Wow, this is creepy. I got an e-mail from Friends of the Earth last night regarding the FDA’s decision to lift the ban on selling meat and dairy products from cloned animals.
“The FDA has buckled to big biotech and agro-business despite more than 150,000 public comments opposing the lifting of the ban, and amendments to the federal Farm Bill and Omnibus Appropriations Bill calling for more research before lifting the ban.
Genetically speaking, you meat eaters could eat burgers from the same cow for years.
Don’t eat meat? We still think this issue will interest you, given the risks we take by introducing cloned animals into our food system and ecosystem.
It is too late to stop the FDA from permitting the sale of food from cloned animals, and there are no labeling requirements either, which is why we need to make grocery stores pay a price for choosing to sell it.”
The e-mail goes on to say:
“The FDA claims that cloned animals and their offspring are safe for us to eat, yet studies used by the FDA are incomplete. Cloned animals have a much higher rate of genetic abnormalities than animals that reproduce naturally. Most cloned animals die immediately after birth because the intricacies of the cloning process are still not well understood. Dolly, the first cloned sheep, died only six years after her birth of premature arthritis and lung disease.“
All the more reason to buy organic and free-range meat and dairy products (if you eat meat and dairy).
Please sign the FOE petition to major grocery stores telling them you will not shop at a store that cannot guarantee clone-free meat and dairy. What a strange world we’re living in, huh?
If I have paper towels sitting on my kitchen counter, I guarantee I’ll use them, even if I have a dishtowel handy. Read more…
Check out these recycled hotels.
Two anti-whaling activists “taken hostage” on a Japanese whaling ship.
Apple’s coming out with a new green laptop.
Bush may limit scientist access to environmental info.
Check out the picture of Frankie, the blue-eyed koala.
I hate to clean, I put my feet on the furniture, I’m prone to spilling things, my pets are messy and yet, I have a hard time getting other things done when the house is a mess. So, when I clean, I want to use products that are safe, reliable, easy to use, and effective.
Here are my top three picks:
When I was a kid, I wanted a dog so badly that I had an imaginary one. I am obsessed with my pets. They mean a lot to me, and as a pet owner, I believe it’s my responsibility to do everything I can to give them the best care. My standards for pet products are high.
Here are my top three favorites from 2007. Read more…
This tip is sheer brilliance. Unfortunately, it’s not my brilliance, nor can I remember where the brilliance came from. Maybe a magazine in the doctor’s office waiting room? If that’s the case, it was probably a tip from a 1992 Better Homes and Gardens or something. Read more…
19 bald eagles die after diving in fish slime.
The absence of celebrities made this year’s Golden Globes a much greener event.
Luc Besson’s next film will raise awareness for the environment, with profits going to environmentally sustainability. Is anyone else a Fifth Element junkie?
Japanese whaling interrupted by Greenpeace (video).
Flying the environmentally friendly skies.
I’ve been a label reader for a very long time. I don’t think things like corn syrup, partially hydrogenated oils, and scary, long, unpronounceable words that sound like the result of an unfortunate experiment in chem class belong in food. When I shop, I look for foods with simple ingredients that are minimally processed. And I love buying organic and fair trade where I can.
This year, I’ve come to think of shopping as voting with my dollars. I want to feel good about the companies I support, and I don’t want to throw money at companies who aren’t doing their part to produce healthy food through fair business practices and eco-friendly manufacturing.
Here are my top three favorites. Read more…
I tried out some great stuff last year. I switched over almost all of my personal care products to ones that are free of parabens, sodium lauryl/laureth sulfate, and phthalates. Here are my top three picks.
I still haven’t gotten to my holiday thank you cards! It’s on my list for today. Here’s a couple of ways to make them eco-friendly. Read more…
Did you have a family member who sat in the corner at a party or holiday event, carefully folding up wrapping paper for future use? Maybe it was a grandma or great aunt who lived through the Depression and learned to save anything that was usable, maybe it was just someone who was thrifty and knew how to pinch pennies. What ever the reason behind it, saving wrapping paper makes good green sense.