Month: September 2022

BRITISH MEDICAL ASSOCIATION AGAINST MARKER GENES. "There should be a ban on the use of antibiotic resistance marker genes in GM food, as the risk to human health from antibiotic resistance developing in micro-organisms is one of the major public health threats that will be faced in the 21st century" http://www.gmwatch.org/index.php/news/archive/2002/2930-crop-gene-could-weaken-medicines View in LinkedIn

LARGE NUMBER OF RESISTANT GENES. "the Antibiotic Resistance Genes Database (ARDB). The treatment of infections is increasingly compromised by the ability of bacteria to develop resistance to antibiotics ... Currently, ARDB contains ... 13,293 genes, 377 types, 257 antibiotics, 632 genomes, 933 species and 124 genera." http://nar.oxfordjournals.org/content/37/suppl_1/D443.long View in LinkedIn

US ORGANIC BOOM. "Ten years ago, Certified Organic didn’t exist in the United States. Yet in 2010, a mere eight years after USDA’s regulations officially went into effect, organic foods and beverages made $26.7 billion." http://lnkd.in/dZqQqHH View in LinkedIn

ORGANIC WORTH THE PRICE. "In the past year or two, certified organic sales have jumped to about $52 billion worldwide despite the fact that organic foods cost up to three times as much as those produced by conventional methods." http://lnkd.in/dZqQqHH View in LinkedIn

US ORGANIC IS MURKY. "There are over 20 chemicals commonly used in the growing and processing of organic crops that are approved by the US Organic Standards. And, shockingly, the actual volume usage of pesticides on organic farms is not recorded by the government." http://lnkd.in/dZqQqHH View in LinkedIn

ANTIBIOTIC PESTICIDES MATTER. The crescendo of an antibiotic crisis from antibiotic resistant bacteria had its roots merely years after penicillin, the first antibiotic was introduced, and it was predicted by Alexander Fleming. This is why the excessive use of antibiotics in factory animal farms, fruit crops and as marker genes in GMOs is completely unacceptable today. View in LinkedIn

FDA ON THE ANTIBIOTICS CRISIS. "Today, almost all important bacterial infections in the United States and throughout the world are becoming resistant to antibiotics. Antibiotic resistance has been called one of the world's most pressing public health problems. The smart use of antibiotics is the key to controlling the spread of resistance." http://lnkd.in/d6_pugc View in LinkedIn

FDA OVERTURNED BY INDUSTRY. "In 2000, the FDA announced their intention to revoke approval of fluoroquinolone use in poultry production because of ... fluoroquinolone-resistant Campylobacter infections in humans. Legal challenges from the food animal and pharmaceutical industries delayed the final decision to do so until 2006." http://lnkd.in/dN4CXhv View in LinkedIn

FDA VS USDA IN FOOD REGULATION. The US FDA has the ability to make food recommendations, not to legislate. The USDA is charged with regulation, but is clearly in the pocket of industry. This is generally poorly understood by the US public who assume that "Food" in FDA means power to regulate. It does not. View in LinkedIn

FDA ISSUES VOLUNTARY GUIDANCE TO INDUSTRY. "In December 2013, FDA issued two landmark policy documents on the use of medically important antibiotics in food animal production—an important step toward curbing the inappropriate use of antibiotics in this industry." http://lnkd.in/dzv-Vsa View in LinkedIn