July 2014, Newsletter               
#7
Table of Contents
A Note from Our Editor
The Tireless Allied Forces including Organic Consumers Association
Food Democracy Now
Institute for Responsible Technology
Food Tank
Slow Food USA
FARM TO SCHOOL
Natural News
We Added Him to our Revolutionaries List, Mr. Michael Potter
Another Revolutionary, Aaron Woolf
Our Last Revolutionary, Anthony Gucciardi
Monsanto has the US Government Wrapped
The (Almost) Monsanto Protection Act
Where Does Aquaponics Fit?
Our Editor, Grace Sylke 
Our Grace created the
"MONSANTO, We've Got You Covered" Slam Sign you'll see in this Newsletter. Please feel free to spread it around. You can Pin It, Facebook it, Twitter it. Make one of your own. The more Slam Signs the Better.

This is the last Newsletter of the Four Month Series called FOOD REVOLUTION. It contains Links to all of them. Together, they are quite a story. ThankYou for following them. 
 
Quick Links:
It isn't USDA, it's Aquaganic!
The infamous "NationalList"

The FOOD REVOLUTION
Final Part 4:
More Allies
More About #1 Adversary, Monsanto
More Revolutionaries
Where Aquaponics Fits In


See Our May Newsletter for Part 2: What is it? Why is it? Who Are The Revolutionaries?

See Our June Newsletter for Part 3: The Battlegrounds, The Adversaries, The Allies
 
 
Dear Subscriber:

This is a Revolution you're participating in whether you know it or not. Some of us are participating in it consciously and some of us are unconscious participants. Every time you purchase a food item, you've helped the Revolutionaries or you've helped the Adversaries. 

These Newsletters are about becoming more conscious. We've gotten more conscious just writing them. Yes, it takes time and effort to make sure you're on the side of the Revolutionaries; but this War maybe the most important War we've ever engaged in on planet Earth because it's a War for the very existence of pure, healthy, wholesome NATURAL food not food created by the Biotechs who actually think they can engineer food better than Mother Nature.

Please make a commitment to join the FOOD REVOLUTION and bring back our right to eat real food.
 
Who Are The Tireless Allied Forces?

These are the Organizations in the trenches. They are actively engaged in the fight. Some are broadly focused. Others are more narrowly focused; but they are all fighting for our right to eat real food. They are often grassroots organizations and sometimes one-man bands. They're fighting with education, scientific research and community organization tactics. 

Find out about them. Join their causes. Support them. They are our Warriors in the fight backing up the Revolutionaries on the Food Battlefield, which is the entire planet Earth.

We've only listed 7 of these Organizations; but there are many more. Do your homework. Find the others and join them. This is how YOU can get involved. 


 
Organic Consumers Association is an online and grassroots non-profit 501(c)3 public interest organization campaigning for health, justice, and sustainability. The OCA deals with crucial issues of food safety, industrial agriculture, genetic engineering, children's health, corporate accountability, Fair Trade, environmental sustainability and other key topics. They are one of the only organizations in the US focused exclusively on promoting the views and interests of the nation's estimated 50 million organic and socially responsible consumers.

This organization works in several arena's including the movement demanding labeling of GMO's. It was formed in 1998 in the wake of the mass backlash by organic consumers against the U.S. Department of Agriculture's controversial proposed national regulations for organic food. (More on that later).

The OCA represents over 850,000 members, subscribers and volunteers, including several thousand businesses in the natural foods and organic marketplace.
(Taken from their "About" Page)

















"Food Democracy Now! is a grassroots community dedicated to building a sustainable food system that protects our natural environment, sustains farmers and nourishes families.

 

"Our food system is fundamentally broken. A few companies dominate the market, prioritizing profits over people and our planet. Government policies put the interests of corporate agribusiness over the livelihoods of farm families. Farm workers toil in unsafe conditions for minimal wages. School children lack access to healthy foods--as do millions of Americans living in poverty. From rising childhood and adult obesity to issues of food safety, air and water pollution, worker's rights and global warming, our current food system is leading our nation to an unsustainable future."


