7 Dodgy Food Practices Banned in Europe But Just Fine Here

By Tom Philpott

| Wed May. 8, 2013 3:00 AM PDT

Eiffel Tower: Iakov Kalinin/Shutterstock,
Spray can: Knumina Studios/Shutterstock, Skull: Arcady/Shutterstock,

Last week, the European Commission voted to place a two-year moratorium in most uses of neonicotinoid pesticides, on the suspicion that they're contributing to the global crisis in honeybee health (a topic I've touched on here, here, here, and here). Since then, several people have asked me whether the Europe's move might inspire the US Environmental Protection Agency to make a similar move—currently, neonics are widely used in several of our most prevalent crops, including corn, soy, cotton, and wheat.

The answer is no. As I reported recently, an agency press officer told me the EU move will have no bearing on the EPA's own review of the pesticides, which aren't scheduled for release until 2016 at the earliest.

All of which got me thinking about other food-related substances and practices that are banned in Europe but greenlighted here. Turns out there are lots. Aren't you glad you don't live under the Old World regulatory jackboot, where the authorities deny people's freedom to quaff to atrazine-laced drinking water, etc., etc.? Let me know in comments if I'm missing any.

1) Atrazine

Why it's a problem: A "potent endocrine disruptor," Syngenta's popular corn herbicide has been linked to range of reproductive problems at extremely low doses in both amphibians and humans; and it commonly leaches out of farm fields and into people's drinking water.

What Europe did: Banned it in 2003.

US status: EPA: "Atrazine will begin registration review, EPA’s periodic re-evaluation program for existing pesticides, in mid-2013."

2) Arsenic in chicken, turkey, and pig feed

Why it's a problem: Arsenic is beloved of industrial-scale livestock producers because it makes animals grow faster and turns their meat a rosy pink. It enters feed in organic form, which isn't harmful to humans. Trouble is, in animals guts, it quickly goes inorganic, and thus becomes poisonous. Several studies, including one by the FDA, have found heightened levels of inorganic arsenic in supermarket chicken, and its also ends up in manure, where it can move into tap water. Fertilizing rice fields with arsenic-laced manure may be partially responsible for heightened arsenic levels in US rice.

What Europe did: According to the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, arsenic-based compounds "were never approved as safe for animal feed in the European Union, Japan, and many other countries."

US status: The drug giant Pfizer "voluntarily" stopped marketing the arsenical feed additive Roxarsone back in 2011. But there are still several arsenicals on the market. On May 1, a coalition of enviro groups including the Center for Food Safety, the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, the Center for Biological Diversity filed a lawsuit demanding that the FDA ban them from feed.

3) "Poultry litter" in cow feed

Why it's a problem: You know how arsenic goes inorganic—and thus poisonous—in chickens' guts? Consider that their arsenic-laced manure is then commonly used as a feed for cows. According to Consumers Union, the stuff "consists primarily of manure, feathers, spilled feed, and bedding material that accumulate on the floors of the buildings that house chickens and turkeys." The "spilled feed" part is of special concern, because chickens are often fed "meat and bone meal from dead cattle," CU reports, and that stuff can spill into the litter and be fed back to cows, raising Mad Cow Disease concerns.

What Europe did: Banned all forms of animal protein, including chicken litter, in cow feed in 2001.

US status: The practice remains unrestricted. US cattle consume about 2 billion pounds of it annually, Consumers Union's Michael Hanson told me last year.

4) Chlorine washes for poultry carcasses

Why it's a problem: As the US chicken industry has sped up kill lines in recent years, it has resorted to heavier use of chlorine-based washes  to "decrease microbial loads on carcasses," The Washington Post recently reported, quoting a previously unreleased USDA document. As I've noted, the USDA is preparing to release new rules that would speed up kill lines still more as well as allow companies to douse every carcasses that comes down the line with antimicrobial sprays, "whether they are contaminated or not." According to the Post, poultry workers and USDA inspectors attribute a "range of ailments" to the practice, including "asthma and other severe respiratory problems, burns, rashes, irritated eyes, and sinus ulcers and other sinus problems."

