Toothless GMO Food Labeling Bill Becomes Law Corporate Elites Betray Organics

PROMOTING ECONOMIC JUSTICE FOR FAMILY-SCALE FARMING NEWS FROM THE CORNUCOPIA INSTITUTE FALL 2016 Toothless GMO Food Labeling Bill Becomes Law Corporate Elites Betray Organics BY WILL FANTLE The DARK Act would not have he looming July 1 implementation been possible without the date for Vermont's first-of-a-kind, behind-the-scenes machinations historic GMO food ingredients T of the Organic Trade Association, labeling law pushed Monsanto and other corporate giants in retailing, a few of its most powerful biotechnology, and agribusiness members, and two corporate- into overdrive as they ramped up pressure on Congress to negate funded non-profit organizations the state law. – Just Label It and the Labeling opponents wisely Environmental Working Group. identified Michigan Senator Debbie Stabenow, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Agriculture Committee, as the key to crafting JLI, founded by Stonyfield Its next hurdle would be a cloture what they described as a "compromise" Yogurt chairman Gary Hirshberg, vote, a 60-vote threshold required to bill. Stabenow's bill was able to move and the EWG signaled their support halt a filibuster and debate on a bill enough Senate Democrats to join with for an agribusiness-supported and force a final vote on the Senate an already solid block of Republicans alternative to actual GMO labeling, floor. By early July grassroots to muscle through its swift passage. Quick Response (QR) codes, those organic and pro-labeling forces were Ardent GMO backer, Senate inscrutable Rorschach-like images mobilizing to fight the cloture vote. Agriculture Chair Pat Roberts (R- found on some product packaging. The nation's largest consumer Kansas) called it "the most important The scanning of these speckled organization, Consumer Reports, agriculture vote in 20 years." When black squares with a smart phone and along with the Organic Con- signed into law by the President in the appropriate app can provide more late July, it preempted Vermont's new product information. These QR codes GMO LABELING continued on page 8 law, mandatory GMO seed labeling were sold as a solution to food labeling requirements in two states, and requirements and became an integral dozens of related local ordinances. part of the Stabenow Bill. Millions INSIDE THIS ISSUE But what has been rightly called of Americans are now discriminated Organic Merger Challenge. 2 the DARK Act would not have been against by not having smart phones Apple Production ....................4 possible without the behind-the- and/or sufficient data plans. Beneficial Wildlife ...................5 scenes machinations of the Organic The full Senate vote was only Organic History .....................6 Trade Association (OTA), a few of its made possible when its backers DIY Organic Certification ..............9 most powerful members, and two invoked an obscure procedural corporate-funded non-profit organiza- gimmick that hadn't been used in Farmer Profile .....................10 tions – Just Label It (JLI) and the En- more than 40 years to push it forward. Hydroponics ......................12 vironmental Working Group (EWG). Cornucopia Asks Regulators to Block Merger Groupe Danone/WhiteWave Would Dominate the Organic Dairy Market BY MARIE BURCHAM, JD Silk brand is a leader in plant-based Cornucopia.org/Danone2016 to push beverages. Danone will be taking for a full investigation of the proposed he French dairy giant Groupe control of a bigger piece of the merger by federal regulators. Danone (Dannon in the U.S.) organic dairy market than has ever The market for organic dairy T has announced the proposed been controlled by a single company. already has less competition than acquisition of WhiteWave Foods With this acquisition Danone other agricultural sectors and is for approximately $10 billion. will easily be able to beat out more susceptible to monopolization. The deal would combine the competition by lowering prices The anti-competitive implications world’s largest organic yogurt beyond what farmstead and of this deal for organic dairy should brand, Stonyfield, with Wallaby, more moderately sized dairies be considered as distinct from a rapidly growing yogurt label, and can withstand. Danone’s nonorganic market share. Horizon, the nation’s largest brand Dairy has long been the first These are important consider- of organic milk. food consumers associate with the ations for determining whether this Cornucopia has formally organic label. In many households acquisition violates the Sherman challenged the acquisition based organic milk is among the first foods Act and the Clayton Act for anti- on the serious erosion of competition introduced to children. As such a key competitive and anti-trust reasons. it would create in the consumer part