[compost_tea] Re: press release

From: dkemnitz2000 <dkemnitz2000_at_yahoo.com>
Date: Fri, 18 Jun 2004 00:28:04 -0000
---I just searched the computer for CFR flour and  the 4-1-02 edition
surfaced .  It didn't include standards for extraneous matter.  I
don't know why. An older CFR is probably needed. Maybe they don't
test for it any more cause "maybe" the mice don't eat GMO'd grain. Ya
I know the wheat ain't GMO'd but soybeans are in the elevators too. 
Dennis






In compost_tea_at_yahoogroups.com, "dkemnitz2000" <dkemnitz2000@y...>
wrote:
> --- Take a look at the CFR for flour standards. ADM gets some
leeway
> on their finished product(flour). Dennis Kemnitz
>
>
>
>
>
> In compost_tea_at_yahoogroups.com, "Titel Ryzhomer" <thegoodjob@h...>
> wrote:
> > Scary...Oh the horror that there might be some germs in my food!
> >
> > --- In compost_tea_at_yahoogroups.com, "Steve Bridges" <steve@t...>
> > wrote:
> > > If it's not bad enough that we are having to deal with little
boy
> > Bush as the President that couldn't, now we've also got a second
> > round of the Avery family to contend with. Many of you are
familiar
> > with Dennis Avery, of the right-wing think tank Hudson
Institute's
> > Center for Global Food Issues. His son, Alex Avery, is part of
CFGI
> > and is quoted in the press release below. It's the last line of
the
> > article that kills me.
> > >
> > > **Dennis Avery wrote the book called Saving the World with
> > Plastics and Pesticides, to give you some feel for this guy.
> > > **The Hudson Institute is funded, in part, by Monsanto, Dow
> > Chemical, Archers Daniel Midland, Ciba-Geigy,,,,,,basically all
the
> > big chemical companies.
> > >
> > > Just passing on the info on a study that we need to be aware
> > of......
> > > Steve Bridges
> > >
> > > ----------------------------------------------------------------
--
> -
> > -------------
> > >
> > >
> > > Quote taken from a speech by Dennis Avery:
> > (http://www.monsanto.co.uk/news/ukshowlib.phtml?uid=6814)
> > > "Some tout organic farming as the answer, yet scientific data
> show
> > that if organic farming practices were employed on a global
basis,
> > the consequences would be an environmental catastrophe," claims
> > Avery. "Additionally, organic practices even on a limited scale
are
> > challenged by groups like the Scottish Crop Research Institute as
> > being ecologically unsound."
> > >
> > > Links to information about the Hudson Institute and CGFI:
> > > http://www.disinfopedia.org/wiki.phtml?title=Hudson_Institute -
> > Info on the makeup of the Hudson Institute
> > > http://www.disinfopedia.org/wiki.phtml?
> > title=Center_for_Global_Food_Issues - CGFI, A project of the
Hudson
> > Institute
> > > http://www.earthfarmfriendly.com/about.htm - A label that CGFI
is
> > trying to establish for conventional farmers called "Earth
> Friendly,
> > Farm Friendly" (gag!)
> > > http://www.cgfi.org/ - Center for Global Food Issues main
> website.
> > >
> > >
> > > ----------------------------------------------------------------
--
> -
> > -------------
> > >
> > > Organic Food Has 'Significantly Higher' Contamination, Study
Finds
> > > By Marc Morano
> > > CNSNews.com Senior Staff Writer
> > > June 14, 2004
> > >
> > > (CNSNews.com) - A new study on food safety reveals that organic
> > produce may contain a significantly higher risk of fecal
> > contamination than conventionally grown produce.
> > >
> > > A recent comparative analysis
> >
>
<http://www.ingenta.com/isis/searching/ExpandTOC/ingenta;jsessionid=4
> > k177waqmd6tg.circus?
