Every day more people are becoming aware of the chemical pesticides, synthetic food additives, antibiotics, and growth promoting drugs that are used to make conventional food products, and are choosing cleaner organic food thanks to you! People like us are raising up against the companies that are creating these toxic chemicals and boycotting major brands that have been mainstays in American supermarkets for decades. You can find organics just about everywhere now – Walmart, Target, airports, Chipotle, Panera and you can even get organic tea at Wendy’s. It’s obvious that the conventional food sector is not happy about this growth in organic foods and subsequent decline in their profits. They are so unhappy that they’ll spin whatever they can in the media to hold on to their share of the food economy.
That’s why this brand new report that just came out last month is so important to read: Spinning Food: How Food Industry Front Groups and Covert Communications Are Shaping The Story Of Food by Kari Hamerschlag, Anna Lappé, and Stacy Malkan.
This report exposes the dirty tactics that Big Food and agrochemical companies have implemented to combat the organic food movement. They are spending hundreds of millions of dollars on stealth public relations (PR) campaigns, using deceptive front groups to push coordinated messages that attack organic food, and activists like me, while defending the continued use of synthetic pesticides, antibiotics, GMOs, and chemical food additives. We are being bombarded with their messages that are making their way to the pages of the largest media outlets and onto the evening news.
As exposed in their report, four of the largest food and chemical trade associations are spending insane amounts of money – over half a billion dollars from 2009 to 2013! They also uncovered that 14 of the largest front groups working for the industry spent about $126 million during that same time period, often without fully disclosing where their funding comes from. This amount of spending is unprecedented!
graphic on page 9 of report
This just goes to show how much they want to ensure that they can continue profiting off of chemical-intensive industrial agriculture and cheap food additives – and to do this, they are doing everything they can to sway public opinion.
What do you think when you hear quotes in the media like these?
“Organic is no better than conventional and not worth the money.”
“U.S. meat production is safe, efficient and does not overuse antibiotics.”
“We need GMOs to feed the world.”
“Organic foodies are elitist.”
Corporate interests are at play!
Who is really telling the story here? Is it a non-profit organization that is working for the public good or for corporate interests? The Big Food and agrochemical companies are relying heavily on front groups to promote these types of messages in the media, and they even go as far as training seemingly independent farmers, bloggers, and scientists to act as expert sources for journalists. Front groups appear to be independent, but are actually run by experienced PR firms or industry trade groups that have their profits hanging in the balance. You’ll often see these front groups and their trained messengers quoted in the media without any mention of their connections to the industries they work for, and without any conflict of interest disclaimers. It’s all a sham!
The Spinning Food report exposes all of the big front groups that are seen quoted in the media, so we can become more aware of their tactics, and more vigilant about looking out for propaganda.
For instance, the “U.S. Farmers and Ranchers Alliance (USFRA)” is a front group that’s funded by biotech and chemical companies like DuPont, Dow and Monsanto and they spend about $10 million every year promoting the use of routine antibiotics in farm animals, GMOs, and the safety of chemical synthetic pesticides. They have reportedly trained at least 8,500 farmers and ranchers in 22 states with a spokesperson training program where “participants learn how to engage with consumers, using USFRA talking points and research on consumer attitudes”. These trained spokespeople have been quoted in the media without any disclosure of their ties to this group. For example, this article was published in the Star Tribune listing the author simply as “Suzanne Vold is a Minnesota dairy farmer and mother of three”, when she was actually a trained public messenger for USFRA.
They want you to think yoga mat chemicals in our food are safe!
Marketing messages from the front group “Center for Food Integrity (CFI)” are making their way into the media as well. Their members include the National Restaurant Association (which includes Subway as a member), the American Farm Bureau Federation, and companies like Monsanto and Tyson, with a primary mission to downplay any public concerns about chemical food additives:
“When issues arise, teams are activated to determine how to engage. For example, when Subway responded to pressure from the blogger known as Food Babe and announced it would stop using azodicarbonamide in its bread, an Issues Advisory Team acted quickly to add unbiased, fact-based information to the conversation.” – Center For Food Integrity, August 2014
This is an example of why I have been heavily attacked for campaigning for the removal of food additives – additives that are banned or regulated in other countries because of health risks. They accuse me of all sorts of things – “I’m not qualified”, “I’m not a scientist”, they dig up old errors on my blog that I have removed or corrected and they bring it up over and over again as a way to discredit me. The truth is (as many of you have seen through my campaigns) there are plenty of scientists and consumer organizations (including my advisory council) that back my work and there is a mountain of evidence that synthetic, carcinogenic and neurotoxic insecticides are bad for human health and the environment.
Other front groups, like the “Alliance for Food and Farming” are funded by conventional produce farmers, and they continually attack EWG’s Dirty Dozen Guide on pesticides in conventional produce. Several other front groups like the “Council for Biotechnology Information” and “The Coalition for Safe and Affordable Food” advocate for GMOs, and “Keep Food Affordable” advocates for conventional (non-organic) meat and egg producers.
