Waiter, There's a Newfangled Technology in My Soup

[Guest guest]

you have to eat organic

live organic

they will not stop with their thirst for money

http://www.otherwords.org/articles/waiter_theres_a_newfangled_technology_in_my_soup

August 8, 2011

Waiter, There's a Newfangled Technology in My Soup

The unregulated nanotech industry is spreading through

the U.S. food

system.

By

Ranallo

The U.S. food system has a new bedfellow, and it may already be on your

plate.

Increasingly, the coatings that keep supermarket produce fresh-looking

and the chemicals used in pesticide-intensive farming are incorporating

nanotechnology ­ a technology still in its infancy. Is it safe? And,

perhaps more importantly, is it really necessary?

Nanotechnology, put simply, is the science of manipulating materials at

tiny atomic levels to enhance or create certain novel properties that can

often only be seen with a microscope. In agriculture, one of the

applications of nanotechnology involves increasing the plant surface area

to which toxic pesticides are effectively applied ­ reducing the amount

of pesticides needed. The risk? Making the pesticide more

" available " to plants could also make it more available to the

farmworkers that apply it or to the consumers eventually handling the

produce and eating their fruits and veggies.

Currently, like all other U.S. agencies, the Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA) has no regulations to ensure that nanotechnology products

introduced into the market are safe for human health and the environment.

As the estimated 888 million pounds of pesticides applied annually in the

U.S. gradually employ more and more nanotechnology, all under the EPA's

purview, regulators have a lot of catching up to do.

The potential risks identified in laboratory experiments could have major

consequences. For instance, according to the Institute for Agriculture

and Trade Policy's (IATP) latest report, " Racing Ahead: U.S.

Agri-Nanotechnology in the Absence of Regulation, " Chinese

researchers have discovered in animal testing that the absorption of

nano-silver could interfere with the replication of DNA molecules and

possibly reroute molecular networks, causing genetic mutations. While

several companies have applied to allow pesticides with nano-silver into

the marketplace, the EPA believes there are already unapproved and

unregulated pesticides with nano-silver being used.

Encouragingly, the EPA, along with the Food and Drug Administration

(FDA), has taken the first step toward regulation and issued draft

voluntary guidance to industry on reporting nano-pesticide data and

studies, but there is still much to be done. Currently, if the FDA does

not object to a company's determination that a material is safe, a

company could incorporate the material's nano-sized counterpart into

products without reporting it to the FDA. This lack of oversight is cause

for concern.

Nanotechnology in the food system extends beyond pesticide use.

Nanomaterial residues in coated produce that could potentially fail to be

washed away by consumers are already reportedly being exported from Latin

America to the United States ­ without safety assessment or

regulation.

With the myriad of potential risks to health, worker safety, and the

environment, it seems like a no-brainer that nanotechnology developers

should be required to submit safety and environmental data for agency

review before going to market. While U.S. agencies debate how much to

regulate products with nanomaterials, they continue to be developed and

deployed ­ some as part of the U.S. food system.

Is the use of nanotechnology in food production really necessary? Are the

potential risks to health and the environment worth the claimed benefits?

Probably not. Strategies already exist for reducing pesticide use in food

production, and it's certainly more affordable for us to avert a food

safety crisis than to deal with its aftermath. While the agencies' first

step toward regulation is encouraging, it's likely not enough to inspire

companies to publicly self-regulate, since many of their applications are

classified as confidential business information.

The EPA's draft guidance is open to public comment until August 17. Let's

hope the message from commenters is clear: Collect all of the data on

nanotechnology before putting U.S. farmworkers and consumers at

risk.

Ranallo is the communications associate at the Institute for

Agriculture and Trade Policy.

www.iatp.org

Sheri Nakken, former R.N., MA, Hahnemannian

Homeopath

Vaccination Information & Choice Network, Washington State, USA

Vaccines -

http://vaccinationdangers.wordpress.com/ Homeopathy

http://homeopathycures.wordpress.com

Vaccine Dangers, Childhood Disease Classes & Homeopathy

Online/email courses - next classes start September 9

[Guest guest]

you have to eat organic

live organic

they will not stop with their thirst for money

http://www.otherwords.org/articles/waiter_theres_a_newfangled_technology_in_my_soup

August 8, 2011

Waiter, There's a Newfangled Technology in My Soup

The unregulated nanotech industry is spreading through

the U.S. food

system.