> > issue=pubinfobike://iafp/jfp/2004/00000067/00000005&amp;index=6> 
> of
> > organic produce versus conventional produce from the University
of
> > Minnesota shows that the organically grown produce had 9.7
percent
> > positive samples for the presence of generic E. coli bacteria
> versus
> > only 1.6 percent for conventional produce on farms in Minnesota.
> > >
> > > The study, which was published in May in the Journal of Food
> > Protection, concluded, "the observation that the prevalence of E.
> > coli was significantly higher in organic produce supports the
idea
> > that organic produce is more susceptible to fecal contamination."
> > >
> > > In addition, the study found the food-borne disease pathogen
> > salmonella only on the organic produce samples. There was no
> > evidence found of the deadly strain of bacteria, E. coli O157:H7,
> in
> > either type of produce tested. The study looked at fruits and
> > vegetables at the "preharvest" stage, not at the retail store
level.
> > >
> > > The principle investigator of the University of Minnesota
study,
> > Francisco Diez-Gonzalez, told CNSNews.com that "organic
agriculture
> > was more susceptible to carry fecal indicators."
> > >
> > > "In many ways it is confirming what is believed, indeed, if you
> > are using animal manure for fertilizer, the chances that you are
> > going to get fecal bacteria on the product are greater," Diez-
> > Gonzalez said.
> > >
> > > The higher incidences of fecal contamination in organic foods
> were
> > linked to heavy reliance on composted animal manure for
fertilizer.
> > While conventionally grown produce may use some manure, it
chiefly
> > relies on chemical fertilizers. Past research has shown that
Animal
> > manure is the principal source of pathogens such as salmonella,
> > campylobacter, and E. coli 0157:H7
> > >
> > > But Diez-Gonzalez cautioned that his study does not show
organic
> > produce to be a higher risk food choice. "What the data is
telling
> > organic agriculture is there is some room for improvement," Diez-
> > Gonzalez said.
> > >
> > > "I don't think we need to be more concerned about organic
> > vegetables. Based on the epidemiological evidence, we can say
that
> > both organic and conventional vegetables would pose the same
[food
> > borne pathogen] risk for consumers," he added.
> > >
> > > But Diez-Gonzalez did acknowledge that a higher presence of
> > generic E. coli could mean higher risk for deadly pathogens."We
use
> > E. coli as indicator that the potential could be there [for food
> > borne pathogens]," Diez-Gonzalez explained.
> > >
> > > Asked about how consumers -- who buy organic food for health
> > reasons -- will react to his study showing higher fecal
> > contamination, Diez-Gonzalez responded, "The consumer perception
> may
> > not be very favorable and that is a potential consequence."
> > >
> > > 'Facade is crumbling'
> > >
> > > Alex Avery, director of research and education at the free-
market
> > Hudson Institute's Center for Global Food Issues, says the latest
> > scientific study confirms years of research that organic produce
> may
> > pose a higher risk for food-borne illness.
> > >
> > > "Organic food activists, which include many activist
researchers
> > entrenched in liberal university halls, have claimed organic food
> > superiority for years in their efforts to mold society and scare
> > consumers into buying their politically correct fare. Now their
> > farcical facade is crumbling," Avery told CNSNews.com.
> > >
> > > Avery was particularly concerned about a possibly elevated risk
> > for pathogens such as salmonella and the deadly E. coli O157:H7
in
> > organic produce. E. coli O157:H7 can attack the kidneys and
liver,
> > causing severe internal damage and even death, especially among
the
> > elderly and young children.
> > >
> > > Avery called the risk of contracting salmonella from organic
food
> > a "crap shoot," with the pay off being "diarrhea, typhoid fever,
> and
> > Reiter's Syndrome that causes joint pain and painful urination
that
> > can last for years after the initial salmonella infection."