What Europe did: The EU not only bans the practice, but refuses to accept US poultry that has been treated with antimicrobial sprays.

US status: As stated above, the USDA is preparing to roll out new rules that will increase the practice.

5) Antibiotics as growth promoters on livestock farms

Why they're a problem: Antibiotic use has surged on US animal farms has spiked in recent years—and now accounts for 80 percent of all antibiotic use. Meanwhile, meat sold in US supermarkets is rife with antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

What Europe did: In the EU, all antibiotics used in human medicines are banned on farms—and no antibiotics can be used on farms for "non-medical purposes," i.e., growth promotion.

US status: The FDA is floating new rules that would ban on antibiotics as growth promoters—but the regulation would be voluntary.

6) Ractopomine and other pharmaceutical growth enhancers in animal feed

Why it's a problem: Fed to an estimated 60 to 80 percent of US hogs, ractopomine makes animals grow fast whole also staying lean. Unfortunately, it does so by mimicking stress hormones, making animals miserable. The excellent food-safety reporter Helena Bottemiller looked at FDA documents and found that between its introduction in 1998 and 2011, the drug had killed 210,000 pigs—"more than any other animal drug on the market." Pigs treated with it, she found, suffer from ailments ranging from hyperactivity and trembling to broken limbs and the inability to walk. (Beef cows are fed similar drugs, as are turkeys.) Traces of these pharmaceuticals end up in our meat—and according to Bottemiller, their effects on humans are little-studied.

What Europe did: Europe not only bars its own producers from using ractopamine, it also refuses to allow imports of meat treated with it—as do China and Russia.

US status: Rather than trying to rein in ractopamine use, the Obama administration is actively seeking to force Europe and other nations to accept our ractopamine-treated pork.

7) Gestation crates

Why it's a problem: The sows that breed the hogs confined in US factory farms spend nearly their entire lives stuffed into crates so small "so small the animals can't even turn around or take more than a step forward or backward," Humane Society of the US reports. An undercover HSUS investigation of a sow facility run by pork giant Smithfield in 2011 found, among other horrors, this:

The animals engaged in stereotypic behaviors such as biting the bars of crates, indicating poor well-being in the extreme confinement conditions. Some had bitten their bars so incessantly that blood from their mouths coated the fronts of their crates. The breeding pigs also suffered injuries from sharp crate protrusions and open pressure sores that developed from their unyielding confinement.

What Europe did: Banned them, effective this year.

US status: Pork giants Smithfield, Cargill, and Hormel have pledged to phase them out; several fast-food chains including McDonald's, Burger King, Wendy's, and Subway have promised to stop buying from suppliers who use the crates; and nine states have banned the practice, HSUS reports. But the practice remains widespread, and as industry flack Rick Berman recently put it, a large swath of the pork industry "has no plans to stop using standard sow housing."

http://www.motherjones.com/tom-philpott/2013/05/7-dodgy-foodag-practices-banned-europe-just-fine-here

Toxic Alert: Herbicide Now Detected in Human Urine

October 23 2012 |146,526views

Story at-a-glance

• Last year, Bt toxin originating from genetically engineered Bt crops were found in 93 percent of pregnant women tested and 80 percent of umbilical blood in their babies. Now, results from a German study shows that people who have no direct contact with agriculture have significant concentrations of glyphosate in their urine. Glyphosate is the active ingredient in many broad-spectrum herbicides, including Roundup
• Urine samples collected from city dwellers in Berlin all tested positive for glyphosate, with values ranging from 0.5 to 2 nanograms per milliliter (ng/ml), which is five to 20 times the permissible upper limit for glyphosate in German drinking water
• Research published in 2010 showed that the chemical causes birth defects in frogs and chicken embryos at far lower levels than used in agricultural and garden applications
• Glyphosate has also been linked to decimation of intestinal probiotics, endocrine disruption, DNA damage, developmental and reproductive toxicity, and more

 

Visit the Mercola Video Library

By Dr. Mercola

Last year, doctors at Sherbrooke University Hospital in Quebec made the disturbing discovery that Bt-toxin from genetically engineered Bt corn in fact accumulates in the human body – contrary to industry assurances. The toxin was identified in 93 percent of pregnant women tested; 80 percent of umbilical blood in their babies; and 67 percent of non-pregnant women.