By

Ranallo

The U.S. food system has a new bedfellow, and it may already be on your

plate.

Increasingly, the coatings that keep supermarket produce fresh-looking

and the chemicals used in pesticide-intensive farming are incorporating

nanotechnology ­ a technology still in its infancy. Is it safe? And,

perhaps more importantly, is it really necessary?

Nanotechnology, put simply, is the science of manipulating materials at

tiny atomic levels to enhance or create certain novel properties that can

often only be seen with a microscope. In agriculture, one of the

applications of nanotechnology involves increasing the plant surface area

to which toxic pesticides are effectively applied ­ reducing the amount

of pesticides needed. The risk? Making the pesticide more

" available " to plants could also make it more available to the

farmworkers that apply it or to the consumers eventually handling the

produce and eating their fruits and veggies.

Currently, like all other U.S. agencies, the Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA) has no regulations to ensure that nanotechnology products

introduced into the market are safe for human health and the environment.

As the estimated 888 million pounds of pesticides applied annually in the

U.S. gradually employ more and more nanotechnology, all under the EPA's

purview, regulators have a lot of catching up to do.

The potential risks identified in laboratory experiments could have major

consequences. For instance, according to the Institute for Agriculture

and Trade Policy's (IATP) latest report, " Racing Ahead: U.S.

Agri-Nanotechnology in the Absence of Regulation, " Chinese

researchers have discovered in animal testing that the absorption of

nano-silver could interfere with the replication of DNA molecules and

possibly reroute molecular networks, causing genetic mutations. While

several companies have applied to allow pesticides with nano-silver into

the marketplace, the EPA believes there are already unapproved and

unregulated pesticides with nano-silver being used.

Encouragingly, the EPA, along with the Food and Drug Administration

(FDA), has taken the first step toward regulation and issued draft

voluntary guidance to industry on reporting nano-pesticide data and

studies, but there is still much to be done. Currently, if the FDA does

not object to a company's determination that a material is safe, a

company could incorporate the material's nano-sized counterpart into

products without reporting it to the FDA. This lack of oversight is cause

for concern.

Nanotechnology in the food system extends beyond pesticide use.

Nanomaterial residues in coated produce that could potentially fail to be

washed away by consumers are already reportedly being exported from Latin

America to the United States ­ without safety assessment or

regulation.

With the myriad of potential risks to health, worker safety, and the

environment, it seems like a no-brainer that nanotechnology developers

should be required to submit safety and environmental data for agency

review before going to market. While U.S. agencies debate how much to

regulate products with nanomaterials, they continue to be developed and

deployed ­ some as part of the U.S. food system.

Is the use of nanotechnology in food production really necessary? Are the

potential risks to health and the environment worth the claimed benefits?

Probably not. Strategies already exist for reducing pesticide use in food

production, and it's certainly more affordable for us to avert a food

safety crisis than to deal with its aftermath. While the agencies' first

step toward regulation is encouraging, it's likely not enough to inspire

companies to publicly self-regulate, since many of their applications are

classified as confidential business information.

The EPA's draft guidance is open to public comment until August 17. Let's

hope the message from commenters is clear: Collect all of the data on

nanotechnology before putting U.S. farmworkers and consumers at

risk.

Ranallo is the communications associate at the Institute for

Agriculture and Trade Policy.

www.iatp.org

Sheri Nakken, former R.N., MA, Hahnemannian

Homeopath

Vaccination Information & Choice Network, Washington State, USA

Vaccines -

http://vaccinationdangers.wordpress.com/ Homeopathy

http://homeopathycures.wordpress.com

Vaccine Dangers, Childhood Disease Classes & Homeopathy

Online/email courses - next classes start September 9