Tell Congress: Dump the Biotech Rider!

They’re at it again. The same powerful interests that spent $44 million to mislead voters in California about Proposition 37. The same companies pushing the Food and Drug Administration to ignore the voices of 1.2 million Americans – including you.

Now with Congress back in session, these agri-chemical companies are trying sneak a proposal into a must-pass piece of legislation to boost their profits at the expense of your right to know. They want to allow GMO seeds to be planted even if a court finds they were approved illegally.

But there’s a way to stop them: Rep. Peter DeFazio from Oregon is building a coalition of lawmakers to come out in opposition to this proposal – and he needs your Representative to join him. The House could vote on this soon, so we need more members on our side.

In addition, Senator Leahy, Chair of the Appropriation Committee, is the key to blocking passage in the Senate.

Will you take a minute to tell your Representative to sign the DeFazio letter opposing the biotech rider and urge your Senator to have Senator Leahy stop the biotech rider?

Lobbyists from the big agri-chemical companies that defeated Prop 37 have had their lobbyists insert a dangerous biotech policy rider into the 2013 Agricultural Appropriations Bill. Bottom line? The proposal will reduce the oversight of genetically engineered foods.

A threat to the environment? Economic risk to farmers? This provision ignores those concerns. It’s specifically intended to force the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to approve genetically engineered crops – even if we don’t know the impact.

Though wrapped in misleading “farmer-friendly” language, this provision is simply an industry ploy. If a GMO crop approval violated the law, this proposal would allow the continued planting and commercialization of genetically engineered crops while further review of its harmful impacts takes place.

Will you take a minute to tell your Representative to support the DeFazio letter opposing this proposal and urge your Senator to have Senator Leahy stop the biotech rider?

You care about food and what we feed our families and children. You’ve stood up for labeling. So please, help fight this latest attack on our right to know.  Don’t let the chemical industry create loopholes that will expand the use of GMOs without proper safety review.