Deadline Friday to Tell the USDA: No Agent Orange Crops

By email from Eric Schlosser and Gary Hirschberg:

We only have until FRIDAY to contact the USDA about this new type of corn genetically engineered to withstand 2,4-D herbicide, which some studies have shown may be linked to several forms of cancer. Over 50,000 of you have contacted the USDA, but if we want them to listen, we need to inundate them with even more comments.

We should be able to decide for ourselves what to feed our families. But if the USDA approves this new corn, we won't be able to make that choice since genetically engineered foods aren't labeled.

Contact the USDA today!

SNIP

Although we might not all agree on the science concerning the long-term effects of eating genetically engineered foods, we can all agree that everyone should be able to decide for themselves whether to eat them. And that's why we should proceed with caution when approving new unlabeled GMO crops like 2,4-D corn.

Along with the new GM salmon, one of the most disturbing new species under review is a type of corn genetically engineered to withstand 2,4-D -- an herbicide that some studies have shown may be linked to major health problems including reproductive abnormalities, birth defects, and several forms of cancer.

Approval of Dow Chemical's genetically engineered corn would trigger an increase in 2,4-D use and our exposure to this herbicide. Yet the USDA has not analyzed the resulting impacts on public health, the environment, or neighboring farmers. Do you want to take the risk?

Urge the USDA to reject the genetically engineered 2,4-D resistant corn until these impacts are addressed:
http://salsa3.salsalabs.com/o/50202/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=7574

The herbicide 2,4-D is a persistent chemical with a habit of moving around in the environment. It presents a risk to our drinking water, food, pets, and backyard gardens. A growing number of farmers are concerned about the potential impact on their crops from the herbicide drifting onto their fields.

We know you care about the food you eat -- that's why you asked the FDA to label genetically engineered ingredients. Before the USDA makes a decision on 2,4-D resistant corn, they want to hear from people like us. But they're only accepting comments from the public for a short period of time!

Help flood the USDA comment box before it's too late:
http://salsa3.salsalabs.com/o/50202/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=7574