Pet food recall got me thinking...

[Love2Travel Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Love2Travel]

My DH farms, and the trend the last few years around here in agriculture has been to either set aside ground for future organic crops, or to turn toward growing crops for alternative fuels. Although both are currently more lucrative options to traditional farming, that has caused an increase in importing grain, particularly from South America and China, to meet demands for our country's food supply. After all the hub-bub from the dog food rrecall recently due to tainted grain products (wheat) from china being placed in dog food, I am wondering if this is all such a good thing. Any thoughts out there?

[lawren2 Malibu Beach Barbie & A Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close lawren2]

My DH farms, and the trend the last few years around here in agriculture has been to either set aside ground for future organic crops, or to turn toward growing crops for alternative fuels. Although both are currently more lucrative options to traditional farming, that has caused an increase in importing grain, particularly from South America and China, to meet demands for our country's food supply. After all the hub-bub from the dog food rrecall recently due to tainted grain products (wheat) from china being placed in dog food, I am wondering if this is all such a good thing. Any thoughts out there?

Amy

This is a very scarey thought!

There was a report recently that our milk costs are going up >$3/gallon. I just paid $3.25 and I heard $3.60 down in the city. The blame in the report was placed on alternative fuels but no mention that feed is being imported for the cows.

I wonder since the promotion within the FDA to look at pet foods what kind of precautions are being set up to look at animal feed grains that are also being imported.

Not only is my concern for the human food supply here in North America but also for my dear horses.

I really should call my dear friend who is a global dairy nutritionalist and professor in Wisconsin to see what she has heard regarding this situation.

[katiemack Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close katiemack]

I really should call my dear friend who is a global dairy nutritionalist and professor in Wisconsin to see what she has heard regarding this situation.

These very same thoughts have come to my mind too. It isn't just our dear beloved animals, but we ourselves are at greater and greater risk, as the FDA and importation rules are not doing the job to protect us. As China grows, their exporting is growing, and we weaken as we give up farms and industry. We are very vulnerable.

Lawren, if you do talk to your friend, please post what you hear! Thanks.

[taffy19 Gold Contributor Find all posts View Profile Close taffy19]

I really should call my dear friend who is a global dairy nutritionalist and professor in Wisconsin to see what she has heard regarding this situation.

Lawren, will you let us know what she says? TIA.

[lawren2 Malibu Beach Barbie & A Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close lawren2]

Lawren, will you let us know what she says? TIA.

Of course I will. We are overdue for a talk. I have known and loved MB since we were in high school together. S he is very highly regarded and travels extensively. Many publishings etc. If she doesn't know what's up no one does.

Have you heard about the poultry that are being held for being fed Chinese imported feed?

I'm about to turn my whopping third acre over to garden space at this point.

[kapish Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close kapish]

Poison in children's cough(?) syrup

Here is another article related to all this...
Complete news article here:Poison sold as glycerin was made in China | Chron.com - Houston Chronicle

Syrupy killer in medicine bottle
Records show in 3 of last 4 global cases, the poison sold as glycerin was made in China

[parts of the story is pasted below]
Toxic syrup has figured in at least eight mass poisonings around the world in the past two decades. Researchers estimate that thousands have died. In many cases, the origin of the poison hasn't been determined.

But records and interviews show that in three of the last four cases it was made in China .

Panama is the most recent victim. Last year, government officials there unwittingly mixed diethylene glycol into 260,000 bottles of cold medicine — with devastating results. Families have reported 365 deaths from the poison, 100 of which have been confirmed.

With the onset of the rainy season, investigators are racing to exhume as many potential victims as possible before bodies decompose even more.

Panama's death toll leads directly to Chinese companies that made and exported the poison as 99.5 percent pure glycerin. Forty-six barrels of the toxic syrup arrived via a poison pipeline stretching halfway around the world.

Through shipping records and interviews with government officials, The New York Times traced this pipeline from the Panamanian port of Colon, back through trading companies in Barcelona, Spain, and Beijing, to its beginning near the Yangtze Delta in a place local people call "chemical country."

The counterfeit glycerin passed through three trading companies on three continents, yet not one of them tested the syrup to confirm what was on the label. Along the way, a certificate falsely attesting to the purity of the shipment was repeatedly altered, eliminating the name of the manufacturer and previous owner.

[katiemack Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close katiemack]

kapish, thanks for that link....what will happen as we continue to loosen our trade regs and lose our own manufacturing here? I feel as though we are slowly committing suicide as a nation. I have friends who have invested in China because they want the fast $$, and they have tried to get us to join in...but we refuse to do so, when asked why, the only answer at that time was "because it feels unpatriotic"....they laughed...now, after reading this, I feel we were wise.

[Glitter Brunello Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Glitter Brunello]

I went to see Barbara Kingsolver speak the other day on the importance of local foods, and she read from her new book "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle."

Basically, she and her family comitted to live for an entire year on foods they either grew/raised themselves, or purchased locally.

It was a major eye-opener for me. I am going to have trouble ever buying poultry again, and I will definitely be making an effort to buy local produce whenever possible.

Based on the excerpts she read aloud, I would highly recommend the book. Though vastly different from her usual novel, it is chock full of her brilliant wit, and a real wake-up call.

[katiemack Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close katiemack]

I love B. K., did she say what they did after the year was up?

[Glitter Brunello Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Glitter Brunello]

I love B. K., did she say what they did after the year was up?

In the Q & A, she said that they really haven't changed much since then, and that it was really a life-changing experience. I would guess they have relaxed the rules a bit, but they have a 3500 sf garden and continue to raise their own poultry. They live in Appalachia, where there is a strong network of local farmers. She really is trying to change the way we think about food, and raise awareness about food politics, the effects of food transportation on oil consumption, etc..., so I don't think she'll be throwing in the towel anytime soon.

btw, I had no idea that this was the topic of her new book. If I had known, I probably wouldn't have gone, but I was really glad I did.

[katiemack Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close katiemack]

She used to live outside of Tucson, I didn't realize she had moved. So, what did she tell you about poultry that makes you think twice?

[kapish Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close kapish]

More recalls -- more concerns!

BBC NEWS | Americas | US checks toothpaste for toxins

US checks toothpaste for toxins

Toothpaste is the latest Chinese export to raise safety concerns
Health officials in the United States say they are checking all shipments of toothpaste imported from China for contamination with toxic chemicals.

Panama and the Dominican Republic have reported finding diethylene glycol, a chemical used in engine coolants, in toothpaste from China.

The toothpaste scare is the latest involving products from China.

Earlier this year, contaminated pet food ingredients killed a number of cats and dogs in North America.

The toxic chemical, melamine, was found in wheat gluten exports from China for use in pet food, prompting a recall of at least 100 pet food brands.

The tainted wheat gluten was even thought to have made its way into livestock feed.