From: Center for Food Safety [action@foodsafetynow.org] Sent: Friday, March 16, 2001 12:05 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 deeply concerned about your new policies on genetically engineered (GE) foods. Despite overwhelming consumer demand, your agency still fails to require safety testing and mandatory labeling for GE foods. This irresponsibility ignores strong scientific evidence of the numerous potential health and environmental risks from GE foods. I'm sure you are aware that these foods could be toxic, could cause allergic responses, could have lower nutritional value, could compromise immune responses in consumers, and could cause irreparable damage to the environment. I am also greatly opposed to your new “voluntary labeling” policy, which potentially denies consumers a basic right to know. Without mandatory labeling, it is likely that neither consumers nor health professionals will know if an allergic or toxic reaction was the result of a genetically engineered food. Consumers will also be deprived of the critical knowledge they need to hold food producers responsible should any of these novel foods prove hazardous. Your proposed rules ignore these serious concerns, and appear to be decisions based on industry desires and convenience at the expense of public health and the environment. I protest your attempt to make me a guinea pig of these untested foods! I trust you will take my concern, along with the thousands of others, into serious consideration. Sincerely, Belynda Saturley 13304 Jefferson Commons Herndon, VA, 20171 CC: The President Vice President Dick Cheney FDA Dockets Management [Docket No. 00N-1396] Senator John W. Warner Senator George Allen Representative Frank R. Wolf Representative Thomas M. Davis, IIIFDA 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