Comments on: Will Obama’s Food Safety Working Group Address MRSA and the Deeper Issues Facing the Food System?

By: Rebecca T. of HonestMeat

Rebecca T. of HonestMeat — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 00:52:12 +0000

Remember, increasing food safety regulations does not equal sustainability. Look at the spinach issues, for example. The food safety measures that have been put into place include the destruction of riparian forests, wetlands, hedgerows, and other non-cultivated habitats surrounding fields. Over 85% of row crops farmers in Monterey County alone (where most of the lettuce is grown in this country) have pulled out many of their vegetative conservation practices such as grassed waterways and vegetated buffers. This spells disaster for wildlife, water quality, air quality, and more.
Also, NAIS is being propelled as a food safety measure, and I hope you realize the dramatic implications it has on small livestock farmers. We need to think long and hard about the unintended consequences of increasing food safety regulations. They often have a way of rewarding the big companies with the big resources and causing a disadvantage to the small and medium scale ones….

By: Bea Elliott

Bea Elliott — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 05:39:05 +0000

My hope is that the more people are exposed to these horrors the more likely they will be to realize that a plant based diet is an excellent way to align their actions with their values.

Thanks for posting on this very important topic -
Go Vegan

By: Maria

Maria — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 22:34:22 +0000

BTW, those antibiotics flushed from CAFO’s end up in our water supply as well. I heard recently of a study of municipal water systems that was stopped after the first 200 ALL showed antibiotics in the water. Not only are we breeding MRSA and other superbugs, but by constant exposure to antibiotics, reducing our bodies’ own ability to fight infection.

By: Chiot's Run

Chiot's Run — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 14:40:29 +0000

I agree, great points. Food safety begins by each of us making informed decision for ourselves. We are ultimately responsible for the safety of what we consume, if we don’t know where it’s coming from we can’t ensure it’s safe. When consumers finally wake up to the danger of CAFO meats and quit purchasing them, that’s when change will occure. We can’t expect the government to make all of our decisions & choices for us. The government has proven that it lacks the character to be looking out for the best interest of the American people. With the lobbyist and corporate power in government, it will never happen.

This is exactly why I grow some of my own food and only purchase food from a local source that I can visit and see how safely things are produced.