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Approved-By:  Jim Diamond <[log in to unmask]>
Message-ID:  <007201cbbe83$b1c7b6c0$15572440$@net>
Date:         Thu, 27 Jan 2011 16:38:32 -0800
Reply-To:     Biotech Forum <[log in to unmask]>
Sender:       Biotech Forum <[log in to unmask]>
From:         Jim Diamond <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: Bad news -- GE alfalfa gets green light
To:           [log in to unmask]
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Ugh!  

Sierra Club joined in the lawsuit over deregulation of GE alfalfa and we
were happy when the courts held that a full EIS (environmental impact
statement) would be required, and stopped planting pending completion.  But
now, the USDA has said, OK, we've done the EIS, we've read the comments
(mostly opposing deregulation), we've followed the letter of the law, now
we'll just go ahead and deregulate.  

What this means is more RoundUp in the environment and in the food supply.
More herbicide resistant weeds.  More use of other herbicides.  More
chemical-intensive agriculture in general. 

Center for Food Safety argued and won the earlier court victory.  Here is
their press release:

USDA DECISION ON GE ALFALFA LEAVES DOOR OPEN FOR CONTAMINATION, RISE OF
SUPERWEEDS 
 
ROGUE AGENCY CHOOSES "BUSINESS AS USUAL" OVER SOUND SCIENCE
 
CENTER ANNOUNCES IMMEDIATE LEGAL CHALLENGE TO USDA'S FLAWED ASSESSMENT
 
WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Center for Food Safety criticized the announcement
today by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) that it will once again
allow unlimited, nation-wide commercial planting of Monsanto's
genetically-engineered (GE) Roundup Ready alfalfa, despite the many risks to
organic and conventional farmers USDA acknowledged in its Final
Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS).  On a call today with stakeholders,
Secretary Vilsack reiterated the concerns surrounding purity and access to
non-GE seed, yet the Agency's decision still places the entire burden for
preventing contamination on non-GE farmers, with no protections for food
producers, consumers and exporters. 
 
"We're disappointed with USDA's decision and we will be back in court
representing the interest of farmers, preservation of the environment, and
consumer choice" said Andrew Kimbrell, Executive Director for the Center for
Food Safety. "USDA has become a rogue agency in its regulation of biotech
crops and its decision to appease the few companies who seek to benefit from
this technology comes despite increasing evidence that GE alfalfa will
threaten the rights of farmers and consumers, as well as damage the
environment."

On Monday, the Center sent an open letter to Secretary Vilsack calling on
USDA to base its decision on sound science and the interests of farmers, and
to avoid rushing the process to meet the marketing timelines or sales
targets of Monsanto, Forage Genetics or other entities. 
 
CFS also addressed several key points that were not properly assessed in the
FEIS, among them were:
    *         Liability, Implementation and Oversight -- Citing over 200
past contamination episodes that have cost farmers hundreds of millions of
dollars in lost sales, CFS demands that liability for financial losses
incurred by farmers due to transgenic contamination be assigned to the crop
developers.  CFS also calls on USDA to take a more active oversight role to
ensure that any stewardship plans are properly implemented and enforced.
    *         Roundup Ready alfalfa will substantially increase
herbicide use - USDA's assessment misrepresented conventional alfalfa as
utilizing more herbicides than it does, which in turn provided a false
rationale for introducing herbicide-promoting Roundup Ready alfalfa.  In
fact, USDA's own data shows that just 7% of alfalfa hay acres are treated
with herbicides.  USDA's projections in the FEIS show that substantial
adoption of Roundup Ready alfalfa would trigger large increases in herbicide
use of up to 23 million lbs. per year.
    *         Harms from glyphosate-resistant weeds - USDA's sloppy and
unscientific treatment of glyphosate-resistant (GR) weeds ignored the
significant contribution that RR alfalfa could make to their rapid
evolution.  USDA failed to analyze how GR weeds fostered by currently grown
RR crops are increasing herbicide use; spurring more use of soil-eroding
tillage; and reducing farmer income through increased weed control costs, an
essential baseline analysis.
 
"We in the farm sector are dissatisfied but not surprised at the lack of
courage from USDA to stop Roundup Ready alfalfa and defend family farmers,"
said Pat Trask, conventional alfalfa grower and plaintiff in the alfalfa
litigation.
 
The FEIS comes in response to a 2007 lawsuit brought by CFS, in which a
federal court ruled that the USDA's approval of GE alfalfa violated
environmental laws by failing to analyze risks such as the contamination of
conventional and organic alfalfa, the evolution of glyphosate-resistant
weeds, and increased use of glyphosate herbicide, sold by Monsanto as
Roundup.  The Court banned new plantings of GE alfalfa until USDA completed
a more comprehensive assessment of these impacts. The Ninth Circuit Court of
Appeals twice affirmed the national ban on GE alfalfa planting.  In June
2010, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the ban on Monsanto's Roundup Ready
Alfalfa until and unless future deregulation occurs.
 
