No more Pyrrhic Victories!

Say ‘NO!’ to Monsanto on the Roundup Ready Sugar Beet!

Where genetically engineered foods are concerned, where Monsanto is concerned; a battle won doesn’t ensure that the war has been won. Monsanto seems hell bent on poisoning Americans. You think that statement is strong?

Today I received this message from the:

The Center for Food Safety
660 Pennsylvania Ave, SE, #302
Washington DC 20003
P: (202)547-9359, F: (202)547-9429
office@centerforfoodsafety.org

Basically what they said was that just in time for Valentine’s Day, comes word that Monsanto with it’s ever insidious self serving greed is pushing for a new option to be made available to Sugar growers this year -- Monsanto’s Roundup Ready sugar beet, genetically engineered to survive direct application of the weed killer, Roundup.

Need I remind you that unlike traditional breeding, genetic engineering creates new life forms that would never occur in nature? These forms are in fact creating new and unpredictable health and environmental risks. Europeans will not permit these crops or products containing them in their countries. Doesn’t that give you pause?

To create GE crops, genes from bacteria, viruses, plants, animals, and even humans, have already been inserted into our common food crops, like canola, corn, soy, and tomatoes. Now the biotech industry has taken aim at our sugar.

At the request of Monsanto, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency increased the allowable amount of glyphosate residues on sugar beetroots by a whopping 5000%. Glyphosate is the active ingredient in Roundup; sugar is extracted from the beet’s root. The inevitable result is more glyphosate pesticide in our sugar. This is not good news for those who want to enjoy their sweet treats without the threat of ingesting toxic weed killer.

There are already 72 pesticides in and on our fruit and vegetables with more being sprayed onto them in the Supermarkets at the FDA’s mandate. (Didn’t you notice that the Organic Produce is now wrapped in plastics and cellophane to protect them from that insidious spray – “Please stand back; misters are about to spray. Misting locks in freshness and preserves nutrients. . .” ; “Singing in the rain…” – and we might add -- poisoning your food supply without your knowledge.)

I ask you, is it any wonder that Americans have been experiencing an inordinate rise in instances of autoimmune disease and obesity?

Need we remind you that USEPA employs Linda Fisher who is a direct link to Monsanto, DuPont, and Latham and Watkins? Doesn’t it make you feel safe to know that the rats have been put in place to guard the cheese so to speak?

Read our Blog: Your Right to Know. And please add your voice to the cry for a cease and desist! Kindly direct it to Hershey's; M&M; Mars and American Crystal Sugar as well as

The Center for Food Safety
660 Pennsylvania Ave, SE, #302
Washington DC 20003
P: (202)547-9359, F: (202)547-9429
office@centerforfoodsafety.org

Tell them:

NO ROUNDUP READY SUGAR!

As a consumer, I am more than disappointed. As someone who actively avoids genetically engineered ingredients due to the threats they pose to human health, family farmers and the environment, I have always looked to sugar as one of the few ingredients I could count on to be GE-free, unlike corn syrups and some other sweeteners. Without federally mandated labeling of GE products, I have to rely on companies that have publicly stated that they will avoid GE ingredients in order to make my purchasing decisions.

PLEASE stand by your 2001 decision to avoid GE Sugar in the production of your products. I will not buy products that include sugar that may be genetically engineered.