Monsanto Threatens to Sue Vermont if Legislators Pass a Bill Requiring GMO Food to Be Labeled
From AlterNet / By Will Allen and Ronnie Cummins
The world’s most hated corporation is at it again, this time in Vermont. Despite overwhelming public support and support from a clear majority of Vermont’s Agriculture Committee, Vermont legislators are dragging their feet on a proposed GMO labeling bill. Why? Because Monsanto has threatened to sue the state if the bill passes.
The popular legislative bill requiring mandatory labels on genetically engineered food (H-722) is languishing in the Vermont House Agriculture Committee, with only four weeks left until the legislature adjourns for the year. Despite thousands of emails and calls from constituents who overwhelmingly support mandatory labeling, despite the fact that a majority (6 to 5) of Agriculture Committee members support passage of the measure, Vermont legislators are holding up the labeling bill and refusing to take a vote.
Instead, they’re calling for more public hearings on April 12, in the apparent hope that they can run out the clock until the legislative session ends in early May.
What happened to the formerly staunch legislative champions of Vermont’s “right to know” bill? They lost their nerve and abandoned their principles after Monsanto representative recently threatened a public official that the biotech giant would sue Vermont if they dared to pass the bill. Several legislators have rather unconvincingly argued that the Vermont public has a “low appetite” for any bills, even very popular bills like this one, that might end up in court. Others expressed concern about Vermont being the first state to pass a mandatory GMO labeling bill and then having to “go it alone” against Monsanto in court.
What it really comes down to this: Elected officials are abandoning the public interest and public will in the face of corporate intimidation.
Monsanto has used lawsuits or threats of lawsuits for 20 years to force unlabeled genetically engineered foods on the public, and to intimidate farmers into buying their genetically engineered seeds and hormones. When Vermont became the first state in the nation in 1994 to require mandatory labels on milk and dairy products derived from cows injected with the controversial genetically engineered Bovine Growth Hormone, Monsanto’s minions sued in Federal Court and won on a judge’s decision that dairy corporations have the first amendment “right” to remain silent on whether or not they are injecting their cows with rBGH – even though rBGH has been linked to severe health damage in cows and increased cancer risk for humans, and is banned in much of the industrialized world, including Europe and Canada.
Monsanto wields tremendous influence in Washington, DC and most state capitals. The company’s stranglehold over politicians and regulatory officials is what has prompted activists in California to bypass the legislature and collect 850,000 signatures to place a citizens’ Initiative on the ballot in November 2012. The 2012 California Right to Know Act will force mandatory labeling of GMOs and to ban the routine practice of labeling GMO-tainted food as “natural.”
All of Monsanto’s fear mongering and intimidation tactics were blatantly on display in the House Agriculture Committee hearings March 15-16.
During the hearings the Vermont legislature was deluged with calls, letters, and e-mails urging passage of a GMO labeling bill – more than on any other bill since the fight over Civil Unions in 1999-2000. The legislature heard from pro-labeling witnesses such as Dr. Michael Hansen, an expert on genetic engineering from the Consumers Union, who shredded industry claims that GMO’s are safe and that consumers don’t need to know if their food is contaminated with them.
On the other side of the fence, Monsanto’s lobbyist and Vermont mouthpiece, Margaret Laggis employed inaccurate, unsubstantiated, fear-mongering claims to make Monsanto’s case. She warned during the hearings that if this law were passed, there would not be enough corn, canola, and soybean seed for Vermont farmers to plant.
Laggis lied when she said that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had done exhaustive feeding tests on genetically modified foods. Hansen corrected her, testifying that all of the GMO feeding tests submitted to the FDA were conducted by Monsanto and other GMO corporations and that the FDA had not done any GMO testing of its own.
Laggis lied again when she claimed that a recent Canadian study showing that more than 90% pregnant women had high levels of a genetically modified bacterial pesticide in their blood resulted from them “eating too much organic food” during pregnancy. Again, Hansen refuted this nonsense by pointing out that the Bacillus thuingensis (Bt) bacterium spray used by organic growers is chemically and materially different from the GMO Bt bacterium which showed up in the pregnant women’s blood and the umbilical cords of their fetuses. Hanson pointed that the high levels of Monsanto’s mutant Bt in the women’s blood was due to the widespread cultivation of GMO corn, cotton, soy, and canola.