The study blew a giant hole in safety claims over genetically engineered Bt crops. 

Now, results from a German study shows that people who have no direct contact with agriculture have significant concentrations of glyphosate in their urine. It's becoming quite apparent that genetically engineered crops are a source of multiple toxins, in addition to having been found to contain far lower levels of nutrients. So much for saving the world from starvation.
 

Glyphosate Found in City Dwellers' Urine

Glyphosate is the active ingredient in Monsanto's herbicide Roundup, which is sprayed in large quantities on genetically engineered, so-called "Roundup Ready," crops. Such crops are genetically engineered to withstand otherwise lethal applications of the herbicide.

According to the German journal Ithaka,¹ every single urine sample collected from city dwellers around Berlin tested positive for glyphosate, with values ranging from 0.5 to 2 nanograms per milliliter (ng/ml) – that's between five and 20 times the permissible upper limit for glyphosate in German drinking water, which is set at 0.1 ng/ml. According to the featured article:²

"Glyphosate probably entered human populations over the past 10 years through its increasing presence in daily foods such as meat and dairy products, vegetable and fruit produce and grains products. Glyphosate-laced genetically modified Roundup soya which enters the animal food chain, is only one of the risk factors.

Even more dangerous now is the increasing use of herbicides in the EU over the past several years for the desiccation of entire stocks of harvestable crop.

'Spraying crops to death,' as desiccation should be more aptly called, means that herbicides are being sprayed directly on the crops shortly before they are to be harvested to facilitate the harvest by uniformly killing off all living plants (including the crops) on the field.

If crops cannot fully mature due to excessive rain, as was the case in the summer of 2011, herbicides are used to bring the crops to maturity by means of a 'death-spray.' The method facilitates the drying of the crops as well as removing all weeds for the next sowing period, and has become common for the harvest of potatoes, cereals, canola and pulses.

For potatoes, spraying herbicides on the field immediately before harvest (2.5 l / ha), hardens the skin and reduces its susceptibility to late blight and germination, which improved the potatoes shelf life. Active compounds of the herbicide directly enter the potato through the leaves; however, decomposition of the poison takes place in the body of the consumer."
 

"Desiccation" – Spraying the Crop to Death Before Harvesting

If you've never heard of this practice, you're probably not alone. Few besides those directly involved with large scale agriculture are likely to be aware of this practice. According to the featured article,³ Syngenta advertises desiccation among "the standard measures to assure high quality production." The end result is extensive contamination of the crop in question, much of which ends up on your plate.

The chemical works primarily by affecting plant metabolism, effectively killing virtually all green plants within a few days. Genetically engineered Roundup Ready crops are specifically designed to be able to withstand the assault of this broad-spectrum weed killer. However, this certainly does not make such crops glyphosate-free.

On the contrary, Roundup Ready crops are far more contaminated with glyphosate than other crops, due to the excessive spraying required as glyphosate-resistant super-weeds are becoming increasingly common. Add the practice of desiccation to the mix, and it's no wonder consumers are expelling significant concentrations of toxins in their urine...

"Desiccation is one of the most egregious scandals of modern agricultural history; as such, it is worth taking a minute to consider what is actually happening in the process," the article states.⁴ "Just before crops are harvested, threshed, and sold to bakeries, farmers soak them in broad-spectrum systemic herbicides to kill them off and give them the appearance of uniform maturity. One could just as well stir the glyphosate right into the bread dough. With protein-rich feed it is the same – the herbicide is spayed directly on the grain several days before it is sold as concentrated feed.

