http://healthimpactnews.com/2014/usda-takes-over-organic-program-eroding-organic-standards-to-benefit-big-food/
TL;DR: They're putting more and more synthetic ingredients in food to poison people
by John P. Thomas
Health Impact News
Is the quality of the organic food you and your family eat being compromised for the sake of corporate profits? Organic Food consumer groups are raising this serious question in the face of the corporate takeover of the National Organic Standards Board.
Key organic food advocacy organizations met this week with the National Organic Standards Board and the staff of the USDA National Organic Program to confront them about the corporate power grab that is threatening to make the word “organic” just another meaningless word in the market place . The challenge against corporate control of the National Organic Program is being led by “organic watchdog groups” such as: Cornucopia, Organic Consumers Association, Beyond Pesticides, Center for Food Safety, and Food Democracy Now![1]
The National Organic Standards Board met in San Antonio, Texas this week. They discussed whether certain non-organic and synthetic substances should be on the National List of approved substances that are available for organic agriculture and organic food processing. Some substances in the following list are proposed and some are currently being used.
The substances on the agenda included: Streptomycin, Magnesium Oxide, Vinasse, Laminarin, Sulfurous Acid (sunset), Sodium Carbonate Peroxyhydrate (sunset), Aqueous Potassium Silicate – Methionine (used with poultry), Sodium Chlorite – acidified, Chlorine (used with animals), synthetic Tocopherols (used with animals), Trace Minerals (used with animals), synthetic Vitamins (used with animals), Vaccines (used with animals), Micronutrients (used with plants), Carbon Dioxide (used with plants), Chlorine (used with plants), Lignin Sulfonate (used with plants), synthetic Vitamins (used with plants), Ammonium Hydroxide, Glycerin, Polyalkylene Glycol Monobutyl Ether (PGME), Gellan Gum (sunset), Tragacanth Gum (sunset), Marsala and Sherry (sunset).[2] Substances that are marked with (sunset) refer to substances that would formerly have fallen off the National List of approved substances if the rules hadn’t changed in September of 2013. The sunset substances will now remain on the National List of approved substances until such time that a 2/3 vote of the NOSB removes them from the list.
The meeting was controversial, because of the new rules that were established by the staff of the National Organic Program in September of 2013, which changed the process for managing the National List. The new rules angered many organic food advocates, because the rules were changed without public comment, and because the rules favor the interests of large corporations. The changes will make it much more difficult to remove substances from the National List in the future. Detailed information about the change in the “Sunset” provision will be discussed below in the section about the history of the National Organic Program.
In September 2013, Deputy Administrator of the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) at the USDA, Miles McEvoy, issued a controversial memorandum overturning two decades of precedents in terms of the NOSB’s self-governance.[3]
USDA Takes Control over the National Organic Standards Board
When the National Organic Standards Board met in San Antonio this week, USDA representative Miles McEvoy took control over the chairmanship of the meeting. As Food Democracy Now! reported:
USDA representative Miles McEvoy has illegally taken over the meeting by appointing himself as meeting “co-chair” in an effort to erode the authority of, and control the decisions made by allegedly independent, NOSB members as spelled out in the Organic Foods Production Act (OFPA) of 1990.[4]
When the meeting began, McEvoy used his new position as co-chairman to explain the new setup. He told the members of the National Organic Standard Board:
The NOSB has only an “advisory” role governing organic standards and USDA staff sets all agenda items and makes all decisions.[5]
The Unilateral Changes Implemented by the NOP Staff Triggered a Protest at the Meeting
Food Democracy Now! reports on the fireworks that happened Tuesday morning in San Antonio:
Just as the NOSB meeting was beginning Tuesday morning, a small group of activists gathered in front of the room to peacefully protest the USDA’s unilateral change of the “Sunset Provision” which governs the removal of synthetic ingredients from organic production.
USDA staff responded by calling local San Antonio police. After 15 minutes of chanting “Don’t change sunset!” the police arrested organic activist Alexis Baden-Mayer and carried her off in handcuffs for daring to stand up against the USDA’s watering down of organic standards.[6]
Video (Organic tyranny at the usda (Don't change sunset)
The rest of the article is very long... so long that 95% of people will end up not caring. That was probably the point.
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