"Last spring more than 200,000 people submitted comments to the USDA highly
critical of the substance and conclusions of its Draft EIS on GE Alfalfa,"
said Kimbrell.  "Clearly the USDA was not listening to the public or farmers
but rather to just a handful of corporations."
 
#  #  #
 
The Center for Food Safety is a national, non-profit, membership
organization founded in 1997 to protect human health and the environment by
curbing the use of harmful food production technologies and by promoting
organic and other forms of sustainable agriculture. CFS currently represents
over 175,000 members across the nation. 
 


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<TITLE>Bad news -- GE alfalfa gets green light</TITLE>
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<P DIR=3DLTR><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT FACE=3D"Calibri">Ugh!&nbsp; </=
FONT></SPAN></P>

<P DIR=3DLTR><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT FACE=3D"Calibri">Sierra Club=
 joined in the lawsuit over deregulation of GE alfalfa and we were hap=
py when</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"> <FONT FACE=3D"Calibri">the=
 courts held that a full EIS (environmental impact statement) would be=
 required, and stopped planting</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FON=
T FACE=3D"Calibri"> pending completion.&nbsp;</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=
=3D"en-us"> <FONT FACE=3D"Calibri">But now,</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D=
"en-us"> <FONT FACE=3D"Calibri">the USDA has said,</FONT> <FONT FACE=
=3D"Calibri">OK, we</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT FACE=3D"Ca=
libri">&#8217;</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT FACE=3D"Calibri=
">ve done the EIS, we</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT FACE=3D"=
Calibri">&#8217;</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT FACE=3D"Calib=
ri">ve</FONT> <FONT FACE=3D"Calibri">read</FONT> <FONT FACE=3D"Calibri=
">the comments</FONT><FONT FACE=3D"Calibri"> (mostly opposing deregula=
tion),</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"> <FONT FACE=3D"Calibri">we</F=
ONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT FACE=3D"Calibri">&#8217;</FONT><=
/SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT FACE=3D"Calibri">ve followed the lett=
er of the law, now</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"> <FONT FACE=3D"Ca=
libri">we</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT FACE=3D"Calibri">&#8=
217;</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT FACE=3D"Calibri">ll just=
 go ahead and deregulate.</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT FACE=
=3D"Calibri">&nbsp;</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"> </SPAN></P>

<P DIR=3DLTR><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT FACE=3D"Calibri">What this mea=
ns is more RoundUp in the environment and in the food supply.&nbsp; Mo=
re</FONT> <FONT FACE=3D"Calibri">herbicide resistant weeds.&nbsp; More=
 use of other herbicides.&nbsp;</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"> <FO=
NT FACE=3D"Calibri">More chemical-intensive agriculture in general.</F=
ONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"> </SPAN></P>

<P DIR=3DLTR><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT FACE=3D"Calibri">Center for Fo=
od Safety argued and won the earlier court victor</FONT><FONT FACE=3D"=
Calibri">y.&nbsp; Here is their press release:</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=
=3D"en-us"></SPAN></P>

<P DIR=3DLTR ALIGN=3DCENTER><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"=
en-us"><FONT SIZE=3D5 FACE=3D"Garamond">USDA DECISION ON GE ALFALFA LE=
AVES DOOR OPEN FOR CONTAMINATION, RISE OF SUPERWEEDS</FONT></SPAN><SPA=
N LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"> </SPAN></P>

<P DIR=3DLTR ALIGN=3DCENTER><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><B><I></I></B></SPAN>=
<SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><B><I><FONT FACE=3D"Garamond">&nbsp;</FONT></I></=
B></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN></P>

<P DIR=3DLTR ALIGN=3DCENTER><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><I></I></SPAN><SPAN=
 LANG=3D"en-us"><I><FONT SIZE=3D4 FACE=3D"Garamond">ROGUE AGENCY CHOOS=
ES &#8220;BUSINESS AS USUAL&#8221; OVER SOUND SCIENCE</FONT></I></SPAN=
><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN></P>

<P DIR=3DLTR ALIGN=3DCENTER><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"=
en-us"><FONT FACE=3D"Garamond">&nbsp;</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us=
"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN></P>

<P DIR=3DLTR ALIGN=3DCENTER><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><B></B></SPAN><SPAN=
 LANG=3D"en-us"><B><FONT FACE=3D"Garamond">CENTER ANNOUNCES IMMEDIATE=
 LEGAL CHALLENGE TO USDA&#8217;S FLAWED ASSESSMENT</FONT></B></SPAN><S=
PAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN></P>