Food Democracy Now, lead by Dave Murphy and Lisa Stokke is an over "650,000 strong organization of American Farmers and citizens dedicated to reforming policies relating to food, agriculture and the environment. Murphy has been called 'the most crucial and politically savvy actor in the on-going efforts to help move American agriculture into the 21st century' as a result of his 'Sustainable Dozen' campaign, which resulted in four candidates being placed in high level positions at the USDA and his efforts to reform food and agriculture under the Obama administration."
(Taken verbatim from their "About" Page with minor changes)
#3. IRT











Their "About" Page says the following: The Institute for Responsible Technology is a world leader in educating policy makers and the public about genetically modified (GM) foods and crops. They investigate and report their risks and impact on health, environment, the economy, and agriculture, as well as the problems associated with current research, regulation, corporate practices, and reporting.

 

Founded in 2003 by international bestselling author and GMO expert Jeffrey Smith, IRT has worked in nearly 40 countries on 6 continents, and is credited with improving government policies and influencing consumer-buying habits.


IRT's work comes from a dedicated team of subject experts, consultants and staff who generously donate their time and experience. In addition, IRT employs media experts, social network campaigners, writers, graphic designers, communications specialists, fundraisers, outreach professionals and support staff, who operate both at our headquarters in Iowa, and from virtual offices in the US.


IRT's Campaign for Healthier Eating in America mobilizes citizens, organizations, businesses, healthcare professionals, and the media, to achieve the tipping point of consumer rejection of GM foods.

(Taken verbatim from their "About" Page with minor changes) 

Danielle Nierenberg is the President of Food Tank, a Food Think Tank focused on building a global community for safe, healthy, nourished eaters. They spotlight environmentally, socially, and economically sustainable ways of alleviating hunger, obesity, and poverty and create networks of people, organizations, and content to push for food system change.

Food Tank is for the 7 billion people who have to eat every day. They offer solutions and environmentally sustainable ways of alleviating hunger, obesity, and poverty by creating a network of connections and information for all of us to consume and share. Food Tank is for farmers and producers, policy makers and government leaders, researchers and scientists, academics and journalists, and the funding and donor communities to collaborate on providing sustainable solutions for our most pressing environmental and social problems.


 

Food Tank highlights hope and success in agriculture. They feature innovative ideas that are already working on the ground, in cities, in kitchens, in fields and in laboratories. These innovations need more attention, more research, and ultimately more funding to be replicated and scaled-up. And that is where they need you. We all need to work together to find solutions that nourish ourselves and protect the planet.

(Taken verbatim from their "About" Page with minor changes)
 


Slow Food USA is part of the global Slow Food network of over 150,000 members in more than 150 countries. Through a vast volunteer network of local chapters, youth and food communities, they link the pleasures of the table with a commitment to protect the community, culture, knowledge and environment that make this pleasure possible.


 

Their mission as an international grassroots membership organization is good, clean and fair food for all.

They believe food should be tasty, seasonal, local, fresh and wholesome; and that  our food should nourish a healthful lifestyle and be produced in ways that preserve biodiversity, sustain the environment and ensure animal welfare - without harming human health. They also believe that our food should be affordable by all, while respecting the dignity of labor from field to fork. 

Slow Food USA has 170 local chapters and 40 campus chapters that coordinate local activities, projects and events. Working together with members and supporters across the nation, they preserve and share local foods and food cultures. They defend and advocate policies that promote holistic alternatives to the industrial system. Through tastings, workshops and social opportunities, they explore and celebrate the Slow life.


Conviviality is central to their mission. They are a global community, connecting people to the land and to each other through local projects, educational events, and shared meals. They become catalysts for change by sharing the joy of Slow Food and prioritizing wholesome living over convenience.

