Christian Vegetarian Association Blog - USDA Does Not Stand Up for People’s Health


	CVA BLOG

USDA Does Not Stand Up for People’s Health
September 17, 2012

Welcome to the weekly CVA blog! In it you will find famous quotes, news and commentaries.

Big Ag Dominates USDA

Famous Quote: Virgil

Dairy Doesn’t Belong at Schools

Bible verse: (RSV) Colossians 1:11

USDA Proposed Changes are Insane

This Week’s Video: Dietary Guidelines: Just Say No

1. Big Ag Dominates USDA

Once again the USDA has shown complete submission to the livestock industry; this time by retracting their support to “Meatless Mondays”, an initiative of the nonprofit Monday Campaign Inc. and the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, which already thousands of corporate cafeterias and schools have adopted. “Meatless Mondays” countless benefits are obvious to our health, the environment and animals. However, the USDA seems unable to stand on its own for what is right.

Please visit Retracting a Plug for Meatless Mondays
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/26/us/usda-newsletter-retracts-a-meatless-mondays-plug.html?_r=1

2. This Week’s Famous Quote

The greatest wealth is health.

~ Virgil

3. Dairy Doesn’t Belong at Schools

The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) has petitioned the federal government to remove milk as a required food from the school lunch program. PCRM explains that scientific evidence shows milk does not improve bone health and actually has negative effects on human health due to its high fat and cholesterol content. Sadly, the federal government spends more money on dairy than any other food item in the school lunch program.

Please visit Doctors Petition USDA to Remove Milk as Required Food from School Lunches:
http://www.pcrm.org/media/news/petition-usda-remove-milk-required-school-lunches

Humans are the only species that drink milk past infancy and from another species. Cow’s milk not only is it unhealthy for us but it also leads to the brutal exploitation of cows and their babies. Unhealthy, cruel, devastating for the environment… The dairy industry has no place in a loving, healthy, joyful and compassionate world.

4. This Week’s Bible Verse

(RSV) Colossians 1:11

“May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy,…”

In a world beset of suffering and death we may find ourselves sometimes overwhelmed by the seemingly powerlessness to change things. However, as creations of God, we have been endowed with His/Her essence of Love, which gives us the power, the endurance and the patience to keep doing our best to make the world a better place… and with joy!

5. USDA Proposed Changes are Insane

In order to cut costs and speed up the slaughter line at chicken slaughter houses, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is proposing changes that, frankly, will make chicken flesh more unsafe than it is now for consumers. Sadly, it will also make chicken slaughter more cruel, as if this were possible. Some of the proposed changes include: using workers in chicken and turkey plants to replace all but one federal inspector on the conveyor belt, where bad birds are removed from the production line; letting those plants decide how much training their workers receive in identifying diseased or defected birds; enabling plants to speed up their slaughter lines so that the sole federal inspector, stationed at the end of the line, would be required to view up to 175 birds per minute; and letting poultry plants decide what dangerous bacteria they test carcasses for and how often they test, and no longer require plants to test for E. coli. Please visit Playing chicken on food safety

It’s undeniable that the interests of the USDA and the animal agriculture industry are not consumers’ health, animals or the environment. Their interests are profit and power. However, the world is changing and more people are learning about the devastating effects of the Western diet on God’s creation; and these people can no longer escape the inevitable truth: either we change our ways or much misery is going to result. Transitioning to a plant-based diet is of paramount importance and clearly shows how much we care for all beings and the planet.

6. This Week’s Video

What happens when the twin mandates of the USDA to both promote agribusiness and protect our nation’s health come into conflict? Dr. Michael Greger, once again, encurages people to make the right dietary choices and say “no” to what potentially could affect our health in negative ways.

Please visit Dietary Guidelines: Just Say No:
http://nutritionfacts.org/video/dietary-guidelines-just-say-no/

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