From: wakim [rawakim@visitus.net]
Sent: Saturday, March 24, 2001 1:24 PM
To: fdadockets@oc.fda.gov
Subject: Genetically Engineered Food.

Dear FDA Administrator,
 
In view of the crisis hitting Europe, and recently the US,  because of the Mad Cow Disease and the Foot and Mouth desease, I'm surprised that the FDA is negligent when it comes to requiring and/or enforcing rules and regulations related to the unproven and new on the market Genetically Engineered food. 
After all prevention is better than cure.
 
I beleive that the FDA should take the following actions:

* The FDA must require mandatory pre-market comprehensive 
  environmental review. Unlike conventional pollutants, 
  where a given amount of pollutant causes a limited amount 
  of damage, a small number of mutant genes could have a 
  population explosion and reproduce forever, causing 
  unlimited and irreparable damage.

* The FDA must require mandatory pre-market long-term health 
  testing. GE products could be toxic, cause allergic 
  responses, have lower nutritional value, and compromise 
  immune responses in consumers.

* The FDA must require mandatory labeling of GE products. 
  Without mandatory labeling, neither consumers nor health 
  professionals will know if an allergic or toxic reaction 
  was the result of a genetically engineered food. Consumers 
  would be deprived of the critical knowledge needed to hold 
  food producers liable should any of these novel products 
  be hazardous.

* The FDA must end its cozy relationship with the industries
  it purports to be regulating. People have been allowed to 
  work for a biotech company, then work for the FDA writing the 
  regulatory rules on that company's product, then go back to
  working for the company.  Ninety-two percent of FDA advisory 
  committee meetings had at least one conflict of interest.


Thank you,

R W.