From: Center for Food Safety [action@foodsafetynow.org]
Sent: Monday, March 12, 2001 7:41 PM
To: FDA Commissioner
Cc: president@whitehouse.gov; vice.president@whitehouse.gov;
fdadockets@oc.fda.gov; fdadockets@oc.fda.gov
Subject: Oppose the New FDA Regulations on GE Foods!

FDA Commissioner 
Dockets Management Branch (HFA 305)
Food and Drug Administration
5630 Fisher's Lane, rm. 1061
Rockville, MD 20852

RE: Docket No. 00N-1396, and 00D-1598

Dear FDA,
 
I am disappointed and outraged by your new policies on genetically 
 engineered (GE)foods. There is no excuse for your failure to require 
safety testing and mandatory labeling for GE foods. Your “notification” 
policy is completely inadequate and ignores strong scientific evidence of 
numerous potential health and environmental risks to GE foods. Without 
independent testing, we have no idea if these foods are toxic, could cause 
allergic responses, could have lower nutrition value, could compromise 
immune responses or cause other long-term health problems in consumers, or 
could cause irreparable damage to the environment. 

I am also strongly opposed to your new “voluntary labeling” policy, which 
denies consumers a basic right to know. Without mandatory labeling, 
neither consumers nor health professionals will know if an allergic or 
toxic reaction was the result of a genetically engineered food. While this 
appears to be an attempt to deprive consumers of the critical knowledge 
they need to hold food producers liable, it is not likely to forestall 
lawsuits and will probably only increase them due to the atmosphere of 
distrust it creates. 

Your proposed rules ignore serious concerns, and appear to be a decision 
made to convenience industry at the expense of public health and the 
environment. I will not accept your attempt to make me a guinea pig of 
these untested foods, and I trust you will take my concern along with the 
thousands of others into serious consideration.


Sincerely,



Karen Moser
1119 Brooke Rd
Capitol Hts, MD, 20743

CC: 
The President
Vice President Dick Cheney
FDA Dockets Management [Docket No. 00N-1396]
Senator Paul S. Sarbanes
Senator Barbara A. Mikulski
Representative Albert Russell WynnFDA Dockets Management [Docket No. 
00D-1598]


To the recipient -- this fax/email message has come to you via the Center 
for Food Safety web site -- a public tool for providing input on food 
safety issues. The user/site visitor had complete control over editing the 
content of this message.  Thus, the opinions expressed in this message are 
not necessarily those of CFS or its parent organization, ICTA.  Please 
contact CFS at (202)547-9359 or email office@centerforfoodsafety.org with 
any questions.  Thank you.

___________________________________________________________________________
This letter was composed at www.foodsafetynow.org, a web site maintained 
by:
The Center for Food Safety, 666 Pennsylvania Ave, SE, Suite 302
Washington, DC 20003 
PH: (202)547-9359    Fax: (202)547-9429    
Email: office@centerforfoodsafety.org
web: www.centerforfoodsafety.org