(Taken verbatim from their "About" Page with minor changes)
Farm to school enriches the connection communities have with fresh, healthy food and local food producers by changing food purchasing and education practices at schools and preschools.


 

Students gain access to healthy, local foods as well as education opportunities such as school gardens, cooking lessons and farm field trips. 


 

Farm to school empowers children and their families to make informed food choices while strengthening the local economy and contributing to vibrant communities.


 

Farm to school implementation differs by location but always includes one or more of the following: 

  • Procurement: Local foods are purchased, promoted and served in the cafeteria or as a snack or taste-test; 
  • Education: Students participate in education activities related to agriculture, food, health or nutrition; and 
  • School gardens: Students engage in hands-on learning through gardening.
(Taken verbatim from their "About" Page with minor changes)

Natural News is a science-based natural health advocacy organization led by activist-turned-scientist, Mike Adams, the Health Ranger.


 

The key mission of Natural News is to empower consumers with factual information about the synthetic chemicals, heavy metals, hormone disruptors and other chemicals found in foods, medicines, personal care products, children's toys and other items.


 

Natural News covers holistic health, nutritional therapies, consciousness and spirituality, permaculture, organics, animal rights, environmental health, food and superfoods, and performance nutrition.


 

The site strongly criticizes drugs-and-surgery medicine, vaccines, corporate corruption, animal testing, the use of humans for medical experiments, the chemical contamination of foods, heavy metals in consumer products, factory farming and government corruption.


 

Natural News also warns its readers about science gone bad and frequently cites examples of science resulting in catastrophies that it calls "crimes" against humanity. Examples of such subjects cited by Natural News include:

  • Agent Orange
  • Thalidomide
  • Nuclear weapons
  • GMOs and "genetic pollution"
  • Aspartame and chemical sweeteners
  • Chemotherapy
  • The presence of hidden cancer viruses in polio vaccines
  • The continued use of mercury in vaccines and dental amalgams
  • The long history of pharmaceutical experiments on human beings, including the Tuskegee syphilis experiments conducted on African Americans in the USA.
  • (Taken verbatim from their "About" Page with minor changes)
We Had To Add Him To Our REVOLUTIONARIES LIST!
To see the others on that List, click on our May Newsletter above.
Meet one of our Heros, Michael J. Potter, owner of Eden Foods; and he couldn't have a better suited last name because he's the good guy fighting some real dark forces in this battle for Real Food.

He isn't in the trenches. He goes right into the middle of the NOSB Boardroom, which is the National Organic Standards Board where what is determined to be USDA Organic and what is not is decided. 

Sadly, what most of us don't know is that the NOSB has been co-opted by the Big Food Companies like Coca Cola, Kellogg, Cargill Chemical and General Mills as these companies have bought up most of the nation's once family owned organic food companies, kept their labels and now parade them out into the marketplace as the original thing. If you want to know more about this deception, go to our June Food Revolution Newsletter above.

Because BIG FOOD has become BIG ORGANIC, they populate the NOSB and make the decisions about what new additives can be labeled Organic. So in late May of 2012, Mr. Potter went to the NOSB Meeting where some important decisions about additives were taking place; and he voiced his objection to adding "Carrageenan" to what is called the "National List". This infamous List is the list of all the non-organic ingredients that have been allowed in foods that are labeled USDA Organic; and as these Big Food companies started stacking the Board, the list of nonorganic materials approved for organic foods increased from 77 items in 2002 to 250 nonorganic substances in 2012. Take a look at this ungodly "National List" for yourself and don't blink because it's growing right before our eyes.

After Mr. Potter, our Hero, voiced his concern that Carrageenan has been linked to malignancies and other stomach problems, using research conducted by Dr. Tobacman, Associate Professor of Clinical Medicine at the University of Illinois College of Medicine, he was thanked for his input; and the NOSB Board then voted to keep Carrageenan on the National List. Here's what Mr. Potter had to say about that:

"'The board is stacked,' Mr. Potter says. 'Either they don't have a clue, or their interest in making money is more important than their interest in maintaining the integrity of organics.'


