Blog Posts: RBGH

by Patty Lovera

It’s been a busy week for the folks who work hard to put the green sheen on Walmart’s public image. To counter the spin, Food & Water Watch and the Institute for Local Self-Reliance have put together the Top 10 Ways Walmart Fails on Sustainability for a little reality check. Check out my blog on Grist for an explanation of why it’s important for all of us to let Walmart know we see through their green smokescreen.

So… you think you’re a foodie, do ya? Well, why not test yourself? We invite you to take our Fair Farm Quiz and determine your Fair Food IQ.

What is a farm exactly? Is it that picturesque locale on the label of a supermarket brand of cheese or is it more like an industrial production scene, complete with conveyor belts and widgets?

Did you know? Read the full article…

By Alex Beauchamp

Those who want to know what is (or isn’t) in their milk won a huge victory last week! After years of fighting in court, the state of Ohio has finally agreed to drop this issue and let consumers know that their milk is rBGH-Free. This is great news for all of us who don’t want artificial hormones in our milk.

With this victory, farmers who don’t use artificial hormones can label that their milk as rBGH-free. None of this happened without a lot of hard work from Food & Water Watch, and our allies and activists across the state. This win is the culmination of a long campaign that spread across the country. We’ve successfully defended farmers’ right to label and consumers’ right to know in every state the industry targeted—a lot of effort just for the opportunity to know what’s in your milk. Read the full article…

From across the country, stories and pictures have been pouring in. Typically, the cow suits get all the attention, but our organizers are meeting fascinating people who are accomplishing amazing feats in the world of food. Their stories are truly inspiring. Find out what’s happening along the Fair Farm Bill campaign trail. These are just a sample of the conversations we’re having as we continue to cover 20 states in 34 days. Keep checking back with us, and be sure to visit our event page on Facebook and check out our gallery photos.

Read the full article…

Especially the Richmond City Council in California. With Thanksgiving just around the corner, smells of mashed potatoes and candied yams are wafting across everyone’s plate. But the City Council in Richmond is serving up bigger concerns with the recent passage of a resolution recognizing the distinction between milk free from artificial hormones and milk produced using the artificial hormone recombinant bovine growth hormone (rBGH). The resolution goes further in encouraging all schools, public hospitals, institutions and other feeding programs within its borders to favor milk produced without rBGH when purchasing milk for their meal programs. Read the full article…

Though we awoke to a dark, stormy sky on our last day in Minnesota, we were not discouraged. We had encountered overwhelming support over the last week, and we were enthusiastic about meeting with Senator Klobuchar‚ staff to discuss getting better milk in schools.

The Senator‚ staff was unwilling to commit to anything immediately. However, as we had hoped, they suggested that given the work Senator Klobuchar has done on pro-kids and pro-consumer legislation in the past, she would potentially support the inclusion of language in the Child Nutrition Act clarifying that schools may purchase rBGH-free milk. Read the full article…

How many rBGH-free milk cartons does it take to make a boat? This may seem like a strange question, but yesterday in Minneapolis dozens of teams floated their milk carton boats out onto Lake Calhoun, while thousands of people looked on to see if they would sink or float. Joe, Bethany and I arrived at this annual event dressed in our cow suits and were quickly greeted by swarms of people. It was like a dairy lovers family reunion, with people dressed in all sorts of cow-themed outfits, free samples of organic milk and some of the most creative uses for milk cartons you’ve ever seen. Regardless to say, we were right at home. Read the full article…

Successful Morning in Des Moines!
This morning the rBGH-free cows headed to the farmer’s market
in downtown Des Moines, Iowa. Despite
being in the heart of industrial farm country, we were able to get a glimpse of
an alternative to the factory farm model that dominates the state and the
region. The Des Moines farmer‚
market offered a beautiful array of locally produced foods , showing everyone
that the status-quo can, and will be, changed!

The Food & Water Watch team received a tremendous
welcoming to Des Moines!  In less
than an hour and half, we collected nearly 200 signed postcards to be delivered
to Senator Harkin. People in Des
Moines are serious about their milk , and they dont want any artificial
hormones corrupting it! Read the full article…

As we started off on the second half of our tour this
morning, we feel like we have big hooves to fill. Alex, Becca and Meredith made
the cows proud by getting lots of support for our campaign, and earning lots of
great media coverage along the way. The first group of roadies shared their
wisdom about arriving on time, leaving extra time for parking and how to be a
cow, but some things you just have to learn for yourself. Today our drive was
long, but we arrived in Iowa City right on time, and were greeted with a warm

welcome when we arrived at the Red Avocado Café for our activist meet-up. Two
supporters were already waiting for us, and a third joined us to talk about the
campaign and how they could get involved. We ate some delicious food and our
new friends left with lots of blank postcards in hand, eager to get help out on
the campaign. Read the full article…

Each morning we awake and move to our feet slowly, but after a good cup of coffee and a hearty breakfast, we are on the move again. This morning began like any other, but proved to be one of the more event-filled days on our voyage.

We were treated to a breakfast purchased from the famous Zingerman‚ Deli, said goodbye to our lovely host, Sarah, and headed back into downtown Ann Arbor.  This time we hit the Farmer‚ Market (all of us cow-clad) for a Call-In Day to Senator Stabenow‚ offices. Well luck was smiling, and we got 53 calls in to Stabenow in just two hours! Read the full article…