("Quid coniuratio est?")
BOVINE GROWTH HORMONE (BGH)
This qualifies for conspiracy status because (1) whether or not BGH has been involved in the production of the milk you drink is kept secret from you; i.e. look in vain on the milk carton for information as to whether BGH was used; (2) there may have been collusion between FDA, Monsanto Chemicals, and vice-President Al Gore, Tipper Gore, Michael Taylor, and David Kessler in pushing to get BGH approved; according to Sherman Skolnick, there is a scandal beneath the surface. Here is what Skolnick had to say as reported in the March 22, 1994 "Conspiracy for the Day":
Involving hundreds of millions of dollars is milk bovine hormone by Monsanto Chemicals. It speeds up milk production. However, it causes the cows to be over-used and develop infections which have to be treated with antibiotics. Pasteurization tends to conceal all this. However milk drinkers, particularly children, are greatly at risk.
The head of the Food and Drug Administration [FDA] has been David Kessler(sp?), carried over from the Bush administration. His chief deputy is Mike Taylor, a cousin of Al Gore's wife, Tipper. Taylor was previously chief outside counsel for Monsanto.
About February '94, top FDA honcho Taylor caused to be issued an advisory opinion that labelling is not required that a product is bovine hormone free.
The following is info I received from an organization called "Farm Aid" which is dedicated to helping the family farm to survive. Every summer for about the past 8 years they have put on an outdoor music concert which has featured such volunteer performers as Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, John Cougar Mellencamp, Willie Nelson, a band called Black 47, and many others. Proceeds from the concerts have gone to help small farmers.
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[Excerpts only]
Dear Friend of Farm Aid,
You and I have an important choice. The trouble is -- right now milk cartons don't have enough information so that we can make a real choice!
We've got milk on the shelves now from cows injected with a genetically engineered drug called Bovine Growth Hormone or BGH. This drug is injected into cows to boost milk production. The government has just approved the sale of BGH, but does not require a label on milk from BGH-injected cows.
-+- We Don't Need BGH -+-
BGH may be bad for your health. No long-term studies have been conducted on the effect of this drug for humans. What we do know is that cows get more infections with BGH. When cows get infections they need antibiotics -- which might contaminate our milk. When we are exposed to antibiotics on a daily basis, they won't work when we are sick and really need them.
BGH is bad for cows. Cows that are injected with BGH have a higher rate of painful udder infections. Cows become sick and exhausted as their bodies are forced to produce all that extra milk.
BGH is bad for family dairy farms. Many of your local family dairy farmers who refuse to inject their cows will be forced out of business. Since there is already a glut of milk on the market, the price the farmer gets for the milk will drop.
So why on earth is this drug on the market? Because some powerful companies expect to profit enormously from BGH -- the chemical companies that developed this drug and some of [the] dairy processors who sell milk products to you.
Unfortunately, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has gone ahead and approved the use of this drug over the protests of farmers and consumers.
Even worse, the FDA did not require retailers to label dairy products produced with BGH. You will have a tough time finding milk which is labeled.
It may be too late to ban BGH. But it's not too late to make sure dairy processors label their products.
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To contact Farm Aid or to make a donation to help them in their
fight for labelling of BGH products, write to them at
Farm Aid
P.O. Box 228
Champaign, IL 61824-0228
They also suggest sending a note such as the following to your grocer:
Note to my grocer:
I'm concerned.
I have been purchasing milk in your store and consider myself a good customer.
I want milk for my family from BGH-free cows. Please make sure every milk product has a label so I can make the right choice for me and my family.
Thank you.
I encourage distribution of "Conspiracy Nation."
"Justice" = "Just us" = "History is written by the assassins."