The Food Thread

[billy.pilgrim]

Monsanto creates weed killer that kills everything except their own genetically created plants.

Additional benefits to the Monsanto farmer family include that the herbicide spray drift works wonders destroying the competition on all those non-Monsanto farms.

https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/20 ... ting-chaos


Got it.

[Vrede too]

Monsanto creates weed killer that kills everything except their own genetically created plants.

Additional benefits to the Monsanto farmer family include that the herbicide spray drift works wonders destroying the competition on all those non-Monsanto farms.

https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/20 ... ting-chaos

Got it.

Why farmers oppose the Monsanto mega-merger (with Bayer)

Tell DoJ to stop the Monsanto mega-merger

Department of “Justice” Approves Bayer-Monsanto Merger

[Vrede too]

Jury hits pork giant for $50M for hog operation's nuisance

RALEIGH, N.C. — A federal jury on Thursday awarded more than $50 million in damages to neighbors of an industrial hog operation found responsible for intense smells, noise and other disturbances so bad people couldn't enjoy their rural homes.

Jurors on Thursday awarded the 10 neighbors of a 15,000-head swine operation a total of $750,000 in compensation, plus $50 million in damages designed to punish the corporation that owns the animals.

Lawyers didn't sue the Bladen County farm's owner, instead targeting Murphy-Brown LLC, the hog-production division of Virginia-based Smithfield Foods. The Chinese-owned company uses strict contracts to dictate how farm operators raise livestock that Smithfield owns.

The decision is the first in dozens of lawsuits filed by more than 500 neighbors complaining about hog operations....

Rural residents have complained about smells, clouds of flies and excessive spraying for decades. But local and state politicians have either supported or backed down in the face of a politically powerful industry.

North Carolina legislators last year changed state law to make it much more difficult to replicate the string of nuisance lawsuits targeting hog operations like the one decided Thursday.

Rep. Jimmy Dixon, R-Duplin, a recipient of campaign contributions from hog farmers, pushed to make the law retroactive, which would have limited damages in these cases as well. But that part of the proposal was voted down when other lawmakers questioned its constitutionality....

To: Chuck.McGrady@ncleg.net, Chuck.Edwards@ncleg.net
CC: contactgov@nc.gov
Subject: Hog farms

Dear Sen. Edwards and Rep. McGrady,

Re: Jury hits pork giant for $50M for hog operation's nuisance
https://www.wral.com/jury-hits-pork-gia ... /17513786/

Shame on the NC GOP for choosing a Chinese corporation over NC victims.

Sincerely,
(Vrede too)

[Vrede too]

U.S. Moves to Reverse Protections for Atlantic Bluefin Tuna
NOAA should keep Gulf of Mexico rules, which have helped minimize bycatch

In a disappointing turn of events for a severely depleted stock, fishery managers have taken an initial step to eliminate proven protections for western Atlantic bluefin tuna in the Gulf of Mexico. The new proposal could abolish conservation-minded requirements governing fishing gear and closure areas during peak spawning periods.

The western Atlantic bluefin is one of the fastest and most commercially valuable fish in the sea. But its population has suffered a severe decline after decades of overfishing and mismanagement. Today, its population is a little more than half of what is was in 1974, when it was already depleted, and experts expect international quotas agreed to last year by the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) to bring further decline. Even under the best management, the stock would have a difficult time recovering, in part because bluefin are slow to grow and reproduce. When they are fished relentlessly, recovery is nearly impossible.

That threat is particularly severe in the Gulf of Mexico, the only known major spawning area for western bluefin. U.S. fishermen using surface longline fishing gear to target yellowfin tuna and swordfish also indiscriminately catch and kill more than 80 types of other marine life incidentally, including western bluefin. More than half of all bluefin caught on Gulf longlines die before they are brought to the boat. Protecting spawning bluefin in the Gulf is critical to their recovery....

Sigh, some species and ecosystems will not survive the POSPOTUS damage that's done to them, no matter how fast we install an alternative.

[Vrede too]

I signed petitions opposing the Farm Bill, because it slashed Food Stamps, increased pollution and favored Big Ag over other farmers and the rest of us.

Conservative revolt over immigration sinks House farm bill

When the Dems regain control of Congress in January, the nation will owe a debt of gratitude to the wingnutty extreme House Freedom Caucus' obstructionism. At that point they will have become an impotent fringe, though.

[billy.pilgrim]

I signed petitions opposing the Farm Bill, because it slashed Food Stamps, increased pollution and favored Big Ag over other farmers and the rest of us.

Conservative revolt over immigration sinks House farm bill

When the Dems regain control of Congress in January, the nation will owe a debt of gratitude to the wingnutty extreme House Freedom Caucus' obstructionism. At that point they will have become an impotent fringe, though.

How did this lying SoS welfare queen vote?


http://www.ips-dc.org/kristi-noem-cashi ... rt-family/

[O Really]

So the "Freedom Caucus" droolers did something good, even if not for the right reasons. Reminds me that even blind squirrels find a nut now and then. Or perhaps more appropriately, theoretically enough monkeys with enough keyboards will re-write Shakespeare - or something like that.

[Vrede too]

How did this lying SoS welfare queen vote?

She joined most Repugs in voting for the farm Bill:
http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2018/roll205.xml

http://www.ips-dc.org/kristi-noem-cashi ... rt-family/

Wow, she does suck.

[billy.pilgrim]

How did this lying SoS welfare queen vote?

She joined most Repugs in voting for the farm Bill:
http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2018/roll205.xml

http://www.ips-dc.org/kristi-noem-cashi ... rt-family/

Wow, she does suck.

