Blog

August 30 , 2018- Mission Viejo. Moms Across America applauds the decision by the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) of the California Environmental Protection Agency (CA EPA). Today is the day that the long-awaited changes go into effect for companies, manufacturers, and any responsible parties in the supply chain of exposing the public to harmful chemicals. From this day forward anyone exposing the public to chemicals known to cause cancer or reproductive harm in California must have warnings in place as follows or face a $2,500 fine per day, per violation.

Zen Honeycutt of Mom Across America stated, “We are thrilled that companies will now have to state specifically, by name, which chemical they are being exposed to. The public has a right to know.However, we are outraged that glyphosate, which is on the Prop 65 list and is sprayed on our food and around our schools and parks, will not be included because Monsanto sued the CA EPA to stop the labeling. This is an injustice to the American public which must be corrected immediately.”  Glyphosate herbicides were the subject of a recent lawsuit in which the plaintiff Dwayne Lee Johnson was awarded 289.2 million dollars from Monsanto for the causation of his non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma,which he was exposed to while wearing protective gear as a school pesticide applicator

According to 30 years of EPA policy, normally glyphosate, which was placed on the Prop 65 list in 2017, would be included in this regulation. All products, such as Roundup sold in Home Depot,  would need to carry this warning today. All pesticide applicators would need to be informed that they were using products which cause cancer, and all farmers would see warning labels on their bulk purchases of glyphosate herbicides which they spray on our food crops.  However, Monsanto sued the CA EPA and the judge granted them a temporary injunction which stopped the labeling of glyphosate herbicides. Their reasoning was that Monsanto had the right to “free speech” meaning they and the other clients in the lawsuit, such as the Wheat Growers Association, had the right to not speak about whether their products or food ingredients contained a probable carcinogen. Nevermind that they also have the free will to make or use a chemical which exposes the public unknowingly to a carcinogen.

Mom and daughter team reveals Monsanto's lies! 

August 16, 2018 - Today Mckenzie Feldman sent me this video, which she filmed at the Hawaii State Farm Fair http://www.hawaiistatefarmfair.org in 2015. Her mother, the woman speaking in the film, fearlessly asks the Monsanto employee about his perspective on the use of Roundup. We applaud the courage it took to make this film and we acknowledge this dynamic mother-daughter team! Way to go!

We would like to add that this employee, not to excuse his choices but to put it into perspective, simply believed what his employer told him. We know there are thousands of people who work at Monsanto, many of them good people who want to provide for their families, that have been just as hoodwinked as the rest of us. This does not excuse the behavior of misleading the public, however. We ask that anyone who works at any company be responsible for having a job which contributes to the safety of our planet instead of polluting it. If your company is poisoning people, find another job! Be creative and do what inspires you!

PRESS RELEASE

Oxford Connecticut Retires Roundup and Goes Organic
Northeast Horticultural Services Chosen to Manage Organic Vegetation Control

STRATFORD, CT, August 11, 2018 – Oxford, CT residents can breathe a sigh of relief. Glyphosate-based herbicides such as Roundup, Rodeo and Ranger Pro will no longer be sprayed in their park and on their sidewalks. These carcinogenic herbicides are currently the hot topic in legal circles- the Johnson v Monsanto trial verdict was just announced yesterday and glyphosate herbicide manufacturer Monsanto was found guilty and fined 289.2 million dollars for failing to label their product as a carcinogen and for malice- intentionally covering up that they knew their product was carcinogenic. The plaintiff, Dwayne “Lee” Johnson a school pesticide applicator, used Roundup and Rodeo, had a few accidents, and despite wearing protective gear, he was exposed to the chemicals. He now has Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma and tumors on 80% of his body. Lee has a wife and two children and is not expected, by his doctors, to live longer than two years.

GREAT, AMAZING, FANTASTIC, WONDROUS NEWS!

Dewayne "Lee" Johnson, a school pesticide applicator with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, WINS his lawsuit against Monsanto! The jury (God Bless them) awarded Johnson 289.2 million dollars! 4000 other plaintiffs are waiting to sue Monsanto and 10,0000 are expected by the end of the year. Surely this decision has Bayer, who now owns Monsanto, reconsidering whether or not to continue to sell glyphosate-based products.

This is a huge win for humanity! Corporations around the world now get that they must take responsibility for the impact of their products! 

Watch the verdict here: 

US Court demands that the EPA must ban chlorpyrifos in 60 days! Chlorpyrifos, a chemical sprayed on food crops, is a known neurotoxin, especially to children, and was supposed to be banned last year. But the ban was revoked by the current administration. Coincidentally, the ban dismissal was enacted after Trump held a meeting with the CEO of Dow, the manufacturers of the chemical, who gave a 1.2 million dollar donation to his campaign. At Moms Across America, we believe that no matter who we vote for, what our political inclinations are, that every public figure has a responsibility to protect our children. This behavior is reprehensible, and we are glad that the courts have the power to reverse that decision and reinstate the ban. We simply cannot allow big business to harm our little kids.

