Leaf Litter
Raking in Notes From All Over

January, 2006

Kraft Says "Soyanara" to Monsanto
The biofood saga continues. Cereal giant Kellogg announced it would be substituting hydrogenated oils in its products with the healthier Vistive, a low-linolenic oil made from Monsanto’s biotech soybeans. Two weeks after Kellogg’s decree, rival Kraft Foods said it would stop supplying genetically engineered foods to China. Some anti-biofood groups in the United States are calling for similar restrictions in this country. Monsanto has already withdrawn products such as their biotech wheat crop, "delayed-ripening tomato" and "healthier potato." For more Leaf-let articles addressing genetic engineering of plants, go to http://www.ssseeds.com/leaf-let/roundup-resistantbentgrass.htm and http://www.ssseeds.com/leaf-let/EPA_studies_bentgrass.htm.

Have You Measured the CO2 of a Ford Lately?
Ford Motor Company has released a report addressing climate change (see page one of this edition of The Leaf-let) carbon dioxide emissions and global energy. The report also lists company commitments including producing up to 250,000 hybrid vehicles annually, reducing greenhouse gas emissions from its North America plants by 6 percent, and the introduction of an employee "Eco-Driving" program to heighten awareness of fuel economy and emissions. For more about Ford’s Climate Change Report, http://www.ford.com/en/company/about/sustainability/default.htm.

Tuna Can Be Dangerous
The Chicago Tribune has reported that some brands of canned light tuna contain not only the usual skipjack, but also yellowfin, which has as much mercury as albacore. While the FDA looks into the Tribune’s report, it is suggested that young children, pregnant woman and women of childbearing age do not eat more than 6 ounces of canned tuna per week.

Water, Water Everywhere So It’s Time to Throw it Out
The Federal Emergency and Management Agency (FEMA) has dumped 18 truckloads of water, about 400,000 liters, meant for victims of hurricanes Rita and Katrina. According to agency officials, some of the canned water had expired. The rest may not have tasted good, according to the Coca-Cola company, which donated the water. However, a FEMA spokesman said, "We didn’t need it anymore." The water was poured into a sewer. The cans were taken to a scrap metal plant and recycled.

Who’s Watching the Watchdog?
The Natural Resources Defense Council, which monitors the actions of the Environmental Protection Agency, has been cited for failing to document one-third of the $3.3 million it received in EPA grants. According to MSNBC.com, more than 2,200 nonprofit groups received grants from the EPA over the last ten years, "including those that lobby and sometimes sue the agency." Are the watchdogs biting the hand that feeds them?

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