...There is an urgent need for action. Regardless of all the other risks associated with glyphosate, an immediate ban of desiccation must be enforced. Desiccation can be considered nothing less than negligent physical injury and is irreconcilable with current animal welfare laws."
 

Health Risks of Glyphosate

According to the featured article, authorities in the EU have raised the legal limit for glyphosate in wheat and bread, now allowing such contamination to be 100 times the legal limit for vegetables, and the limit for feed grains has been raised 200-fold. This is quite disturbing when you consider the significant health hazards associated with this chemical.

Research published in 2010 showed that the chemical, which works by inhibiting an enzyme called EPSP synthase that is necessary for plants to grow, causes birth defects in frogs and chicken embryos at far lower levels than used in agricultural and garden applications.⁵ The malformations primarily affected the:

• Skull
• Face
• Midline and developing brain
• Spinal cord

The amount of glyphosate residue you can be exposed to through food is remarkably high, in terms of being close to the maximum residue limit (MRL) allowed. According to a report in the journal Chemical Research in Toxicology, the highest MRL for glyphosate in food and feed products in the EU is 20 mg/kg. Genetically engineered soybeans have been found to contain residue levels as high as 17 mg/kg, and malformations in frog and chicken embryos occurred at 2.03 mg/kg⁶ – that's 10 times lower than the MRL!

Other independent scientific research has also found that glyphosate has the potential to cause grave health damage, including a 2009 study that tested formulations of Roundup that were highly diluted (up to 100,000 times or more) on human cells, and even then the cells died within 24 hours.⁷ The researchers hailed a warning cry that still has not been heard by regulators around the world, who continue to allow massive amounts of Roundup to be sprayed into the environment:

"...the proprietary mixtures available on the market could cause cell damage and even death around residual levels to be expected, especially in food and feed derived from [Roundup] formulation-treated crops."

What's worse, when applied to crops, the glyphosate becomes systemic throughout the plant, so it cannot be washed off. And once you eat this crop, the glyphosate ends up in your gut where it can decimate your beneficial bacteria. This can wreak havoc with your health as 80 percent of your immune system resides in your gut. Separate research has also uncovered the following effects from glyphosate:

Endocrine disruption	DNA damage
Developmental toxicity	Neurotoxicity
Reproductive toxicity	Cancer

Leading Scientists Take on Monsanto's Spin Machine

Meanwhile, Monsanto Company recently reported third quarter profits of $937 million.⁸ That's right, nearly a billion dollars-worth of profits in a mere three months – up 35 percent from the same quarter last year. As expressed by Karen Stillerman, a senior analyst with the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS):⁹

"That raging river of cash flowing in must make it easy for the company to finance a flurry of advertising and lobbying extolling the virtues its products. According to Monsanto's PR, the company is feeding a growing population, protecting natural resources, and promoting biodiversity. But the truth is decidedly less impressive, and now UCS is setting the record straight with an ad campaign of our own."

The USC has created a series of ads that address Monsanto's false claims head on. The ads will be featured on city buses and transit stations across Washington, including areas near the U.S. Department of Agriculture's headquarters, the U.S. EPA, and Capitol Hill. Here's the text of one of the three ads. For the remaining two, and links to help spread the word, please see the UCS ad campaign page:¹⁰

More Herbicide + Fewer Butterflies = Better Seeds?

Monsanto Says: "In the hands of farmers, better seeds can help meet the needs of our rapidly growing population, while protecting the earth's natural resources." In Fact: Monsanto's Roundup Ready crops, genetically engineered to tolerate the company's Roundup herbicide, increased herbicide use by an estimated 383 million pounds between 1996 and 2008. And Monarch butterflies have laid 81 percent fewer eggs thanks to habitat loss since Roundup Ready was introduced.
 

Congress's Big Gift to Monsanto

With profits like that, it's also no wonder that Monsanto can afford to influence virtually any legislation it wants, to increase its profits. After all, over the past few years it's become abundantly clear that our political process is run by bribes. The idea that politicians are looking out for the welfare of the public has been exposed for the pipedream that it is, and we're now faced with the truth that unbridled corruption has seeped into every last nook and cranny of our government.