The food and chemical companies will do anything to win over women.
I’m sure you saw or heard about the Monsanto ads that were plastered all over women’s publications like Shape, Parents, and O Magazines earlier this year. They use several tactics like these to get their messages into the public eye, but they mainly target a female audience, because women “account for over 70 percent of consumer spending and are responsible for most food purchasing decisions”. The website “SafeFruitsAndVeggies.com” is funded by the Alliance for Food and Farming (the front group mentioned above that fights for conventional agriculture), and has a huge “MOM’S DESERVE THE TRUTH” banner on their front page, which also links to a “mommy-blogger” post that defends their stance against EWG’s pesticide guide.
The Pork Network warns farmers about “Crunchy Mamas”, demonizing moms who are concerned about the conditions on factory farms. The BlogHer Network conferences (the largest women blogging network in the country) have been sponsored by several Big Food companies and the front group “CommonGround”, in an obvious attempt to influence the content on blogs. Last year, Monsanto paid bloggers $150 to attend a brunch following the BlogHer conference to learn “where your food comes from” and “how farmers are using fewer resources to feed a growing population”. When I spoke at BlogHer Food in May last year, Monsanto and their PR firm were in the audience taking notes feverishly. As a female activist, I’m particularly disgusted with these attempts to try to persuade, undermine, and discredit me and other female bloggers, especially mothers who are trying to change our unhealthy food system.
What should we do with this information?
I’ve just scratched the surface here on the compelling information found in the free Spinning Food report, so I hope you head on over and read it in its entirety. Familiarize yourself with the key PR players and front groups – and most importantly – share it far and wide!
All of us that are advocating for simpler, organic, and safer food are up against huge corporations (and shady front groups) with deep wallets. It’s going to take all of us together to keep the messages that are circulating in the media truthful and balanced.
Speak up and share this information!
Next time you read a biased piece that tries to convince you that conventional food is better or undermines organics or attacks activists like us, speak up. We all need to use increased scrutiny when reading about these topics in the media.
There is a lot of corporate propaganda out there, but we won’t be swayed, will we?
Xo,
Vani
Vani,
You are sooo Right. Big Interests with big $ are always pushing their agenda’s at our expense. Thanks for reminding us!
Yep! There is some more info on biotech specifically here: https://foodbabe.com/2015/02/12/dirty-pr-campaign/
in spite of all this , the approval/ allowing of a compound involved extensive studies and biochemical analyses. The studies are also available for public to go through . On the other hand, lot of your claims about “harmful” compounds have a sample number that is very low and show no scientific proof. There is a lot of correlation and no proof of causation. It’s hard to believe that the entire Agri industry is just out to get you/ other non GMO activists
I’d like to know who in the scientific community backs you food babe because from what I read they are constantly going against your claims
Kendall – Thanks for your inquiry. Here is my advisory council: https://foodbabe.com/advisorycouncil/ – also this post summarizes the evidence and concern from scientists for each of my campaigns: http://livingmaxwell.com/what-the-media-food-industry-wont-tell-you
I should also note that my New York Times Best Selling book The Food Babe Way was reviewed by several doctors, went through 2 independent fact checks and a legal review. You can get here on Amazon: http://amzn.to/1zTsOIK
to Bhairav Kukkaje (sure that’s your name)….you’re nothing but a paid TROLL!! What a waste of one’s life really!!
Vani, you’re doing a fantastic job and because of you and similar activist out there, we the people are now AWAKE!! Thanks for the great effort and work as you inspire us all!!
300 scientists sign a statement saying there is no scientific consensus on GMO safety. http://www.ensser.org/increasing-public-information/no-scientific-consensus-on-gmo-safety/
Over 2000 studies that show GMO harm. http://www.gmofreeusa.org/enigma-portfolio/gmo-science-2/
It isn’t over 2000. It is 1803 studies. And they don’t show harm, they suggest adverse impacts or potential adverse impacts. Misrepresenting information like this makes anything you say easy to discredit.
The list has grown. You have an old figure. The new figure is actually 2029 studies. Semantics.
to CJ-
Yes that’s my real name
To Pam Larry –
Thank you !
To foodbabe-
Why is that most of your advisory board are holistic healing and alternative medicine experts ? If your facts are indeed cross referenced and checked , how about getting chemists , biochemists and NIH scientists , ( they don’t all necessarily have any ties with FDA) ? For a blog that often focuses on the toxic chemicals in food , there aren’t any chemists in the board .
Actually, as I stated on the page, I consult frequently with experts at various non-profits including the many scientists that work for them and review data, for example:
Before my campaign on BHT, I met with Johanna Congelton several times and discussed risks, impacts and reviewed studies/data with her:
Johanna Congleton is a Senior Scientist at EWG
Certification:
MSPH, PH.D.