The committee heard testimony that European Union studies have been conducted which showed that even short-term feeding studies of GMO crops caused 43.5% of male test animals to suffer kidney abnormalities, and 30.8% of female test animals to suffer liver abnormalities. Studies also have shown that the intestinal lining of animals fed GMO food was thickened compared to the control animals. All of these short-term results could become chronic, and thus precursors to cancer.
Studies like these have prompted 50 nations around the world to pass laws requiring mandatory labels on GMO right foods.
In the end, none of the scientific testimony mattered. Monsanto operatives simply reverted to their usual tactics: They openly threatened to sue the state.
Unfortunately in the US, industry and the government continue to side with Monsanto rather than the 90% of consumers who support labeling. Monsanto’s biotech bullying is a classic example of how the 1% control the rest of us, even in Vermont, generally acknowledged as the most progressive state in the nation.
Vermont activists are organizing a protest at the state capital on April 12 to coincide with the next round of hearings on H-722, and are asking residents to write letters, make calls, and e-mail their legislators and the Governor. For more information, please go to the websitehttp://www.vtrighttoknow.org or the Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/vtrighttoknow of the Vermont Right to Know Campaign.
That’s a real blow, Green-star.
Update on the GMO bill….yesterday 4-16 the Sec. of Ag stated that VT would not be following up on the GMO labeling bill. Here is a link: http://www.vpr.net/news_detail/94161/vt-ag-secretary-wont-support-gmo-bill-in-legislatu/
Basically, this is yet another classic case of the corporate machine subverting the will of the people. Monsanto’s threads of lawsuits has everyone backing down. This is soooo sooo wrong and everyone knows it. What does it say about us that we the people are not able to change the laws that govern our lives because a non-human entity, a corporation, now has more power? It is astonishing that we have done this to ourselves! This has got to end, but how?
The message from Kate is that for right now, they are focusing on the big hearing that is scheduled for tomorrow. There is a protest rally scheduled but all of this is on the local level, so there are fewer avenues at the moment for out-of-state help.
Kate said that even if this bill does not pass this year, the momentum is there, the public support is huge and the press is on alert so she is hopeful for a good bill, but it may take time.
If people wanted to write emails of support to her office that would be fine and they will go into the public record. Also one can email the Speaker of the House and go on record here is his website with contact info located here: http://speaker.vermont.gov/
The website which was already cited in the above article has been recommended as a useful place to send donations if people wanted to do something financial: http://www.vtrighttoknow.org/ As an example, this group will be organizing and busing folks in for the rally tomorrow and so $ support will go towards that event and other ongoing PR.
Thanks everyone, she was delighted to hear that the bill was making waves and getting support outside of the state !
Yes, thanks for this blog, Fe. What an absurd farce ‘justice’ is at times, particularly when it comes to might against right. Thanks for the links BR.
Hi Fe, FYI this blog has a link to the petition, and other articles, including a YouTube of Pres Obama in 2007 covering this topic: http://windswhisperer.blogspot.com/2012/04/monsanto-threatens-to-sue-state-of.html
Again, thanks for such a great head=up article
Thank you Fe for your offer!
I do not know any specifics right now, however I will ask tomorrow. In the meanwhile, I’m sure anyone who would want to write an email of support to Kate could…. Here is her official website with contact info :
http://katewebbvt.com/
Be, thanks for the scrying of the stars….this does indeed look good! I will personally translate this information into terms that non-astro-speak folk could relate to and will pass it along to Kate….she’s very receptive to input such as this and is used to hearing the like from me…fringe element that I am! 😉 The bill was introduced on Feb. 01, 2012 in Montpelier, VT. (no exact time that I am aware of, but it was after 1:00 PM ) Not sure if that would give you any additional star-based information regarding its potentials.
What the threat of a lawsuit usually comes down to is who has more money, doesn’t it? Or at least who has “enough” money. Like other states, Vermont is running a tight ship. We got slapped hard by Irene and there are still many things that need rebuilding including a large portion of state government that lost their buildings to the flood-waters and that price tag far exceeds what we can afford at the moment. I’m sure that part of the legislative wavering on this bill is about money. We recently lost a Supreme court battle and it cost our state several million dollars. It soured the public on going up against this court for any near future heroic battles no matter how worthy the cause. I’m sure Monsanto knows this and so it makes their threat seem more potent. Our state is politically liberal but fiscally conservative and very small so it is an interesting mix to work with in terms of government. We are also facing threats from another huge corporation because Vermont wants to shut down the one and only Nuk plant in the state. The owners of the plant have also threatened with a lawsuit if Vermont tries to go ahead. Fe, you are exactly right… corporate intimidation IS not only the new marketing tool, it is also the new(old) governance tool, apparently.