One of the latest incidents in a long row of blatant industry coddling was reported in Mother Jones on July 2:¹¹

"...while the House agriculture-appropriations subcommittee mulled a bill on ag spending for 2013, subcommittee chair Jack Kingston (R-Ga.) inserted a pro-industry provision that that has nothing to do with agriculture appropriations. The provision Kingston added – a single paragraph buried in a 90-page bill... would allow farmers to plant GM crops even during legal appeals of the USDA's approval process, and even if a federal court orders that the crops not be planted.

It addresses one of the ag-biotech industry's most persistent complaints: the USDA approval process keeps rubber-stamping its products, but an anti-GMO group called the Center for Food Safety keeps launching, and winning, lawsuits charging that the USDA didn't properly assess the environmental impact of the novel crops, thus delaying their release into farm fields... The bill, complete with its gift to the industry, sailed through the ag appropriations subcommittee and will likely be taken up by the full House soon after the July 4 recess...

Meanwhile, Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.) has signaled he will sponsor an amendment to the ag appropriations bill that would nullify Kingston's Monsanto-friendly provision."

This legislative boon is exactly what you'd expect from a politician bought and paid for by the industry. The provision, dubbed "The Monsanto Protection Act" by Food Democracy Now, effectively strips judges of their constitutional mandate to protect consumer rights and the environment. It's a perfect example of how insidious the collusion between the biotech industry and Washington really is, and how easily and nonchalantly they undermine our most basic rights.
 

Winning California GE Labeling Battle Now More Important than Ever

Organic foods specifically prohibit genetically engineered ingredients along with synthetic agricultural chemicals, such as Roundup, and eating organic is essentially the only way to ensure you're not accidentally consuming GE foods, since the US still does not require such ingredients to be labeled.

 

We have no real champions for food safety and labeling of genetically engineered foods within the federal government. But right now we do have a great opportunity to change this situation by circumventing Monsanto's posse entirely.

Twenty-four U.S. states have, as part of their state governance, something called the Initiative Process, where residents can bring to ballot any law they want enacted, as long as it has sufficient support. California has organized such a ballot initiative, known as Proposition 37, to get labeling for genetically engineered foods sold in their state.

Although many organic consumers and natural health activists already understand the importance of Proposition 37, it cannot be overemphasized that winning the battle over Prop 37 is perhaps the most important food fight Americans – not just Californians – have faced so far. But in order to win this fight for the right to know what's in our food, we need your help. The biotech industry has raised 40 million dollars for their propaganda.

Please remember, the failure or success of this ballot initiative is wholly dependent on your support and funding! There are no major industry pockets funding this endeavor. In order to have a chance against the deep pockets of Big Biotech and transnational food corporations, it needs donations from average citizens.

So please, I strongly encourage you to make a donation to this cause. You can also contact EVERY person you know that lives in California and encourage them to view some of these videos and get educated on the issues so they can avoid succumbing to the propaganda. We need EVERY vote we can to win on November 6.

It's important to realize that getting this law passed in California would have the same overall effect as a national law, as large companies are not likely going to label their products as genetically engineered when sold in California (the 8th largest economy in the world), but not when sold in other states. Doing so would be a costly PR disaster. So please, I urge you to get involved and help in any way you can, regardless of what state you live in.

• Whether you live in California or not, please donate money to this historic effort, through the Organic Consumers Fund.
• If you live in California and want to get involved, please contact CARightToKnow.org. They will go through all volunteer requests to put you into a position that is suitable for you, based on your stated interests and location.
• No matter where you live, please help spread the word in your personal networks, on Facebook, and Twitter. For help with the messaging, please see CARightToKnow.org.
• Talk to organic producers and stores and ask them to actively support the California Ballot. It may be the only chance we have to label genetically engineered foods.

For timely updates, please join the Organic Consumers Association on Facebook, or follow them on Twitter.

 http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2012/10/23/glyphosate-found-in-human-urine.aspx