Johanna holds a BS in Communications from Syracuse University, an MSPH in Environmental Science from Tulane University’s School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, and a Ph.D. in Environmental Toxicology from Cornell University.
Before my campaign on azodicarbonamide, I reached out to CSPI and received a review of data from
Lisa Lefferts a Senior Scientist at CSPI
Prior to CSPI, her work consulting for non-profit organizations took her around the world, conducting trainings, representing Consumers International at Codex Alimentarius, and participating in FAO/WHO expert consultations. She received her B.A. from Oberlin College in Biology and Environmental Studies, and a Masters of Science in Public Health from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
I also frequently consult with food science professors at NYU, Penn State, and other Universities. Some professors wish to be unnamed because of the controversial nature of some of these issues and the targeting of big companies.
that still doesn’t explain why the consensus among scientists is that most of food babe’s claims have no basis. True, you have a council of 8 or so people backing you, and you have 8000o people disproving you. It is not possible that the pharma industry is paying all of them just to go against you? The world doesn’t revolve around you, as much as you think it does. Just like how you call all the scientists shills, how would I not know ur council does it for the money only ? And publicity( negative , but nevertheless). So are you telling us that the 8 member council is right and the remaining thousands of scientists are wrong even though their paycheck doesn’t come from Monsanto ? ( I would like to see a response rather than the comment being deleted )
Vani, every article you post, we are one step closer to reaching someone new. You are helping us change communities one person at a time! Thank you for being OUR voice and platform to be heard. We are “Foodbabe army” proud! March on! ♡
Great article…unfortunately, I dont know if its going to help much. The passing of Bill 1599 is going cause alot of problems for the food movement which have little money and resources at their disposal. Thanks Vani for being a great leader -we need an army like you!
Ann – There’s still a good chance to defeat it in the Senate 🙂 I am hopeful and will do what it takes! Stay tuned…
Vani, if it passes in the senate…Do you know what implications it will have? I am terrified. And is there anything more we can do to help it not pass in the senate, or do we just sit and watch? Thank you!!
If the bill 1599 passes or does not pass I will be contacting every bureaucrat in my state and voicing my opinion about how they voted. There are four in AZ to be contacted by me with either a thumbs-up or a thumbs-down. How they vote on this bill will determine how I vote for them in future elections. It’s not much, but every little bit helps. I insist that I know what is going into the bodies of my grand children as well as me and the rest of my family. The kids are all 5 and under. My belief is that eating GMO food will not kill anyone immediately. It may not kill anyone in 50 or 60 years from now either, but I believe it will de-grade their health over the years of eating un-natural food products, chemicals and genetically altered foods. Eating food that is riddled with genetically modified products and chemicals or eating food that is either organic and/or produced without GMO products and chemicals can mean the difference between living a pain free active life when we are 70 or 80 years old and one that is limited in activity and possibly full of pain because of a de-graded health condition. If GMO foods and products are not labeled as such it is very difficult to choose food that is considered safe to eat BY ME. My grand kids have 80 or possibly even 100 years to live and eat healthy food. I insist that we have the right to choose the kind of food we put in our bodies.
I’m afraid that HR 1599 will pass… honestly I never thought it would make it out of committee, but the fact it passed the House at such a wide margin is troubling. The Senate has other agenda and thus will probably add some unrelated provisions to allow it to pass there as well. It just goes to show how much money is behind this effort to keep us in the D.A.R.K.
The bill is so convoluted and ambiguous that I can see why our Representatives would vote along party lines or whatever reason. I have been campaigning against this since May and was disappointed when after writing and calling, my Congressman voted for the bill. He will never get my vote again!!
I would like to see a uniform standard (across all states) requiring GMOs to be labeled so at least we know what we are eating… with HR 1599 there is no chance. It would be so easy to require GMO disclosure simply by having a 2 part ingredient label – 1 for non GMO and below that one stating “Genetically Modified Organisms” – or at the very least a “warning” label stating “This product contains GMOs” but the money is against it. Here is their letter to Congress – you can pick it apart. Also contains a list of companies supporting HR1599.
http://www.agprofessional.com/news/icymi-support-grows-hr-1599
A google search will bring up so many sites that are against the bill formally titled “The Safe & Accurate Food Labeling Act of 2015” – anything but..Ha!!!
They may have vast amounts of money to pass around (our money no less) but we have the numbers, the power and the will/intent for change for the good of all.
The problem isn’t really with “them” having more money to throw around.
It’s with the governments need to hide inflation.
That’s why all these bills pass.
Monsanto says we have a product that will drop the cost of bread .17 and they pass it as fast as they can not because they don’t care about our children but if bread were $5.60 a loaf there would be rooting.
Yes that what we pay for organic bread but we don’t but it with food stamps. If the 40% (or so I don’t have the exact number) who pay with food stamps had to pay organic food prices they couldn’t feed their families with what the government gives them.
