward G. Rendell
225 Main Capitol Building
Harrisburg, PA 17120
You may use this email address and follow the instructions as
prompted:
http://sites.state.pa.us/PA_Exec/Governor/govmail.html
Fax your letter to (717) 772-8284 or call his office directly
at (717) 787-2500
Pennsylvania Senate
http://www.pasen.gov/
Pennsylvania House
http://www.house.state.pa.us/
Important
Article Links
Previous
PASA Action Alerts
Action
Alert 11.14.07
Action Alert 11.20.07
Action
Alert 11.29.07
Action
Alert 12.3.07
Action
Alert 1.15.08
Articles/Publications
New
York Times Article 11.11.07
Allentown
Morning Call 11.29.07
Pittsburgh
Post Gazette 11.28.07
Pittsburgh
Post Gazette 12.2.07
Voices
of Central Pennsylvania 12.07
Pittsburgh
Post Gazette 12.16.07
Food
Navigator 1.08
Injury
Board 1.08
Marketplace Morning Report
Pittsburgh Post
Gazette 1.24.08
Consumers Union 1.17.08
Philadelphia Inquirer 1.17.08
New York Times Article 1.18.08
Scientific American
1.18.08
Philadelphia Inquirer
1.08
Pittsburgh Tribune
Review
Daily Green 1.08
Boston
Globe 2.4.08
Letters
Governor’s
Office Press Release 1.17.08
Farm Bureau Statement 11.20.07
Food
Safety Bureau Labeling Standards & Procedures Memo
Editorials
Secretary
Dennis Wolff’s Editorial 11.3.07
PASA,
PCO & Rodale Institute Editorial 11.3.07
PASA, working cooperatively with our our friends
at Pennsylvania Certified Organic and the Rodale Institute have
already issued a public response which has this has already
been published in the Lancaster Farming and Farmer’s Friend
newspapers. Please feel free to distribute this response to
whomever you feel needs to see it.
Brian
Snyder Editorial 11.20.07
Bessie Speaks Out
Websites
Marketplace
Morning Report
www.milkismilk.com
www.terryetherton.org
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