June 15, 2006 · Issue 84
ORGANIC BYTES
www.organicconsumers.org
Tip of the Week: Maintaining
a Healthy Organic Lawn
• There’s no need to water more than an inch
per week. Over-watering is unhealthy for
lawns and invites lawn disease. Placing a tuna
can under the sprinkler will help gauge water
depth. Water early in the morning to avoid
excessive evaporation from midday sun.
• Taller grass has deeper roots, causing the
plants to need less watering. Set mower
height to 3 inches and cut grass when it
reaches 4.5 inches.
• Sharpen mower blades. Dull blades harm grass
blades, inviting disease.
• Return grass clippings to the lawn. Grass
mulching decreases weeds up to 60% and is
a natural fertilizer.
• Avoid cheap grass seed, as it typically has
weed seeds mixed in. Get good quality peren-
nial rye and fescue seeds.
• Each time you mow, try alternating your pat-
tern and path. This prevents the soil from
compacting.
• Soil biota helps provide a stable healthy lawn.
If your lawn has been treated chemically, it
will take a couple of years for the soil micro-
organisms to rebuild.
Written and edited by
Craig Minowa & Ronnie Cummins
Health, Justice, & Sustainability News Tidbits with an Edge… From the Organic Consumers Association
Please forward this publication to family and friends, websites, print it, & post it. Knowledge is power!
Take Action: Approving
USDA Close to
GE Plums
The United Sates Department of Agriculture (USDA) is now accept-
ing public comments regarding the commercial approval of a genet-
ically engineered plum, known as “C5.” The approval of C5 would be
the first widely released genetically engineered (GE) tree in the United
States. Approval of C5 will also pave the way for more GE tree and
fruit varieties, including peaches, cherries, and apricots. GE tree pol-
len can drift for several miles, leading to contamination of neighbor-
ing organic crops and indigenous trees. The USDA is currently accepting
public comments on this issue.
Learn more and Take Action: www.organicconsumers.org/plum_alert.htm
Donate to the OCA: www.organicconsumers.org/donations.htm
LA Police Invade Nation’s Largest Community Garden
Armed police stormed a community garden in South Central Los
Angeles this week, arresting 25 people including actress Daryl Hannah. The 14 acre
plot of land, tended by over 350 neighborhood fruit and vegetable farmers for a
decade, is the largest urban community garden in the country, and a symbol of hope
for the embattled South Central neighborhood. Although the highly successful gar-
den provides affordable, mostly organic food for low-income residents in this eco-
nomically depressed area, a ten-year ownership dispute over the land has led to a
dramatic standoff between neighborhood residents and the powerful real estate lobby
of Los Angeles. Despite massive public opposition, multi-millionaire real estate devel-
oper Ralph Horowitz obtained a court order to pave over the community garden and
replace it with an industrial warehouse. After back-tracking on a proposal to sell the
14 acre plot to neighborhood residents for $16 million, Horowitz called in the police
and bulldozers to clear the property of inhabitants. Neighborhood farmers and resi-
dents, along with the LA organic community, have vowed to keep up the struggle and
save the community garden.
Learn more: www.organicconsumers.org/2006/article_756.cfm
Successful Lawsuit Forces EPA to Phase Out Dangerous Pesticide
A lawsuit filed by the United Farmworkers of America against the Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) has forced the agency to begin phasing out a highly toxic
organophosphate pesticide that has contaminated food and poisoned farmworkers.