<P DIR=3DLTR ALIGN=3DJUSTIFY><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D=
"en-us"><FONT FACE=3D"Garamond">&nbsp;</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-u=
s"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN></P>

<P DIR=3DLTR><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><B></B></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><=
B><FONT FACE=3D"Garamond">WASHINGTON, D.C. &#8211;</FONT></B></SPAN><S=
PAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT FACE=3D"Garamond"=
> The Center for Food Safety criticized the announcement today by the=
 U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) that it will once again allow=
 unlimited, nation-wide commercial planting of Monsanto&#8217;s geneti=
cally-engineered (GE) Roundup Ready alfalfa, despite the many risks to=
 organic and conventional farmers USDA acknowledged in its Final Envir=
onmental Impact Statement (FEIS).&nbsp; On a call today with stakehold=
ers, Secretary Vilsack reiterated the concerns surrounding purity and=
 access to non-GE seed, yet the Agency&#8217;s decision still places=
 the entire burden for preventing contamination on non-GE farmers, wit=
h no protections for food producers, consumers and exporters.</FONT></=
SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"> </SPAN></P>

<P DIR=3DLTR><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT FA=
CE=3D"Garamond">&nbsp;</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN=
 LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN></P>

<P DIR=3DLTR><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT FA=
CE=3D"Garamond">&#8220;We&#8217;re disappointed with USDA&#8217;s deci=
sion and we will be back in court representing the interest of farmers=
, preservation of the environment, and consumer choice&#8221; said And=
rew Kimbrell, Executive Director for the Center for Food Safety. &#822=
0;</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT=
 COLOR=3D"#000000" FACE=3D"Garamond">USDA has become a rogue agency in=
 its regulation of biotech crops</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></S=
PAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT FACE=3D"Garamond"> and its decision to=
 appease the few companies who seek to benefit from this technology co=
mes despite increasing evidence that GE alfalfa will threaten the righ=
ts of farmers and consumers, as well as damage the environment.&#8221;=
</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN>=
</P>

<P DIR=3DLTR><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><BR>
<FONT FACE=3D"Garamond">On Monday, the Center sent an open letter to=
 Secretary Vilsack calling on USDA to base its decision on sound scien=
ce and the interests of farmers, and to avoid rushing the process to=
 meet the marketing timelines or sales targets of Monsanto, Forage Gen=
etics or other entities.</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPA=
N LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT COLOR=3D"#000000" FACE=3D"Garamond"></FONT></SP=
AN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"> </SPAN></P>

<P DIR=3DLTR><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT CO=
LOR=3D"#000000" FACE=3D"Garamond">&nbsp;</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en=
-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN></P>

<P DIR=3DLTR><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT CO=
LOR=3D"#000000" FACE=3D"Garamond">CFS also addressed several key point=
s that were not properly assessed in the FEIS, among them were:</FONT>=
</SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN></P>
<UL DIR=3DLTR>
<P DIR=3DLTR><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT FA=
CE=3D"Symbol">&#183;</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LA=
NG=3D"en-us"><FONT SIZE=3D1 FACE=3D"Times New Roman">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp=
;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><B><=
/B></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><B> <FONT FACE=3D"Garamond">Liability,=
 Implementation and Oversight --</FONT></B></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"=
></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"> <FONT FACE=3D"Garamond">Citing over 200=
 past contamination episodes that have cost farmers hundreds of millio=
ns of dollars in lost sales, CFS demands that liability for financial=
 losses incurred by farmers due to transgenic contamination be assigne=
d to the crop developers.&nbsp; CFS also calls on USDA to take a more=
 active oversight role to ensure that any stewardship plans are proper=
ly implemented and enforced.</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN>=
<SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN></P>

<P DIR=3DLTR><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT FA=
CE=3D"Symbol">&#183;</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LA=
NG=3D"en-us"><FONT SIZE=3D1 FACE=3D"Times New Roman">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp=
;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><B><=
/B></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><B> <FONT FACE=3D"Garamond">Roundup Rea=
dy alfalfa will substantially increase herbicide use</FONT></B></SPAN>=
<SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT FACE=3D"Garamon=
d"> &#8211; USDA&#8217;s assessment misrepresented conventional alfalf=
a as utilizing more herbicides than it does, which in turn provided a=
 false rationale for introducing herbicide-promoting Roundup Ready alf=
alfa.&nbsp; In fact, USDA&#8217;s own data shows that just 7% of alfal=
fa hay acres are treated with herbicides.&nbsp; USDA&#8217;s projectio=
ns in the FEIS show that substantial adoption of Roundup Ready alfalfa=
 would trigger</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><B><I></I></B></SPAN>=
<SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><B><I> <FONT FACE=3D"Garamond">large increases in=
 herbicide use of up to 23 million lbs. per year.</FONT></I></B></SPAN=
><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN></P>

