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Action Alert on Food Safety Bill #HR 2749
Action Alert
issues July 15 from the National Organic Action Plan
and National Organic Coalition...
Call members of the Ag committee, this alert says.
They meet July 16!!! Reps are from big Ag.
No organic reps, according to this info.
On Thursday, July 16, the House Agriculture Committee
is holding a hearing to ask representatives from agribusiness,
large farm organizations, and the food industry
about deficiencies and concerns with the
pending food safety legislation, HR 2749.
The bill has not yet been scheduled to go to the
floor of the House, but it is expected to do so
sometime the week of July 20 or 27.
Date: 7/16/2009 12:01:43 AM ( 15 y ) ... viewed 1886 times
7:42 PM
July 15, 09
How to Tweet Congress and
Senators:
http://tweetcongress.org/list/all/tags/representative?page=11&per_page=10&sor...
ACTION PAGE:
GO SIGN THE PETITION NOW TO
PROTECT SMALL FARMERS and OUR HEALTH FREEDOMS
Ask Congress to Defeat HR 2749
111th U.S. Congress - House Bill
FSEA #HR 2749 (Food Safety Enhancement Act of 2009)
http://www.ftcldf.org/petitions/pnum993.php
Follow through Congress on Thomas:
http://www.thomas.gov/
Chrys Ostrander
Jul 14th, 2009 at 4:11 pm
The National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition and the National Organic Coalition issued an Action Alert yesterday targeted at sustainable ag advocates in states who have US Representatives on the House Agriculture Committee. The Action Alert is about this bad food safety bill that is on the fast track in congress that has a House Ag Committee hearing on the 16th. The bill proposes a one-size-fits-all apporoach to improving food safety as well as a mandatory annual $500 fee for producers (including many farms) to be able to sell food anywhere in the US. It’s crazy that small producers are being asked to pay in the same amount that a mega corporations would be paying in. That’s just the beginning of the bad things about this bill.
Since the Action Alert is not on either the NSAC or the NOC websites, I’ve posted it on my website:
http://www.thefutureisorganic.net/FoodSafetyAction.htm
Excerpt:
HR 2749 as written will end that revitalization, put thousands of small-scale farmers and processors out of business, all without truly addressing the root causes of unsafe foods — namely, industrial, chemical-dependent, unsustainable farming, and food production.
You really must withdraw your support for HR 2749, or, at the very least, demand that the bill be allowed to be amended, which currently it is not.
There’s a lot of talk about empathy these days. Have some empathy for the small farmer. Oppose HR 2749!
Chrys Ostrander
07-14-2009
THIS IS THE INFORMATION
THAT I COPIED OFF CHRYS OSTRADER's
SITE.
9:54 PM
July 15, 09
http://www.thefutureisorganic.net/FoodSafetyAction.htm
ACTION ALERT!
It's Time to Ask Tough Questions About
Pending Food Safety Legislation
July 13, 2009
PLEASE CALL MEMBERS OF THE HOUSE AGRICULTURE COMMITTEE BY WEDNESDAY, JULY 15!
There is no question: our food system needs to be safer. But Congress is currently debating food safety legislation (Food Safety Enhancement Act - H.R. 2749) that could compromise small and mid-sized family farmers. If approved, certain provisions could hinder beginning, sustainable, and organic farmers' access to markets, require expensive fees, and lead to the dismantling of important conservation practices and wildlife habitat.
Small and mid-sized farmers, especially those that practice sustainable and organic methods, should not disproportionately bear the burden and expense of new food safety laws. Likewise, consumers' access to wholesome, fresh, sustainably-produced foods should not be diminished by any new legislation.
Solutions to the food safety dilemma must be rooted in good science, and support family farmers, consumers, and sustainable and organic agriculture. We need to ask tough questions that address some of the problems in pending food safety legislation.
On Thursday, July 16, the House Agriculture Committee is holding a hearing to ask representatives from agribusiness, large farm organizations, and the food industry about deficiencies and concerns with the pending food safety legislation, HR 2749.
Currently no representatives from the sustainable and organic agriculture community are scheduled to testify at this hearing, but this is still an important opportunity for our concerns to be raised.
MESSAGE:
It's easy to call. If your Congressperson is on the House Agriculture Committee (see list below), please call their office and ask to speak with the aide that works on agriculture (or send them a fax). Urge the Member to raise the following questions with the food safety hearing panelists on July 16:
1) Why are all food "facilities" under the proposed new law, even those that gross well under $500,000 annually, subject to the same registration fee of $500 each year? Isn't this a regressive tax that disproportionately impacts smaller producers? Why would a small processor have to pay the same annual fee as the largest facilities in our food system?
2) If left as is, provisions in the HR 2749 bill could encourage farmers to tear out important wildlife habitat and buffer strips that protect streams and rivers in an effort to try to create a "sterile" on-farm environment free of bacteria. What do you know about this? Can't we harmonize the safety of our food supply with environmental protection?
3) I'm concerned that organic producers who already have to comply with food safety standards outlined in the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990 will be burdened by another set of separate standards if HR 2749 becomes law. What can be done to ensure we are not creating a disincentive for farmers to transition to organic?
4) Farmers that sell directly to consumers or who use marketing strategies that preserve the identity of their farm products pose less of a food safety risk because their products are easily traced back to their farm. Should there be a comprehensive exemption for these kinds of farms in HR 2749?