If it weren't for lies there would be no modern republican party

[Vrede too]

If it weren't for lies, fear and hate there would be no modern republican party

[Vrede too]

Act Now: Support the Driftnet Modernization and Bycatch Reduction Act

[Vrede too]

Tell the USDA: Stop Monsanto's dangerous GMO labeling rule



The petition to the USDA reads:

"Consumers deserve clear, consumer-friendly GMO labels on all foods that contain genetically modified ingredients, not confusing food industry propaganda designed to mislead them."

[Vrede too]

I signed petitions opposing the Farm Bill, because it slashed Food Stamps, increased pollution and favored Big Ag over other farmers and the rest of us.

Conservative revolt over immigration sinks House farm bill

When the Dems regain control of Congress in January, the nation will owe a debt of gratitude to the wingnutty extreme House Freedom Caucus' obstructionism. At that point they will have become an impotent fringe, though.

It's back.

Tell the Senate: We Need a Farm Bill that Works!

[Vrede too]

The (NC) Farm Act stinks: Tell your NC representative to vote no!

[Vrede too]

Make a stink: Ask your legislator to uphold (NC) Farm Act veto!

>> On Jun 26, 2018, at 3:02 PM, (Vrede too) wrote:

> Dear Rep. McGrady,
>
> Stand with North Carolinians, not Big Pork!
>
> I urge you to vote to allow Governor Cooper's veto of Senate Bill 711 to
> stand.
>
> This bill strips thousands of North Carolina families of their private
> property rights, removing people's right to sue factory farms for nuisance
> except in the narrowest of circumstances. In the process, it takes away
> people's right to enjoy their homes. And it does this not for any public
> good, but in order to shield a single private corporation -- Smithfield
> Foods -- from legal action brought by the families its pollution impacts.
>
> North Carolinians must have access to the court system to protect their
> basic property rights -- including their land, the air above it, and the
> soil below it. Please do not override Governor Cooper's veto of Senate
> Bill 711.
>
> I await your reply.
>
> Sincerely,

(Vrede too)

On Tue, June 26, 2018 4:22 pm, Rep. Chuck McGrady wrote:
>
> Chuck: I agree with you, having already voted against S 711. I expect to vote to uphold the veto.

Tue, June 26, 2018 5:59 pm
To: "Rep. Chuck McGrady" <Chuck.McGrady@ncleg.net>
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Way cool.

Thanks.

(Vrede too)

The Senate voted to override the Senate Bill 711 veto today 37-9 (80.43%). My Sen. Edwards voted in favor of Chinese-owned Smithfield Foods.
:cussing:

If the Governor vetoes a bill, the bill is returned to the original house where 3/5 of present and voting members can vote to override the veto. If the original house votes to override the veto, the bill is sent to the second house where 3/5 of present and voting members must also vote to override the veto before the bill can become law.

The House originally passed Senate Bill 711 on votes of 67-47 (58.77%) and 65-42 (60.75%), extremely close. If all 120 members vote, 72 votes or more are needed to override the veto.

[Vrede too]

Legislators wallow in special interest override of governor’s veto

Ayes: 74, Noes: 45, Not Voting: 1

My McGrady and 3 other Repubs voted 'No'. 3 Dems voted 'Aye' and 1 did not vote. The override would have failed without the Dems. :cussing:

Jury awards more than $25 million to Duplin County couple in hog-farm case

... In the Williamses' case, the jury awarded $65,000 to each in compensatory damages and $12.5 million apiece in punitive damages.

Punitive damages can be awarded only after a jury finds that a defendant acted “intentionally, maliciously, or with utter disregard for the rights and interests of the plaintiff.”

But the state law that caps punitive damages limits what the Williamses can receive to no more than $250,000 each. Altogether, the jury's $25.13 million award is likely to be reduced to $630,000....

[Vrede too]

Tell the Senate: No underwater factory farms in federal waters

[Vrede too]

Sick and Wrong
EPA finally looks at how three common pesticides harm endangered species — and the results are horrifying

... Some 97 percent of more than 1,700 animals and plants protected under the Endangered Species Act are likely to be hurt by malathion andchlorpyrifos. Another 79 percent are likely to be hurt by diazinon....

Buy organic.

Chlorpyrifos

TELL RETAILERS: SAY NO TO CHLORPYRIFOS!

In one of his first major decisions as Environmental Protection Agency administrator, Scott Pruitt moved to abort the agency’s proposed ban of chlorpyrifos – an insecticide that at even small doses can harm children’s brains and nervous systems – from use on food crops.

Pruitt and the Trump administration’s decision ignored overwhelming evidence that small amounts of chlorpyrifos can damage parts of the brain that control language, memory, behavior and emotion. But it’s not too late for retailers to do the right thing.

That’s why we’re calling on top grocery retailers – including Safeway, Kroger, Publix and others – to say NO to chlorpyrifos by refusing to carry produce items that have been sprayed with the toxic pesticide....

Court Slams EPA Failure To Protect Children And Farmworkers From Toxic Pesticide
Victory: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency ordered to ban chlorpyrifos within 60 days

[Vrede too]

Greenpeace USA: 2018 Supermarket Seafood Ranking
How does your favorite supermarket rank?

We ranked 22 major U.S. supermarkets based on the sustainability and social responsibility of their seafood. We also looked at how supermarkets advocate for ocean health, protect seafood workers’ rights, and address the plastic pollution crisis.

If you’re going to buy seafood, make sure it is sustainable and ethical.

[O Really]

I've shopped Publix for decades. I don't recall ever personally seeing any orange roughy, shark, and tongol tuna. Or, I don't know - maybe occasional shark. But why does anybody buy shark to eat, anyway?

As to Aldi, I'm not shopping anywhere that they make you rent a cart.

Bought some salmon from the local Price Choppers tonight. Don't know where Vermont salmon comes from, but it certainly was delicious with some fresh veggies from the farmer's stand.