Food, Energy and Health care….Vermont is currently fighting on 3 huge big fronts against several different “Goliaths” who are all thumping their chests and brandishing their armies of lawyers…it is quite a wild ride for our normally quiet part of the world.
I’d imagine that if there were a “Move On” type organization with considerable political clout who would say from the outset that they stand behind the people of Vermont on this one, and back that up with $ donations, and if the legislature could somehow know that there is huge REAL support beyond our borders, it could be a signal to our tiny upstart state that we are finally ready to take on Big M. I don’t know if there is enough time to launch such a campaign, but it is possible….ANY thing is possible given what the stars are telling us!!
I’ll report back if I get any useful information on how to help the good fight!! And thanks!!!
Hybris at 0 Aries. Either way, hybrid corn or the hubris of Monsanto et al, the political is personal.
It is good that on April 21 the New Moon at 1 Taurus 35 will be conjunct Ceres at 4 Taurus 36 and Hopi (corn products) will be at 4 Scorpio 50 retrograde.
Hybris at 5+ Aries will be conjunct Uranus at 6+ Aries and Mercury at 4+ Aries.
I wonder if this has anything to do with 1960. In your “We Are History” piece Fe, liminali mentioned that Ceres was conjunct QB1 then in 1960 as she was also at the time you posted that article. I think it’s time to cross that threshold and take on the bastards of Monsanto.
In the birthday chart for the U.S. Jupiter was at 5 Taurus and squared Mercury at 5 Leo which is 1 degree from the U.S. north node at 6 Leo. It’s time for the public to be made to understand the facts about this corporation and the dangers they feel no shame in exposing us to.
There is a solar eclipse next month and Mercury at 22 Taurus and Jupiter at 24 Taurus conjunct the U.S. Vesta (investments) at 19 Taurus. Ceres will be at 16 Taurus at that eclipse. Juno will oppose Jupiter (her husband). Maybe then the truth will be exposed and government business will be forced to reveal their ties to this corporation.
be
Thanks for the links, Fe. I’m on it.
Something about Lens’ post and the comments and thinking of Ceres being involved astrologically with what is going on…..This is gonna be “good.”
Green-star-gazer:
What kind of support would your step-sister need from all of us out here in other states? Is there room for action across the board? Can we help her start some trouble?
Thank you Fe so very much for posting this.
Perhaps PW readers may already know this, but a statue of the Goddess Ceres crowns the state capital building of Vermont. I grew up in VT and still have deep roots there and I always felt great pride in knowing that a Goddess holds the highest place of honour on our “People’s house of Law” even before I really knew all the that this symbolism represents. Having Ceres conj both my Asc and Sun I’ve always felt Her archetypal presence in my subconscious quite acutely.
I am also extremely proud of my step-sister who is one of the leading sponsors of this bill…she is a very brave and determined woman and it will be fascinating to see if the legislators will find their backbones and stand up to this bully. But with all the insane corporate-friendly rulings made by the (ultra conservative) “Highest” court in the land lately, this may indeed be a very tough battle to win if it does hit the courts, but that will be a long river to paddle. But now is the time to stand up to these bullies and say NO more!
As your article says, we’ve been here before with the rGBH issue. What is interesting is that there are now several dairy suppliers in this area that put right on their packages that they are rGBH free and because of that, they are able to actually command higher prices for their products because the demand is greater. Sadly, because only Monsanto knows what goes into their Frankenfood seeds and products, we have to have this kind of legislation because they hold such a monopoly on the seed and food supply in this country. If the Vermont legislators buckle there is going to be hell to pay…the bill is HUGELY popular and we all know that the lies and threats from Big-M are just that. A pivotal moment indeed, and the hearing/rally is being held just before Mars stations direct…Oh the timing!!!
If anyone would like to hear the local PBS radio station’s program that was broadcast last month regarding this bill, you can catch it here: http://www.vpr.net/episode/53188/gmos-right-to-know/
Wow, corporate intimidation. The new marketing tool. Or maybe its the old trying to pull the wool.
Fe: Thank you for posting this.