Transcripts of the closing arguments here.

Johnson's lawyer's slides here.

Also, in the news is Monsanto on trial and Robert F. Kennedy Jr - one of the lawyers suing Monsanto for the link to Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Watch his stellar interview here.

We are so glad he addressed all the health issues we moms have been talking about for years now - and that the media is covering this issue!!!!

Yesterday was a fascinating, infuriating, inspiring, and extremely complicated day. The closing statements of the Johnson v Monsanto trial were the lawyers final chance to persuade the jury to either hold Monsanto accountable for not labeling their product as a carcinogen ( leading to John's non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma) or believe the chemical company when they say their products are safe. Watch the NBC news coverage which includes  Zen Honeycutt of Moms Across America!

In the packed San Franciso courtroom, Johnson's lawyer, Brent Wisner did an excellent job of showing that:

1. Monsanto's Roundup and RangerPro can promote cancer and cause tumor growth.
   
   
2. Monsanto knew this well before Johnson called them to ask if exposure could be connected to his lesions...and yet the doctor responsible failed to return his call.
   
   
3. Monsanto failed to warn consumers with label or safety precautions.

To see the video recap of my interview on Facebook LIVE with Kelly Ryerson of GlyphosateGirl.com who has attended every day of the trial, click here.

To see some of the choice soundbites from the trial, follow Zen on Twitter:

The EPA still has yet to deliver their decision on whether to renew glyphosate for another 15 years or revoke its license. They have been "reviewing" glyphosate for over 10 years.

We continue to remind the EPA of their responsibility to include real science and to protect people and animals, not the profits of the corporations. Here is a recent letter to the EPA. Feel free to use the links to tell your local officials that they need to discontinue the use of glyphosate herbicides.

Dear EPA Pesticide Review Board,

In light of recent studies, we are looking forward to your review of glyphosate-based herbicides (GBH) resulting in the refusal of the license of glyphosate.

South Koreans Collaborate with Japan and USA Groups to Raise GMO Health Risk Awareness

By Zen Honeycutt, Moms Across America

July 19, 2018 in Seoul, South Korea, for the first time, South Koreans hosted a Tri-Lateral Korea-US-Japan Symposium on the Consumer Right to Know GMO Labeling System.  Over 200 gathered, including grassroots leaders, professors, food producers, concerned citizens, and National Assemblymen to discuss the health risks of GMOs and GMO labeling. South Korea has good reason to be concerned, they are the world’s largest importer of GMOs for human consumption and the health conditions of their citizens are skyrocketing.

South Korea has the highest recorded rates of pervasive developmental delays in the world. South Korea’s rates of autism are also extremely high, the last reported rates were 2 X higher than US autism rates in 2012. The rates of both autism and pervasive development delays correlate with the high amounts of agrochemicals used per unit in the relatively small countries of Japan and South Korea. The ingestion of chemicals due to agrochemical farming has not been of concern for the past two decades, but speakers at the conference discussed studies released over the past 5 years that show serious harm from GMOs and the most widely used glyphosate herbicides in the world. 80% of GMOs are engineered to withstand Monsanto’s flagship Roundup product (glyphosate herbicide), which is now used generically in over 750 brands around the world and has been linked to cancer, liver disease, and many health risks. The destruction of gut bacteria, which glyphosate has been shown to cause, has been linked to autism-like symptoms in rats. Reproductive changes due to the hormonal impact of glyphosate can also lead to developmental delays. New studies showing glyphosate herbicides' impact on the second generation of female rats, impacting fertility, point to great concern regarding the possible link to Korea's low birth rate as well.

Article by Kathleen Furey

Millennial Appeal

Millennials who’ve watched Cowspiracy, or are health conscious and motivated to explore a vegetarian or vegan lifestyle, are targeted to save the planet by eating this "low-impact” food. Designed to convert meat eaters to a “plant based” ⁱ burger, it can now be ordered as a meat alternative at restaurants in many cities around the US. But, what is The Impossible Burger made of?

Nowhere do they claim that Impossible Burger ingredients are USDA Certified Organic. One look at the Impossible Burger package ingredients list tells any well-educated eater why: wheat, potato proteins, coconut oil, “other nutrients”, natural flavors and 2% or less of the following: leghemoglobin (soy), yeast extract, salt, soy protein isolate, konjac gum, xanthan gum, thiamin (vitamin B1), zinc, niacin, vitamin B6, riboflavin (vitamin B2), and vitamin B12. Many ingredients such as soy, potatoes, and several others, are genetically engineered (GMO) in a lab. GMO food products in the US today require no package label to identify them.