If they can’t feed their families they will riot. Look to any Central American country for proof of this. So the government MUST lower the cost of food as fast as they can.
That is why these bills will always pass. The alternative is much worse.
How can we get the information we want? What questions should we be asking the food companies that we’re suspicious of?
Wow. Thank you for this, Food Babe. Your work and dedication is inspiring. Maybe our next president will actually care about America’s food quality and do something to fix our horribly broken food system.
Vani,
The better you’re doing the more they scream. Nice work!
I have posted on Facebook about the representatives in Arizona that signed the HR 1599 DARK act in the House, it has passed, now it goes to the Senate. P Lease inform your readers to call their Senators.
Way to go Vani! Peter 88 is right! I think it was Albert Einstein that said, ” Great spirits receive voilent opposition from mediocre minds” May that quote be teflon to your skin and eardrums!
it sucks, I wish Monsanto would just go away
Or, we can simply shop smart for ourselves, perhaps even flee this ridiculous country. People need to stop and think for themselves, you can’t save every fool lol
HR 1599 is a very dangerous bill and must be stopped in the senate. Here’s a petition from Food and Water Watch you can sign to send a message to your senators. I suggest that you also WRITE them letters and explain to them the reason you’re against gmo’s. https://secure3.convio.net/fww/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=1937&s_src=fb&s_subsrc0723
Here’s a couple of points to get across:
First thing to consider is we should preserve ‘States Rights’ over federal law. Second point to consider is human rights should take precedence over corporate profits. We have a DIVINE RIGHT to know what is in our food. Third point, if you are so inclined to do, you could point out how Monsanto has subverted the truth concerning GMO safety and Glyphosate safety. GMO and Glyphosate, both, have been proven in studies in other countries to be unsafe. W.H.O. has declared Glyphosate to be probable carcinogen and W.H.O. has declared Glyphosate damages mammal DNA because it is Genotoxic. There is a lot you can tell your senators about how Monsanto is now conducting ‘false’ studies funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation with the aid of senior Monsanto scientist to try to prove that Glyphosate is not bio-accumulating BUT it is bio-accumulating and this has been proved in other countries as well as in independent studies in the United States. (Just ONE GMO corn chip can turn your gut into a pesticidal manufacturing organ.) Remember to point out that Bill and Melinda Gates own 500,000 shares of Monsanto stock in their foundation.
As I get more info about this, I will be back. FIGHT HARD TROOPS!
Thank you for this!!! I was searching for answers on how to help this not pass in the senate. Once on a field trip to the Capitol, I learned it is alarming how few letters senators actually receive. The effort can go a long way. What a fantastic idea. And you gave talking points too. Fantastic. Thank you!
What I can’t understand is public opinion. When I learned I was EATING toxins and that the US had allowed it in our food supply unbeknownst to us, I was horrified! But getting people who have been brainwashed by the mainstream media to pay attention is an UPHILL battle, to say the least! I fight hard everyday for our rights as citizens to be informed about the chemicals that are in foods, beauty supplies, and the environment in general. Why don’t more people care? That disturbs me almost as much as GMO’s.
Thank you so much Vani for all of this information. I have been following your blog since 2013, and it had changed my life.
I also catch up on health and food information from various other websites and email lists, albeit my “health advisors”!
I would love to hear from you about the other side- the spreading of misinformation coming from alleged “natural” health sources. I’ve found myself taking in health information from sources of which I am uncertain of their credibility. Then, I find when I spread this misinformation, people refute not only the misinformation, but also the truth about GMOs and the like.
As you can imagine (and I’m sure half dealt with), this phenomenon will cause the public to not believe what I am saying anymore, due to the fear-mongering misinformed ideas out there.
All in all, I really would love help exposing sources of information out there that are contrary to the ones you are referring to here, but are also untruthful or incorrect.
I hope I am making sense. This is a little talked about but concerning issue to me, and I think you would be the best candidate I help find/expose these purported health information sources. For the record, I am not stating all that these sources are intentionally misleading people, unlike the GMO corporations. I really think they are trying to help (unless they are just trying to use health to allure people to buy a “healthy” product).
There are definitely overt lies from Monsanto and the like, but I would really like to expose the companies or sources that advocate for natural, healthy lifestyles but are mis guided, misinformed, or misleading.
Thank you so much for your time. I would reference some of the websites on here, but I really do not wish to put down some of the big health leading names out there for the exact reason I am writing this comment- I do not know if they are legit or not. If love your help and input. Thank you!
And shame on OPRAH for allowing ads for Monsanto in her magazine. Guess she’s been paid off to!
I’ve never seen a Monsanto ad in O magazine and I get it every month.
They are there, I’ve seen them myself.
I agree with you. But even on FB when I make a protest to a GMO new ‘food’ – I get so many comments from people who think I am the one who doesn’t know anything.