<P DIR=3DLTR><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT FA=
CE=3D"Symbol">&#183;</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LA=
NG=3D"en-us"><FONT SIZE=3D1 FACE=3D"Times New Roman">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp=
;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><B><=
/B></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><B> <FONT FACE=3D"Garamond">Harms from=
 glyphosate-resistant weeds</FONT></B></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SP=
AN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT FACE=3D"Garamond"> &#8211; USDA&#8217;s=
 sloppy and unscientific treatment of glyphosate-resistant (GR) weeds=
 ignored the significant contribution that RR alfalfa could make to th=
eir rapid evolution.&nbsp; USDA failed to analyze how GR weeds fostere=
d by currently grown RR crops are increasing herbicide use; spurring=
 more use of soil-eroding tillage; and reducing farmer income through=
 increased weed control costs, an essential baseline analysis.</FONT><=
/SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN></P>
</UL>
<P DIR=3DLTR><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT FA=
CE=3D"Garamond">&nbsp;</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN=
 LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN></P>

<P DIR=3DLTR><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT FA=
CE=3D"Garamond">&#8220;We in the farm sector are dissatisfied but not=
 surprised at the lack of courage from USDA to stop Roundup Ready alfa=
lfa and defend family farmers,&#8221; said Pat Trask,</FONT></SPAN><SP=
AN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT COLOR=3D"#000000"=
 FACE=3D"Garamond"></FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LAN=
G=3D"en-us"> <FONT FACE=3D"Garamond">conventional alfalfa grower and=
 plaintiff in the alfalfa litigation.</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us=
"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN></P>

<P DIR=3DLTR><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT CO=
LOR=3D"#000000" FACE=3D"Garamond">&nbsp;</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en=
-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN></P>

<P DIR=3DLTR><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT CO=
LOR=3D"#000000" FACE=3D"Garamond">The FEIS comes in response to a 2007=
 lawsuit brought by CFS, in which a federal court ruled that the USDA&=
#8217;s approval of GE alfalfa violated environmental laws by failing=
 to analyze risks such as the contamination of conventional and organi=
c alfalfa, the evolution of glyphosate-resistant weeds, and increased=
 use of glyphosate herbicide, sold by Monsanto as Roundup.&nbsp; The=
 Court banned new plantings of GE alfalfa until USDA completed a more=
 comprehensive assessment of these impacts. The Ninth Circuit Court of=
 Appeals twice affirmed the national ban on GE alfalfa planting.&nbsp;=
 In June 2010, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the ban on Monsanto&#8217=
;s Roundup Ready Alfalfa until and unless future deregulation occurs.<=
/FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><=
/P>

<P DIR=3DLTR><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT FA=
CE=3D"Garamond">&nbsp;</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN=
 LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN></P>

<P DIR=3DLTR><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT FA=
CE=3D"Garamond">&#8220;Last spring more than 200,000 people submitted=
 comments to the USDA highly critical of the substance and conclusions=
 of its Draft EIS on GE Alfalfa,&#8221; said Kimbrell.&nbsp; &#8220;Cl=
early the USDA was not listening to the public or farmers but rather=
 to just a handful of corporations.&quot;</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"e=
n-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN></P>

<P DIR=3DLTR><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT FA=
CE=3D"Garamond">&nbsp;</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN=
 LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN></P>

<P DIR=3DLTR ALIGN=3DCENTER><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"=
en-us"><FONT FACE=3D"Garamond">#&nbsp; #&nbsp; #</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LA=
NG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN></P>

<P DIR=3DLTR><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><I></I></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><=
I><FONT FACE=3D"Garamond">&nbsp;</FONT></I></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"=
></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN></P>

<P DIR=3DLTR><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><I></I></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><=
I><FONT COLOR=3D"#333333" SIZE=3D2 FACE=3D"Garamond">The Center for Fo=
od Safety is a national, non-profit, membership organization founded=
 in 1997 to protect human health and the environment by curbing the us=
e of harmful food production technologies and by promoting organic and=
 other forms of sustainable agriculture. CFS currently represents over=
 175,000 members across the nation.</FONT></I></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-=
us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"> </SPAN></P>

<P DIR=3DLTR><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"><FONT FA=
CE=3D"Garamond">&nbsp;</FONT></SPAN><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN><SPAN=
 LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN></P>

<P DIR=3DLTR><SPAN LANG=3D"en-us"></SPAN></P>

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