> > >
> > > The University of Minnesota study found salmonella in one
sample
> > of organic lettuce and one sample of organic green peppers. The
> > researchers collected 476 Minnesota produce samples from 32
organic
> > farms and 129 samples from eight conventional farms. The produce
> > analyzed included unwashed tomatoes, lettuce, green peppers,
> > cucumbers, broccoli, apples, and strawberries.
> > >
> > > The study reported that "an increasing number of
gastrointestinal
> > disease outbreaks have been linked to the consumption of fresh
> > fruits and vegetables," accounting for a total of 148 outbreaks
> > between 1990 and 2001.
> > >
> > > The study found organic lettuce had the highest rate of fecal
> > contamination, with a rate of over 22 percent. And Avery says
> > consumers can't assume they can simply "wash off" the fecal
matter
> > from the lettuce.
> > >
> > > "Past research shows that E. coli 0157 can enter into the
lettuce
> > through the roots and be inside the lettuce, meaning you can't
wash
> > it off," Avery said.
> > >
> > > Organic: 'Most especially at risk'
> > >
> > > The controversy over the safety of organic food began in 1997,
> > when Robert Tauxe, chief of the food-borne illness division of
the
> > Centers for Disease Control, addressed pathogens that thrive in
> > manure. Tauxe was quoted in the Journal of the American Medical
> > Association as saying, "Organic means a food was grown in animal
> > manure."
> > >
> > > The article in the 1997 Journal of the American Medical
> > Association implicated "organically grown, unprocessed foods
> > produced without... pesticides or preservatives" as an increasing
> > source of food-borne illness.
> > >
> > > The nationally syndicated television news program American
> > Investigator also quoted the Food and Drug Administration's
Virlie
> > Walker as warning Americans that, "Most especially at risk [for
> food
> > borne pathogens] are your organic products because they could be
> > fertilized with manure."
> > >
> > > Walker, the spokesperson for the FDA's Denver district, told
the
> > news program  <http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/?
> > id=FDPOISON.USN> in June 1998, "We do encourage folks to pay
> special
> > attention to cleaning their organic products."
> > >
> > > In 2000, ABC's John Stossel, followed up with a similar
> television
> > report on 20/20 about the potential bacterial dangers of organic
> > produce.
> > >
> > > Diez-Gonzalez believes his findings of increased fecal
> > contamination in organic food will not surprise consumers "if
they
> > have been following the media [reports]."
> > >
> > > "Most likely, [our study] is going to serve to prove that some
in
> > media were right in terms of the E. coli, the fecal
contamination,
> > but not in terms of pathogens," Diez-Gonzalez said.
> > >
> > > 'Lightening rod for public officials'
> > >
> > > Avery sees the issue of organic food politics as being too hot
to
> > handle for most food regulators.
> > >
> > > "Organic food production has become a lightening rod for public
> > officials. The CDC does not want to touch this with a ten foot
> > pole," Avery said.
> > >
> > > Referring to the CDC's Tauxe -- and his comments about organic
> > food in 1997 -- Avery said the organic lobby "went ballistic and
> > inundated the CDC with phone calls."
> > >
> > > "This research continues to raise the red flags that have been
> > raised in the past by credible food safety experts like Tauxe at
> the
> > CDC. How many red flags have to be raised in order to get
stricter
> > manure regulations?" Avery asked.
> > >
> > > Avery also believes that the driving force behind organic
> produce,
> > the fear of chemical pesticides, is completely unwarranted.
> > >
> > > "The National Research Council, an arm of the National Academy
of
> > Sciences, found in 1999 that the cancer risk from pesticide
residue
> > is theoretically lower than the risk from naturally occurring
> > carcinogens. Both types are too low to be appreciable cancer
> risks,"
> > Avery explained.
> > >
> > > "We are still looking for the first cancer death victim from
> > pesticide residues. But we have several examples of children
killed
> > by pathogenic bacteria on organic produce," he added.


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Received on Thu Jun 17 2004 - 21:47:02 EDT

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