I’ve even gotten comments that call me religious (I am not religious But yes, I am a Christian) – even though I have said nothing about my Christian faith.
It gets a little depressing knowing there are so many ignorant people who continue to believe whatever the media says. – Being older, I stopped paying attention to the national media in the 1980s when I noticed how bias the media was before a national election – the bias has just increased. – And it includes the above.
Thank you for what you are doing & for keeping us up to date on what is going on.
I have been involved in this fight for near 30 years. Happy to hear you and the others are learning about the dangers…. -30-
A lot of experts talk nonsense. I know a woman from work who is trying to lose weight. The “expert” she hired told her not to eat carrots and watermelon because they lead to weight gain. Come on!
Thanks for Exposing this! We all need to contact any source we see ads with misinformation and let them know we will not buy their magazine ect, if they allow these ads in their magazines. They are condoning the lies!!! Hit them in their pocket books!!!
Vani you have figured them out and the jig is up!! I was the old you 8 months ago and have gone 80% vegetarian and never knew how good real food can taste. I don’t miss junk food one bit anymore. I have lost 40 pounds, look dam good now and have gone from almost diabetic and always sick to feeling great and no more medical issues. Everything cleans up when you remove these chemicals from your body. Thank you so much for opening my eyes and my body thanks you after getting my latest blood test and a complete bill of health.
The videos of Dr Eric Berg are a good source of health info. Here’s the link to his YouTube channel.
https://www.youtube.com/user/drericberg123
Now, like everything else in the nation, food is being deliberately “partisan-ed” to be a divisive political purity test, “if you’re a real, hard-working American, you eat real hard-working American made food like Kraft mac’n’cheese, not arugla salad like some elitist left-wing prig”. People don’t like to think about there food making them sick and the government knows that the fastest way to destabilize a country is to raise food prices. So, cheap industrial slop made from the terror and torture of farm animals and sold at the highest profit margin to support the REAL elites at the expense of our morals and health! So awesome! Sign me up! I want to feed my family nutritionally destroyed food so those poor millionaires can become billionaires like God intented! Right conservatives? It’s what Jesus would have done, stood on the backs of the poor and ground them into the dirt, right? No, did he say that“No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.” Hmm, well I never see the political “Christian” right ever go against the monied interest anymore. Guess they can’t call themselves the moral majority anymore since all they defend are those “ruining the earth” . Seriously, if you say your super into Jesus then maybe follow his teachings once in a while. STOP F*¢#ING OVER HIS CREATION!!!
It is all very unfortunate, but have you considered forgiving them?
They’re spraying while you’re praying.
I don’t understand why you think it’s Christians who are backing this horrible processed, chemicalized food system that our government has secretly shoved down our throats. I am a born-again, bible-believing Christian and am extremely anti-Monsanto, anti-GMO. I am a vegetarian and always promote an organic, non-gmo lifestyle to everyone I know. I very much believe in the scripture you quoted (Matthew 6:24) that you can’t serve two masters. I also think Mark 8:36 is important to remember, too: What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? My point is that I agree with your last statement. If one purports to be “super into Jesus” and does not take care of His creation, then they are NOT following His teachings. Again, I don’t know why you are blaming Christians for this evil.
P.S. Way to go, Vani. Your activism has opened my eyes and made me (and some of the people around me) healthier. I’m proud to be a member of the Food Babe Army. Keep up the good work!
I’m blaming a political party that like the Pharisees of scripture cloak themselves in holiness then turn around an support every intuitive that the food lobby throws at them. And I blaming Christian political groups that focus all their attention on issues that are none of their business like who marries whom (which doesn’t effect my life or more importantly my family’s health) but completely ignores what goes into making food so cheap. I’m mad that pro-life stops at birth, that if you say Christian, people hear “hate group” and when you look around at the company that your keeping they say things that make you ill at the lack of human compassion. I hear nothing but Jesus, Jesus, Jesus at these speeches but I sure don’t SEE Jesus when I look at the party that his followers support. I see crafty corporate interest lining their pockets with a hallelujah and a smirk and it offends me deeply. When the POPE I has a more liberal viewpoint on environmentalism and food safety maybe that says something about where the Christian right is headed. So, basically, after a long winded rant I’m calling out Christians to either read what Jesus said about money and stop allowing their supported political leaders worship it or start calling themselves something else. Like the Pharisees for money and corruption!
rclord: Thank you for the clarification. There is so much in your content that I agree with! You are so right that pro-life doesn’t stop at birth. It infuriates me that these groups endorse pumping chemicals into our children just to further fatten their already morbidly obese wallets. I believe that these Pharisees (as you so aptly call them) who use the name of Jesus to further their own agendas will someday hear, “Depart from me for I never knew you.”
With all the $$$ they are spending, it seems that those $$$ would be better spent on higher wages and lower prices.
