Summer 1994 (v6n3)
	Briefly Noted Compiled by David Campbell SAREP Congressional Working Group on Sustainable Ag Formed Jill Shore Auburn, SAREP acting director and Alice Jones, national director of USDA Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education program, recently presented information on the Sustainable Agriculture Network (SAN) and results of the first National Organic Farmers Survey to the newly formed Congressional Working Group on Sustainable Agriculture. Rep. Sam Farr (D-CA), a member of the House Committee on Agriculture, has been instrumental in establishing the new congressional working group, which will provide Members of Congress with information on: the National Organic Standards Board, the USDA sustainable agriculture program, research and education programs at leading academic institutions, administrative and legislative initiatives that would remove barriers and foster the growth of sustainable agriculture, and the objectives of sustainable agriculture and the organic food industry in the 1995 farm bill. Additional members of the congressional working group are representatives George Brown, Gary Condit, and Calvin Dooley (all from CA), Charlie Rose (NC), Peter DeFazio (OR), and Karen Thurman (FL). For more information, contact Linda Delgado, legislative assistant to Farr, (202) 225-2861. Organic Farmers Name Top Three Research Priorities The first-ever national survey of certified organic farmers found that the top three research priorities of growers are to identify ways to increase consumer demand for organic products, to study the relationship of growing practices to crop quality and nutrition, and to study the relationship between plant nutrition and pest resistance. The mail survey, conducted by the Organic Farming Research Foundation (OFRF), was completed by 550 of the 2,700 growers who received it. Nearly one-third of those responding had participated in on-farm research projects, and more than 80 percent said they would be interested in doing so if resources were available. For more information, contact OFRF, P.O. Box 440. Santa Cruz. CA 95061; (408) 426-6606. GAO Asked to Investigate FDA Handling of BGH Representatives David Obey (D-WI), George Brown (D-CA), and Bernie Sanders (I-VT) have asked the U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO) to investigate allegations that three Food and Drug Administration (FDA) employees may have violated federal conflict-of-interest regulations during the agency's handling of the approval process for bovine growth hormone (BGH). All three employees had ties to Monsanto, the maker of Posilac, the first recombinant bovine growth hormone product to hit the market. FDA officials said that they have reviewed the conflict-of-interest allegations and found them to be without basis. The letter from the three representatives to the GAO counters by stating "There is strong evidence that all three of these employees may have violated at least two ethical regulations applicable to them pursuant to the Code of Federal Regulations." For more information see "rBGH News of the Week," Food Safety Week, Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, April 26, 1994. Federal Farm Worker Safety Regulations Delayed Under pressure from farm groups, Congress passed legislation in March that delayed implementation of new rules designed to prevent thousands of pesticide poisonings each year. The rules, which have been under consideration since 1984 and were to take effect April 15,1994, will now be dormant until January. According to the EPA, pesticides acutely poison between 10,000 and 20,000 farm workers annually. The agency believes the new rules can prevent up to 80 percent of those poisonings. In California, 615 cases of pesticide poisoning related to agriculture were reported in 1990, and analysts believe that up to 80 percent of those poisonings go unreported. See Michael Doyle, "Pesticide protection rules delayed," Sacramento Bee, March 23, 1994. California State Policy Issues Two bills seeking reduction of chemical use in agriculture have been introduced in the California legislature. Assembly member Julie Bornstein (D-Palm Desert) carried AB 3383, sponsored by the Community Alliance with Family Farmers (CAFF), which would provide farmers with incentives and field support to adopt more ecological farming practices. The legislation would enable an expansion of the already successful Biologically Integrated Orchard Systems (BIOS) program underway in Merced County. Another bill, SB 475 carried by Sen. Nicholas Petris (D-Oakland), would require California to significantly reduce pesticide use, phase out the most hazardous pesticides, and increase support for farmers to learn safer pest management practices. For information about AB 3383, contact Reggie Knox, CAFF, (408) 425-8145. For information about SB 475, contact Joan Clayburgh, Pesticide Watch, (415) 543Z627; or Ralph Lightstone, California Rural Legal Assistance. (916) 446-7901. J [ Back | Search | Feedback ]