Bernard Sanders: “I am deeply concerned about the entire process by which the FDA approved Monsanto's rBGH, as well as their recently…”

“I am deeply concerned about the entire process by which the FDA approved Monsanto's rBGH, as well as their recently published labeling guidelines. The Food and Drug Administration can only blame itself for the growing opposition to Monsanto's bovine growth hormone rBGH, the synthetic drug that will force cows to produce 20 percent more milk than they naturally do. FDA says they found rBGH safe. More accurately, they found that rBGH is a manageable risk. Unfortunately, it is an unnecessary risk that comes with no benefits. FDA says that no significant difference has been found between the milk from cows treated with rBGH and untreated cows. They don't say that rBGH treatments do change the composition of milk, and do result in synthetic rBGH residues in milk. FDA takes the position that rBGH milk can't be labeled because there is no way to test for rBGH residues. Why not? The American Medical Association's Scientific Advisory Council states, matter of factly, that a test could be devised to detect synthetic rBGH in the milk from rBST treated animals. Other independent scientists also say an rBGH residue test can be developed. Why hasn't FDA required it? Because Monsanto knows that, given the choice, consumers will reject milk produced with synthetic hormones. Sadly, the FDA's new labeling guidance not only discourages labeling, it has become the basis for Monsanto's lawsuits against companies who want to label.”