The things people would do for money! 🙁
So sad. : ( it’s already difficult enough to persuade people that eating organic and eating a whole foods plant based diet is the best way to go. Now corporations are making it more difficult. I like reading your posts though. Reminds me why I eat the way I do and makes me want to stick to it all the more.
Fine if you want to eat a plant-based diet, but don’t push it on the rest of us. You need us for the non-GMO, anti-artificial ingredients, added sugar, etc. battles. Chase us away and you will have a much smaller following.
Those same groups also want us to kill and eat horses. They’ve been lobbying against a ban on horse slaughter, saying it is good protein and what will happen to the old and sick horses if they can’t slaughter them. We were finally able to close down the foreign-owned horse slaughterhouses in 2007, but they moved to Mexico and are still buying and slaughtering US horses.
Would you be happier if they just shot the horses when they got old? Would that somehow be better? I guess we can eat cows because they are ugly, but horses are beautiful and so we can’t eat them? Never ate horsemeat, but it would probably be fine in dogfood.
Most people call the vet, although for those who know how, a bullet is acceptable. Ninety percent of horse fatalities are from euthanasia or other causes, not slaughter. Most petfood companies stopped using horsemeat in the 1970s. Cows are raised for food, horses aren’t. The slaughterhouses have contract buyers who go to auctions or advertise to get randomly obtained horses: pets, riding horses, etc. Most horse medications and treatments (shampoo etc) are labeled “not for food animals.”
US doesn’t just send their horses to Mexico for slaughter; they also send them to Canada (Alberta).
Imagine if all the dollars spent on fighting food labeling were spent instead on feeding hungry people and increasing the production and availability of organic food! That money could go to so many WORTHY causes and relieve so much suffering. Whether you’re pro-GMO or anti-GMO, a huge part of this issue now is that your elected officials denied you the right to know what’s in your food. They’re telling you that you don’t have enough intelligence to make that choice for yourself, so they’re going to take that choice away altogether. What else are they going to deny you in the future if they stay in office? More than any other thing in recent history, the passing of this bill tells me how our elected officials feel about their constituents. Why oppose something so many people are asking for? That answer is clear here. $$$$$
Hey Vani, I am a new subscriber to your site and I say keep doing what your doing. Keep on informing those who want to seek the knowledge to NOT put GMOs and chemicals in their temples. It’s absolutely ridiculous what is going on with our food supply. If GMOs are so friggin safe than why are the Deamons at Monsanto spending millions of dollars to fight GMO labeling? I’m no scientists either but I’m fairly smart and I can read. When I want a glass of almond milk I want almonds and fluoride free water not almonds and 15 other chemicals. I stopped eating meat because of all of the hormones and pesticide riddled GMO feeds they pump into the cattle. Did our ancestors eat produce and meats full of pesticides and hormones? You don’t have to be a brainiac with five diplomas on your wall to know what these big companies are up to. Like Charlie Sheen said in the movie Wall Street “how many yachts can you water ski behind Gordon”? Keep fighting the good fight and don’t let ever let the money tranced brainwashed critic’s get you down.
Keep buying organic, it’s the only way to trust what goes in your body!
Hi Vani
I tried making coconut milk after watching your last post on UTube. Thank you for showing 3 ways of making it!! I stopped drinking store brand coconut & almond milk when I realized the additives were really bothering my digestive system. I’ve been making my own almond milk now and it’s so nice to have another option for making coconut milk too!!
I live in Rochester New York
and I go to a fantastic farmers market every Sunday that has many organic farmers and organic butchers. This has become my passion to support these brave organic farmers out there trying to make a living!
I think the more people support local organic farmers the faster this movement will grow and bring communities of people together spurring each other on!! Thanks for all you do!!!
Yes, I think this is the way to go. If you do not buy their crap what will happen then. I was just made aware of the additives in almond and coconut milk and started to make my own. Very easy and delicious. Fortunately I am just feeding my self so I can afford to buy mostly all organic.
Food Babe,
I’m certain that you are aware of the recent assassinations or murders of Holistic Doctors nationwide. The mainstream media its own by the elitists and thus not covered. It’s an alarming and tragic Maarten which deserves coverage. I would like for you to consider doing a piece in your blog. Keep up the excellent work.
Best regards,
Raymond Quiachon
Vani,
The more negativity you get brings you closer to the truth.
Keep up the good work!
Vani, You go, girl!
I jumped aboard this ship when My son was diagnosed with autism and I was on the biomedical path to healing him. Part of that was to look at the food and I was shocked at what has happened to our food. (He is doing well today although still has digestive issues, possibly from the GMOs.)
Thank heavens, you are one smart cookie! — to deal with the ‘paid’ negativity you deal with. The corporate trolls will pay some day either here on earth from bad health for themselves and/or their families or hereafter for being downright crooked.
Not sure if anyone has looked at Kelly Brogan M.D. website but she does a lot of research in the area of food and drugs and the complications they cause and has many medical colleagues with the same view. Also authority nutrition is excellent for info and started by a pre med Icelandic fellow.