 

Which either/or do you think it is?
 

"He calls the certified-organic label a fraud and refuses to put it on Eden's products." Quote taken from article in The New York Times, July 7, 2012 entitled "Has 'Organic' Been Oversized?"


Over here at Aquaponics World we've also turned our backs on the co-opted USDA Organic Certification Label and created our own Certification. We call it "Aquaganic". You can read all about it on our Aquaponics World website, Aquaganic Page.

Sorry to have popped any idealistic bubbles around heads that thought USDA Organic Certification meant the food you're buying has no unhealthy additives. If you want to make sure you're getting real food, buy Mr. Potter's Eden Foods. They don't carry that misleading label.
Another REVOLUTIONARY, 
Aaron Woolf

Aaron Woolf is the producer/director of the hit documentary, King Corn.


 

Other work has appeared on the Sundance and Discovery Channels and on numerous networks abroad including France's ARTE, Italy's RAI and Australia's SBS. His films have won Rockie, Logie, and Peabody Awards.


 

Woolf graduated from Middlebury College and earned a masters in film at the University of Iowa.  In the mid-1990s, Woolf turned to non-fiction storytelling, and trained his lens on individual stories that he felt touched on global trends.

Woolf's film, King Corn, followed Ian Cheney and his best friend, Curt Ellis, on a yearlong odyssey to understand where their food comes from... by growing it. In what The Washington Post calls "Required viewing for anyone planning to visit a supermarket, fast-food joint, or their own refrigerator," the city-slickers learn to drive a combine, cash in on government subsidies, and homebrew high-fructose corn syrup. The film's Peabody-winning findings, shared with theatergoers in 60 cities and in a PBS national broadcast, change the way audiences eat.


 

Watch the Trailer. It's a Real Eye Opener. And remember about 85% of the Corn grown in the US is Genetically Modified. EGAD!

King Corn
King Corn
Our last REVOLUTIONARY, 
Anthony Gucciardi, founder of 
Natural Society
Anthony Gucciardi became a natural health advocate after coming down with late-stage Lyme Disease and having traditional remedies that included the injections of powerful steroids lead to a rapid deterioration of his health. 

Anthony created his own lifestyle regimen and overcame not only the Lyme Disease but the physical challenges left from the prolonged use of steroidal drugs. After a short period of enhanced nutrition and the alteration of other lifestyle factors, Anthony had alleviated himself of virtually all pain and symptoms from which he had been suffering. It was at this point he crafted the concept that, even beyond health, it's always essential to seek information for yourself and produce your own research.

To help people follow this advice, he along with his partner, Mike Barrett, created
Natural Society, which is now the third or fourth (depending on which stats you examine) largest natural health website in the world with millions of viewers per month. Many of their posts are food focused. 


More Bad News About The Biggest Adversary To Real Food On The Planet, MONSANTO!
Josh Sager published an incisive article one month before the November 2012 US Presidential Elections that carefully documents how Monsanto has cornered and co-opted the US political system. The title of the article was "Monsanto Controls both the White House and the US Congress". 
Read it and weep. Or read our quoted synopsis below and then weep.

In essence, the article points out that no matter who is elected, Monsanto will be worshipped and Americans will continue to be the Guinea Pigs for these mad Biotechs. Case in point, "throughout his first term, President Obama has presided over the passage of several Monsanto-friendly legislative initiatives and has appointed numerous people associated with Monsanto to high-level positions." 

"By giving several billion dollars to agro-businesses, one of which is Monsanto, the 'Southern Africa FY 2010 Implementation Plan' promoted the expansion of these businesses into the provision of food for Africa. This expansion is aimed at increasing food supplies in Africa, but it will have the unintended consequence of promoting Monsanto's takeover of the African food markets. Put plainly, Monsanto will crowd local African farmers out of the market and will make a profit that would be more beneficial in the hands of local African farmers and in the local African economy.