of the organic market, it is vital Danone is already a majority marketplace and the negative that competition remains open. shareholder of Stonyfield, the economic impact it would have Cornucopia made this largest organic yogurt brand in the on U.S. organic dairy farmers. argument in letters calling on U.S. Adding WhiteWave’s Wallaby WhiteWave brands are the top the Department of Justice and the and Horizon Organic brand yogurts sellers in their categories. Horizon Federal Trade Commission to treat to Danone’s existing market share organic milk controls nearly 25% of this merger as suspect. In addition, the organic milk market, while their a petition drive was launched at Continued on page 3 BOARD OF DIRECTORS Dave Minar Tom Willey STAFF Organic Dairy Producer Organic Vegetable Grower Mark Kastel, Codirector & Senior Farm Policy Analyst Helen Kees, President New Prague, MN Madera, CA Organic Livestock Will Fantle, Codirector & Director of Research Cameron Molberg Jim Gerritsen Producer Linley Dixon, PhD, Farm and Food Policy Analyst Durand, WI Organic Livestock Producer Organic Potato Grower and Feed Mill Manager President, OSGATA Jérôme Rigot, PhD, Farm and Food Policy Analyst Kevin Engelbert, Austin, TX Bridgewater, ME Marie Burcham, JD, Farm and Food Policy Analyst Vice President Organic Dairy Producer Steve Sprinkel Gayle Nielsen, Membership Coordinator Former NOSB Member Organic Vegetable Producer Therese Laurdan, Membership Assistant Nichols, NY POLICY ADVISORY PANEL Organic Restaurateur Jennifer Hayden PhD, Communications & Michael James Ojai, CA Barry Flamm, PhD, Development Director Community Leader Jim Crawford Secretary Rachel Zegerius, Communications & Development Associate Conservation Consultant Organic Restaurateur Organic Vegetable Producer Former NOSB Member Chicago, IL Wholesale Marketing Melody Morrell, Data Analyst and Research Specialist Polson, MT Amanda Love Cooperative Founder Jason Cole, Research Associate Hustontown, PA William Heart Natural Foods Chef Zuri Allen, Social Media Specialist Nutrition Educator Wildlife Conservationist Celeste Gibson, Accountant, HR Manager Austin, TX CONTACT US Ashland, WI P.O. Box 126 Jeremy Vossman, Webmaster Tony Azevedo Goldie Caughlan Cornucopia, WI 54827 THE CULTIVATOR Organic Dairy Producer (ret.) www.cornucopia.org PCC Natural Markets (ret.) San Joaquin Valley, CA Rachel Zegerius, Editor Cooperative Retail Educator 608-625-2000 Special thanks to Melody Morrell for proofreading. Former NOSB Member [email protected] Unless otherwise noted, photos are from AdobeStock. Seattle, WA 2 will allow the dairy conglomerate to control a sizable slice of the U.S. organic market. Mergers like this one could eventually reduce options and raise prices for consumers without any positive impact on the quality of the products they are buying. With less competition, big companies commonly underpay independent farmers for their products, undermining the economic viability of small, family- scale farms. We should be very wary of this particular acquisition, as it could seriously erode wholesale competition in other less obvious, but potentially ominous, ways. The number-two brand of organic milk in the marketplace, Organic Valley, is produced by a member- owned farmer cooperative that has been the longtime raw milk supplier to the Stonyfield yogurt brand. If, after its acquisition, Danone decides to dump Organic Valley, a Horizon competitor, as a supplier, it could leave only one major purchaser of organic farm milk in some regions of the U.S., like New England. Complicating the matter, one of the other leading brands of fluid milk, marketed under the Stonyfield label, is actually produced and distributed by Organic Valley. Stonyfield built its reputation and brand on its imagery of supporting family-scale dairy farms, predominantly in the Northeast. Conversely, a substantial percentage of the milk used in Horizon products comes from “organic” factory-dairies in the West, many milking thousands of cows each. Cornucopia is currently investigating reports of new giant organic dairies, each milking 2,000-5,000 cows, springing up in Oregon, Idaho, and Texas. Many of these PHOTOS TAKEN BY THE CORNUCOPIA INSTITUTE operations milk three to four times per day, rather than twice, which is the standard on farms that move their cattle to pasture each day. Photos: Certified Organic Factory Farms In addition, state regulatory documents indicate (Above) Hilltop LLC, Boehning Dairy in Earth, Texas. some of these dairy operations have as many as 10 cows (May 17, 2014). (Below) No evidence of cows on pasture at per acre, whereas previous polling done by Cornucopia Horizon Dairy in Kennedyville, Maryland (Sept. 27, 2014). indicated the national average for organic producers was one cow per acre. conventional

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