Thank You Vani !
If the Senate does pass HR 1599, could Obama veto it? Where does he stand on it? With his wife taking up healthy eating as her cause I would hope he has truthful information and would support proper and truthful labeling.
I hope things get a whole lot worse because the vast majority of people simply won’t wake up and take responsibility for themselves until there forced to.we’ll only see permanent change when everybody realizes the owners and the government don’t have there best interest in mind.in other words people have to realize that there government is there enemy and things will have to get pretty bad before people will admit that fact
I am so glad there is someone out there keeping a watch on our food supply. I have some serious trust issues on all fronts. How can I totally trust that items are truly organic? Sure, they can say the items are organic but I how do I know unless I grow it myself? Vani, you have done an excellent job researching, can you tell me where to go to find out who I can trust with their organic claims? I read somewhere “if says USDA Organic run the other way!”
Anyone who is stupid enough to declare that all GMOs now, and in the past, and in the future are, or were, or will be, intrinsically safe, is either invested financially in the biotech industry, or just plain stupid.
It’s like saying, all medications from the pharmaceutical companies in the past, now, and in the future have always been, are, or will be safe.
It is anti-science. It is is illogical. Making any assumption like that is foolish, ridiculous, insane, stupid, ridiculous, a defiance of the laws of reality and logic, it makes no sense.
If it were true, that all GMOs are intrinsically safe then there would never have been a recall of Star Link corn, which was never approved for human consumption, because it contained an allergen – and the crops cross contaminated other corn crops. The StarLink Cry9C allergen caused a multitude of problems – to the extent that cross contamination was still an issue for well over 7 years after the products were withdrawn from agriculture.
And there was Bt10, which ended up having a gene that conferred resistance to the antibiotic ampicllin.
If they are intrinsically safe, why are the safety efficacy of these other GMO brands remain a concern? If the science is perfect, why are there other failures as well?
Besides Star Link Cry9C and Bt10, there are others, among them:
NK603 GE
MON 87460
MON810
MON 863
MON 88017
DAS-59122-7
The Flvr Flav tomato
CR3-623
Bt176
GNA-GM
MON89034
DAS1507
MON88017
DAS59122
and so on.
For every quote from every front group that says that GMOs are intrinsically safe, I could show more quotes on why that is not only untrue, but pure foolishness as well.
It is pseudoscience. It is magical thinking.
“If one GMO product is safe, it follows that all GMO products will also be safe in the future.”
That is, essentially, what every single one of those front groups is saying. That’s not science. That’s B.S.
Pseudoscience is a claim or belief which cannot be reliably tested, or otherwise lacks scientific status. The propaganda mantra of GMOs are safe is based on absence of “proof” that after twenty years, there are no known health issue. The absence of proof (which is also wrong) is not sufficient scientific evidence to conclude that since there are no known issues, that all GMOs are therefore safe. The only conclusions one can draw from such an observation are that, “we aren’t aware of any such things, and we don’t want to.” the assumption that you are not aware of any health issues only proves one thing: that you are not aware of any such health issues. The absence of proof is not positive proof that the opposite is true: again, pseudoscience. They are making an assumption based on a lack of peer reviewed, double blind, controlled studies that GMOs are safe to eat. No such studies, over a period of years, has ever been conducted.
Who is in charge of testing each GMO food for safety – on an individual basis – before FDA approval?
“Monsanto should not have to vouchsafe the safety of biotech food. Our interest is in selling as much of it as possible. Assuring its safety is the FDA’s job.” — Philip Angell, Monsanto’s director of corporate communications, “Playing God in the Garden”, New York Times Magazine, 25 October 1998
“Ultimately, it is the food producer who is responsible for assuring safety.” — US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), “Statement of Policy: Foods Derived from New Plant Varieties” (GMO Policy), Federal Register, Vol. 57, No. 104, 1992, p. 229
I wanted to also ad some other articles that are directly related. I actually have a list of over 30, but here are just a few:
“Monsanto’s “Discredit Bureau” Really Does Exist [UPDATE]”
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2015/03/27/1373484/-Monsanto-s-Discredit-Bureau-Swings-into-Action#
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“Yet again — Monsanto seeks to suppress “inconvenient” GMO research”
http://www.gmfreecymru.org.uk/documents/monsanto-seeks-to-suppress.html
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“GMO Researchers Attacked, Evidence Denied, and a Population at Risk”
http://www.globalresearch.ca/gmo-researchers-attacked-evidence-denied-and-a-population-at-risk/5305324
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I cannot put my finger on it but there is something untoward occurring in our country.
It appears that the political milieu has sanctioned fast and cheap food at the expense of its citizens health.
I believe that the hidden message is the social scientific understanding that “if you keep their bellies full” you can sidestep insurrection . And in so doing maintain power and control.
Plant your own gardens or look to other countries to buy your food.