"On the issue of GMO labeling, Obama is rhetorically supportive of mandating GMO products to be labeled, but his administration has been largely silent on the issue. During the creation of the 2012 Farm Bill, there was a fight over mandating that genetically modified foods be labeled. Despite Obama's supposed support for such labeling, his administration was essentially silent on the issue during this fight and, as a result, no mandate was passed; and 2014 brings more corruption and collusion between the Senate, the President and Monsanto. (See next Article).

"In totality, legislation passed under the Obama administration has been beneficial to large agro-businesses, one of which is Monsanto. Very little has been done to increase regulation on GMO producers and several laws have been passed that directly benefit such corporations.

"Due to the vested interest that Monsanto has in controlling regulation that affects its business, it has both donated to politicians and promoted the appointment of people who work for them to positions within the American government. As of yet, Monsanto has been successful in keeping its regulatory burdens low and getting its representatives into positions within the US government. The infiltration of regulatory agencies by corporate actors that is referred to here is called the "regulatory revolving door". Individuals who work for industry go to work for the government, make public regulations, and then return to the private sector after leaving the public service.

"While there are numerous points of overlap between Monsanto and the United States Government under the Obama administration, the three most important connections are that of Michael Taylor, Roger Beachy, and Islam Siddiqui. All three of these Monsanto affiliates were appointed to high level positions within the government by the Obama administration.


"During his first term, President Obama appointed two Justices, one of whom was Elena Kagan, the former
Solicitor General of the United States. During her time as the Solicitor General, Kagan filed a brief in support of Monsanto."

Unfortunately, things would NOT have been different if Romney had won the 2012 election. "In 1977, Bain Capital-the company that Romney ran, and in which he made most of his money-was starting out as a corporate consulting firm; Monsanto was among the first major clients of Bain. The multi-million dollar relationship between Bain Capital and Monsanto lasted from 1977 to 1985 and had significant effects on both corporations. Bain Capital, and its officers, made large amounts of money through its relationship with Monsanto and gained a significant client with which to base its consulting practice upon. Monsanto was given business advice by Bain and the corporation's recent successes in GMO produce are traceable back to the suggestions that Romney made to Monsanto administrators." (This is one long quote taken from the above designated article by Josh Sager and reprinted in the Global Research website, on May 24, 2014) 

It's obvious our Government is NOT going to aide us in this FOOD REVOLUTION. In fact, our Government is on the side of the Genetic Engineers and against the people.

If you thought the news above was bad, wait until you hear about what almost happened called The MONSANTO  
PROTECTION ACT. Actually, it did happen; but only for a brief moment in time.
Also from the Global Research News website, May 25, 2013 (we're beginning to like Global Research News) an article entitled "Monsanto Protection Act Signed By Obama, GMO Bill 'Written By Monsanto' Signed Into Law". It's another Read it and weep moment that makes it clear our Government has got Monsanto covered while Monsanto makes sure the people of America are Covered. 

Here's the essence of what the Monsanto Protection Act tried to do but failed when Senators, Barbara Mikulski and Jeff Merkley successfully led a charge to get it off the books in September of 2013 only a few months after it passed. 

But for a few short months this is what Congress passed (some unknowingly because it was hidden in the Spending Bill, HR 933) and this is what the President signed.

"The Monsanto Protection Act, essentially both written by and benefiting Monsanto Corporation, was signed into law by United States President Barack Obama. The infamous Monsanto Corporation would have benefited greatly and directly from the bill, as it essentially gives companies that deal with genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and genetically engineered (GE) seeds immunity to the federal courts, among other things.


"The bill stated that even if future research shows that GMOs or GE seeds cause significant health problems, cancer, etc, anything, that the federal courts no longer have any power to stop their spread, use, or sales."


 

Are YOU KIDDING ME! 


