Editor’s note: Monsanto is a favorite of both Trump and the GOP. They, for years, threatened and intimidated scientists and now it is clear.
Monsanto alone is largely responsible for the epidemic of cancer in America, but not without the help every step of the way by the Republican Party…
A hearty bowl of oatmeal is a healthy way to start your day, but according to a new study, that bowl of oatmeal can contain dangerous levels of glyphosate, a weed-killing chemical linked to cancer.
The study, carried out by the non-profit Environmental Working Group, found that 43 out of 45 popular breakfast cereals tested in three locations in the US contained traces of glyphosate. 31 of these contained dangerously high levels of the chemical.
Glyphosate is the active ingredient in Roundup, a weedkiller manufactured by Monsanto. Roundup is the most popular weedkiller in the US, and last week a court in California ordered the company to pay $39 million in compensation and $250 million in punitive damages to a school groundskeeper who developed non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma after years of using Roundup at work.
The World Health Organization’s cancer research agency classified glyphosate as “probably carcinogenic to humans” in 2015. In the US, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) labeled glyphosate a carcinogen in 1985, but reversed its position in 1991. In 2017, California listed glyphosate in its Proposition 65 registry of chemicals known to cause cancer.
The cereals tested weren’t all lurid-colored Lucky Charms or sugar-crusted Frosties, but oat-based ‘healthy’ choices. The high levels of glyphosate came from the oats themselves.
The highest levels were found in Quaker Old Fashioned Oats – 1,000 parts per billion (ppb) of glyphosate. The EWG calculated levels above 160 ppb as unsafe for children. Giant Instant Oatmeal contained 760 ppb, and three samples of Cheerios contained concentrations of between 470 and 530 ppb.
250 million pounds of glyphosate are sprayed on American crops every year, but the highest concentrations of the chemical are found in non-GMO wheat, barley, oats, and beans. Farmers spray these crops with glyphosate right before harvest time, as they kill the crop and dry it out, making it ready for harvest quicker.
All oats are not equal though. The EWG also tested 16 cereals made with organically-grown oats. While five of these contained glyphosate, none were above the group’s health benchmark of 160 ppb. While organic foods should by definition be free of chemicals like glyphosate, these chemicals can often drift onto these crops from nearby fields of conventionally-grown crops, or at factories that handle both kinds of crop.
“Glyphosate does not belong in cereal,” said the EWG. The organization called on Americans to “urge the EPA to restrict pre-harvest applications of glyphosate and tell companies to identify and use sources of glyphosate-free oats.”
Meanwhile, despite several contradictory studies and a multi-million dollar payout, Monsanto’s parent company, Bayer, said last week that “glyphosate is safe for use and does not cause cancer when used according to the label.”
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I wonder if the real reason people are gluten intolerant is because of glyphosate?
The article failed to connect the GOP connection. So I researched that supposed connection, and it appears it commenced in June 2012 as part of the part of the initial draft of a FY2013 Agriculture Appropriations, asking for a reduction or limitation of judicial review for cultivation of biotech (read: genetically modified or engineered crops) which appropriations and the eventual Monsanto Protection Act was drafted and approved by the 112th and 113th Congresses (composed largely of Republicans in the House, and largely of Democrats in the Senate), and finally endorsed and signed by Obama in March 2013 (source: Snopes.com).
AND, was supposed to expire in December 2013.
While it is true that Republicans did participate, so did the Democrats, signed by Obama (Democrat). Neither Congress nor that president get a pass on this one.
Quaker Oatmeal, and Kosher Dills, are probably the number one and two, foods, directly associated with a Religious, ‘trust me” brand. The iconic image of the Quaker , is to some a trustable figure, as who could not trust a man wearing a wig and hat like that, he must be pious. For others, it reminds them of Scarlett letters and hand bound nude parades through the muddy streets during the walks of shame imposed on any who defy the dogmatic rules of authoritarian religions. The big question is, who owns Monsanto, and how much is the EU’s lip service to their public, actually true. One report just recently listed the purchase of GMO soybeans from the US as rising by 300 % which appears to help the GOP offset the raping of their own farmers.
Meanwhile, the only clue any farmer needs, is someone telling you they own the rights to seeds. That is ridiculous , and a direct threat to food security. There should be no company or person who is allowed to maintain a patent or any legal claim to ownership of seeds for anything. Localized, versatile, diverse agriculture is a key security point for any country. FDR knew that much. If anyone comes to town, trying to convince your farmers to plant seeds that are owned by a corporate interest, they should be chased out of town and forbidden to return. It is that simple. Farming is not complicated, and there is no need to reinvent the wheel.
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