Do not think that congress or our executive branch will intervene. As of right now, I do not see any political leader who will sacrifice his/her career to carry the mantle of “Food Justice”.
Thanks Vani for taking the heat of the establishment.
I think someone should have a big thank you dinner for the heads of these companies and right before they take their last bite before the desert someone should get up and speak. They should say thank you for all you have done to poison us and weas the public informed are not going to take it. Oh and by the way the meal you have just eaten was sprayed with this and that is the crop we got from here or there. Because if they keep eating they really do think nothing is wrong with what they do. But the ones who are aware it is wrong will be gagging! Ahhhhhhhh! What a thought!
Hello Everyone
It is a pleasure to communicate with a group like this is spite of the few nit-pickers that go on about your lack of scientific/medical degrees. Does anyone else find it curious that most people are so brainwashed that unless you have degrees or are a celebrity you could not possibly have learned anything about a subject?
Personally I started on a learning crusade around health about 15 years ago, I have thousands of hours of study and research, I am 64, take no drugs, maintain a healthy weight and just ran a 5 KM race in under 26 minutes (finished 16th in an all age group of 100) yet I mostly seem to have little credibility in a health discussion.
So Vani, I understand, and applaud you for sticking with it when you are faced with this situation.
True, sad but kind of funny story. A good friend and his family are terrible with their health, all four are obese and their two kids have all kinds of health issues.
I have tried to help gently with suggestions but have been ignored. Three months ago the women started a training course to learn to care for dogs. She has been regaling me about the benefits of the raw, organic foods she was learning about and how good they were for the dogs. In spite of this she could just NOT make the jump to her kids health, I gave it a try in spite of the past rejections but just gave up when she just shrugged and said “it’s not the same”
I have the perfect quote for you about not being experts, not being able to have a valid opinion and all that.
“As technical questions tend to have technical answers, this presupposition comes with the belief that only the opinions of scientists and engineers, and not the ideas of the layperson, are essential to such assessments. … Many other ethical and social concerns pervade decisions about the acceptance of GMOs. In a democratic society, these normative issues must not be left to scientific experts, but should be the subject of public deliberations.”
“Scientific experts are certainly not experts at determining and evaluating what the public might consider to be acceptable types of risk for several reasons.”
“…it seems more compatible with the values of a democratic society to overcome these problems rather than to simply eliminate the public from decisions that will have a significant impact on their lives.” – Inmaculada de Melo-Martín, and Zahra Meghani, “Beyond risk. A more realistic risk–benefit analysis of agricultural biotechnologies.” NCBI, April, 2008.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2288773/
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WOW Thank you for your feed back and lets hope we can get congress involved, in stopping these mad men, trying to harm are way of healthy life style.
Is there a reason the GMA (Grocery Manufacturers Association) is not on the list of top front groups?
They aren’t a front group (hidden support) . They are one of the trade organizations that use front groups.
Please check out this little file for more on the dreaded GMA
Grocery Manufacturers Association [GMA] 2014
http://documents.foodandwaterwatch.org/doc/GMA_Profile1.pdf#_ga=1.216932048.75109071.1430402213
Vani you are awesome. I appreciate everything you are doing to keep us all informed. I love reading all your articles and love watching videos of you and hearing all your thoughts. Seriously you are one of the coolest people ever.
I live in SoCal and was happy to hear that our rep. is voting against HR 1599. Years ago it was said, maybe during the tobacco trials in the 1990’s that big tobacco execs didn’t smoke cigarettes. Has anyone followed the big execs of Monsanto, Dow, Dupont etc. to see what food they actually buy for themselves and their families? Wouldn’t it be interesting if all they ate were organic and non-gmo products???? I think it would be very telling!
One of my favorite experts (and I think he is the one who introduced me to you!) is Dr. Mercola at http://www.mercola.com . My uncle gave me his information 2 -3 years ago and now my children and husband roll their eyes every time I say Dr. Mercola says…. because I say it at least 4-5 times a week. 🙂 I love, love, love, knowing the truth and we owe people like you a huge debt of gratitude for all you do for all of us. You’re saving life!
FoodBabe keep up the work you do, some of us really know the truth about this Pesticide Biotechnology companies and also the fact that Monsanto’s have killed millions of people since the early 1900’s and was founded by Banker JP Morgan. They are pros at using PR to hide their lies as they been doing it for years. I would love to lock these Pesticide company CEO’s and all their supporters in a room and force feed them their food. It’s a great idea to use those people as guinea pigs and to see the influx of disorders, sickness & terminal illnesses that will develop amongst them!
You just have to check this one out as a new disorder has risen from the depths of Psychology…LOL…http://www.realfarmacy.com/officials-declare-eating-healthy-mental-disorder/
Love your articles and truth about corrupt food industry . I wonder what gov’t spraying ( daily in N.E.) / chemtrails are doing to the organic farms and our gardens?,!??