 

"The bill was apparently written by freshman Sen. Roy Blunt, in collusion with Monsanto, with them helping to craft the exact language of the document." Sen. Roy Blunt, of  Missouri where Monsanto is headquartered, again a last name that fits the deed because this Bill was killing our Constitutional rights to justice with a Blunt Instrument, is a Republican. And, of course, "The Center for Responsive Politics notes that Sen. Blunt received $64,250 from non other than Monsanto to go towards his campaign committee between 2008 and 2012. The Money Monocle website adds that Blunt has been the largest Republican Party recipient of Monsanto funding as of late." 

Kudos to Senators Mikulski and Merkley who along with hundreds of thousands of Petitions and Marches with thousands of participants from the Real Food Allied Organizations like the ones listed above, were able to kill the Monsanto Protection Act. The FOOD REVOLUTIONARIES won that battle; but the War wages on.

However, there's more good news because now we know exactly what Monsanto wants. They want immunity. Isn't that interesting. If they really believe their Franken Food is good for us, why would they need immunity?
So Where Does Aquaponics Fit Into The FOOD REVOLUTION?
This is a picture of what's growing in our Aquaponics USA/AquaponicsWorld Food Forever™ Farm Greenhouse right now. Actually, all the green sucker leaves at the top have been trimmed off since this picture was taken. That's one of the secrets of growing tomatoes. You have to keep them trimmed. 

Not one petro-chemical, not one pesticide and not one trace of Genetically Modified Organisms are involved in growing these tomatoes or any of the leafy greens in our Vertical Duffy Duct Systems that take up most of this Greenhouse. 

There's talk about the iPhone that goes something like this: Steve Jobs brought an item into the marketplace that no one knew they wanted until it arrived.

Aquaponics food growing technology is kind of like that. Millions of people still don't know it exists and have never heard the word, "Aquaponics" before. But as soon as they are introduced to it, they want it. They want it because Aquaponics is capable of producing the most wholesome, healthy, natural food on the market today without using harsh petro-chemicals, pesticides and GMO technology.  And it's about to take the marketplace by storm. It's a key player in the FOOD REVOLUTION. 

If we can eat locally grown food that is fertilized naturally from the dissolved solids of living fish, why would we want to eat food that's been irradiated, or sprayed with pesticides and petro-chemicals and labeled USDA Organic while it's full of additives from the infamous "National List" that has been co-opted by the Big Food Companies? 

The truth is WE WOULDN'T. And WE WON'T. Aquaponically grown food is a NEW CHOICE, A BETTER CHOICE and once we educate the public about that new choice and get enough Aquaponic Products out there, the FOOD REVOLUTION will be won by the good guys because there is no contest. Aquaponics is our ace in the hole. It's the antithesis to GMO's; and it won't be long before it kicks Monsanto and friends right out of the marketplace.

Help us win this FOOD REVOLUTION. Spread the word about Aquaponics, purchase Aquaponic Products whenever you can, request them at your favorite Food Store. The future is ours. WE'VE GOT THIS!  


Thank You from the bottom of our hearts for following our Newsletters. We're guessing by now you get that we're on a mission. 

This 4-Part Series on the FOOD REVOLUTION has gone way beyond our original concept. This Final Newsletter contains All 4 Parts if you missed one as they all work together to make a complete story. Just go back to the top or click on our Quick Links Section.

Now, we're going back to working like crazy to get our Aquaponically grown Products into the marketplace; and you'll be the first to know when they arrive. Ironically, it's looking like Missouri will be that place; and it's ironic because that's right where Monsanto is Headquartered. Life works in strange ways. We'll tell you more about that project in the August Newsletter.
 
Sustainably,

Aquaponics USA/Aquaponics World

Here It Is, Our 
10% Discount Only For Subscribers: That's YOU!
This Coupon applies only to our Food Forever™ Home and School Growing Systems; and extends through the entire month of August.  
Offer Expires on September 1st so take advantage of your 10% Discount Today!