Background
On June 17, the House Energy and Commerce Committee unanimously approved a manager's amendment to the Food Safety Enhancement Act of 2009. While the bill did incorporate some changes proposed by the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition and National Organic Coalition, HR 2749 retains a flat $500 registration fee per facility, thus failing to incorporate a scaled fee system. This means that a small processor (even on-farm if selling mostly wholesale) would pay the same annual fee as a facility run by Tyson, ADM, or any other large food manufacturer. In addition, the bill does not specify the positive role that conservation practices can play to address food safety concerns, and also fails to provide guidance so that new food safety standards are harmonized with those specified in the Organic Foods Production Act.
The bill has not yet been scheduled to go to the floor of the House, but it is expected to do so sometime the week of July 20 or 27.
AGRICULTURAL COMMITTEE
They meet July 16, 09
ALABAMA -- Bobby Bright (AL-2) 202-225-2901 202-225-8913
Mike Rogers (AL-3) 202-225-3261 202-226-8485
CALIFORNIA -- Joe Baca (CA-43) 202-225-6161 202-225-8671
Dennis Cardoza (CA-18) 202-225-6131 202-225-0819
Jim Costa (CA-20) 202-225-3341 202-225-9308
COLORADO -- Betsy Markey (CO-4) 202-225-4676 202-225-5870
GEORGIA -- David Scott (GA-13) 202-225-2939 202-225-4628
Jim Marshall (GA-8) 202-225-6531 202-225-3013
IDAHO -- Walt Minnick (ID-1) 202-225-6611 202-225-3029
ILLINOIS -- Deborah Halvorson (IL-11) 202-225-3635 202-225-3521
Timothy Johnson (IL-15) 202-225-2371 202-226-0791
INDIANA -- Brad Ellsworth (IN-8) 202-225-4636 202-225-3284
IOWA -- Leonard Boswell (IA-3) 202-225-3806 202-225-5608
Steve King (IA-5) 202-225-4426 202-225-3193
KANSAS -- Jerry Moran (KS-1) 202-225-2715 202-225-5124
LOUISIANA -- Bill Cassidy (LA-6) 202-225-3901 202-225-7313
MARYLAND -- Frank Kratovil, Jr. (MD-1) 202-225-5311 202-225-0254
MICHIGAN -- Mark Schauer (MI-7) 202-225-6276 202-225-6281
MINNESOTA -- Tim Walz (MN-1) 202-225-2472 202-225-3433
MISSISSIPPI -- Travis Childers (MS-1) 202-225-4306 202-225-3549
MISSOURI -- Sam Graves (MO-6) 202-225-7041 202-225-8221
Blaine Luetkemeyer (MO-9) 202-225-2956 202-225-5712
Adrian Smith (NE-3) 202-225-6435 202-225-0207
NEWYORK -- Eric Massa (NY-29) 202-225-3161 202-226-6599
NORTH CAROLINA -- Mike McIntyre (NC-7) 202-225-2731 202-225-5773
Larry Kissell (NC-8) 202-225-3715 202-225-4036
NORTH DAKOTA -- Earl Pomeroy (ND-at large) 202-225-2611 202-226-0893
OHIO -- John Boccieri (OH-16) 202-225-3876 202-225-3059
Jean Schmidt (OH-2) 202-225-3164 202-225-1992
Robert Latta (OH-5) 202-225-6405 202-225-1985
OKLAHOMA -- Frank Lucas
(OK-3), Ranking Member
202-225-5565 202-225-8698
PENNSYLVANIA --Tim Holden (PA-17) 202-225-5546 202-226-0996
Kathleen Dahlkemper (PA-3) 202-225-5406 202-225-3103
Glenn Thompson (PA-5) 202-225-5121 202-225-5796
SOUTH DAKOTA -- Stephanie Herseth Sandlin
(SD-at large)
202-225-2801 202-225-5823
TENNESSEE -- Phil Roe (TN-1) 202-225-6356 202-225-5714
TEXAS -- Henry Cuellar (TX-28) 202-225-1640 202-225-1641
Randy Neugebauer (TX-19) 202-225-4005 202-225-9615
K. Michael Conaway (TX-11) 202-225-3605 202-225-1783
VIRGINIA -- Bob Goodlatte (VA-6) 202-225-5431 202-225-9681
WISCONSIN -- Steve Kagen (WI-8) 202-225-5665 202-225-5729
WYOMING -- Cynthia Lummis (WY-at large) 202-225-2311 202-225-3057
ormation
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Liana Hoodes
National Organic Action Plan
National Organic Coalition
3540 Route 52
Pine Bush, NY 12566
Phone and Fax: 845-744-2304
http://www.NationalOrganicCoalition.org
Liana@hvc.rr.com
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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GO SIGN THE PETITION NOW TO
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ACTION PAGE:
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8,109 Submissions so far
111th U.S. Congress - House Bill
FSEA HR 2749
http://www.ftcldf.org/petitions/pnum993.php
DO YOU HAVE QUESTIONS
ABOUT FSEA #HR2749?
http://www.ftcldf.org/aa/aa-26june2009.htm
6:44 AM
July 12, 09
Materials to learn how to eat.
We are in a NATIONAL FOOD EMERGENCY.
Some in Congress would like to push
FSEA #HR2749 through.
Here are some good resources for
beginners.
NUTRITION BY NATALIE:
http://www.nutritionbynatalie.com/
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