The pesticide, azinphos-methyl (“AZM”), is used on a variety of food crops, includ-
ing potatoes, cranberries, and peaches. AZM is a highly toxic neurotoxin derived from
nerve agents used during World War II. In 2001, the EPA found that AZM posed unac-
ceptable risks to farmworkers, but due to industry pressure, the agency kept it on the
market. “This pesticide has put thousands of workers at risk of serious illness every
year,” said Erik Nicholson of the United Farmworkers of America. The EPA will phase
out AZM over the next four years. www.organicconsumers.org/2006/article_748.cfm

Quick Tidbits
g Coffee Protects Drinkers’ Livers:
A study published in the journal
Archives of Internal Medicine indicates that cof-
fee may greatly reduce the risk of liver damage
in those who consume alcohol regularly. Every
daily cup of coffee reduced the incidence of cir-
rhosis, a condition that destroys liver tissue, by
22 percent, according to researchers at the Kai-
ser Permanente Medical Care Program. How-
ever, Dr. Arthur Klatsky, the leader of the study,
said the results “should not be interpreted as
giving a license to drink without worry, because
of all the other problems connected with drink-
ing.” adding, “the only proper advice is to drink
less.” Learn more: organicconsumers.org/2006/
article_751.cfm
g Beer Ingredient Reduces
Prostate Cancer Risk:
A new study from researchers at Oregon State
University reveals that a natural ingredient
found in beer may reduce the risk of prostate
cancer. The ingredient, found in the hops used
to brew beer, is xanthohumol, and belongs to a
group of plant compounds called flavonoids that
can trigger the death of cancer cells along the
surface of the prostate gland. Researchers are
quick to point out the amount of xanthohumol in
beer is far too low to be of any benefit, estimat-
ing it would require consuming a case of beer
per day to activate the positive effects. German
brewers have already responded by creating a
beer with ten times the amount of xanthohumol,
marketing it as a “healthy beer.” Learn more:
www.organicconsumers.org/2006/article_761.cfm
Organic Bytes #84· June 15, 2006 · page 2
American Medical Association Asks Government to Regulate Salt
In an unprecedented move, the American Medical Association (AMA) voted on June
13 to call on the US government to require salt warning labels on food products and
to cut salt content in manufactured foods by 50% within a decade. The AMA, the larg-
est group of physicians in the US, is also asking the Food and Drug Administration
to revoke salt’s status as a food that is “generally recognized as safe,” noting there is
overwhelming medical evidence that high salt intake dramatically increases risk of
heart disease, hypertension and stroke. Heart disease is the nation’s leading cause of
death. Foods that would require warning labels would include everything from con-
ventional hot dogs to some canned soups. The Food Products Association, a trade
group for the food and beverage manufacturing industry, and one of the most pow-
erful lobbying groups in Washington DC said the new policy is “misguided,” claim-
ing there is not enough scientific evidence tying salt to negative health effects. Learn
more: www.organicconsumers.org/2006/article_753.cfm
Nation’s Largest Dairies Trying to
Avoid Monsanto’s Bovine Growth
Hormone
The largest retailers and distributors of milk
and dairy products in the US are consider-
ing eliminating rBGH from their products.
According to the trade journal Dairy Food and
Market Analyst, Wal-Mart and Dean Foods
have begun pressing suppliers for a larger
supply of milk produced without rBGH, in
response to increasing consumer demand. The Some Major US Dairies
synthetic hormone rBGH is a genetically engi- Eliminating rBGH Over
neered drug designed to make dairy cows pro- the Past Year
duce more milk. The controversial hormone • April 2005 - Tillamook’s cheeses:
has been banned in Europe and Canada due to The second largest producer of
its links to increased risks for cancer and anti- block cheese in the US.
biotic resistance. Despite these bans, 18% of US • June 2005 - Eberhard Dairy: Cen-
dairy cows, especially those on factory-style tral Oregon’s largest dairy process-
farms, continue to be injected with the drug. ing plant.
Over the past few years, millions of consum- • November 2005 - Alpenrose Dairy
ers have switched to milk and dairy products
from organic farms, which ban the use of rBGH
and antibiotics. Starbucks, by the way, is still
in Portland
• February 2006 - Darigold’s yogurts:
A large western US dairy.
serving up coffee drinks across the country • June 2006 - Garelick: A large East
that are laced with rBGH—another good rea- Coast dairy processor, producing
son to patronize local independently owned 45 million lbs. of milk per month.
coffee shops that offer organic and Fair Trade • June 2006 - Meadow Gold and Dari-
alternatives. Learn more: www.organicconsumers. gold Farms: Montana’s largest milk
org/2006/article_747.cfm producers.
For many more food issue daily headlines: www.organicconsumers.org/log.html
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