Posted: October 20th, 2013 | Filed under: Fishy Tomato, Press | Tags: Ces, Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soaps, Flavr Savr, GMO, GMO Labeling, Nancy Metcalf, Tomato, Yes on 522 |
Washington residents may notice two cars unlike any others. A wide-eyed tan and green fish/beet known as “Rooty” and a cherry red fish/tomato known as “K-Sup” smile down at spectators from the tops of two cars.
The cars were created for the Right2KnowMarch against genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in Washington D.C. this summer and were driven across the country to Washington state in mid-August.
Nancy Metcalf, a local anti-GMO activist, has been driving K-Sup since August.
“[My car] features what was known as the ‘flavor savor tomato,’” Metcalf said. “It was the first genetically engineered food available on the market to consumers, but it totally failed because people were not trustworthy of GMO food at that time.”
The red tomatoes were injected with flounder fish genes to help support America’s industrial food chain to keep tomatoes ripe on the vine longer during cold months, Metcalf said.
Except the GMO chemicals injected into the soil inhibit the plant from absorbing all the minerals it needs to be healthy, Metcalf said.
In return people who eat the plant are also mineral deficient, Metcalf said.
The car also captures the attention of many onlookers.
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“One day I went out to run errands and thought it would take me about an hour and a half, but it ended up taking me about four hours because I ended up chatting with so many people about the car and about GMOs,” Metcalf said.
Reactions to the cars have been almost entirely positive with people smiling and waving as it putters down the road.
“We’ve only had one person loud and proud flip us the bird,” Metcalf said.
At first, Metcalf said she was very cautious driving over 55 mph. On windy days she can feel K-Sup wiggling on top of the car.
The key is to accelerate and take corners slowly as well as give cars in front a comfortable distance, Metcalf said.
K-Sup has been driven back and forth to Washington multiple times in order to raise awareness for GMOs in support of Initiative Measure No. 522, which would require GMOs to be clearly labeled and is featured on the general election ballot in November.
The other cars feature fishy-wheat, fish-corn and fishy-apple, fishy-soybean and fishy-sugar beet. They will tour the country a second time back to their proper owners in Washington D.C. by New Year’s.
The cars were designed by César Maxit and built by fiberglass and welding specialist David Jackson from Washington D.C., with funding from Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soaps, according to the Label GMO Food website.
The sculptures on the cars are reinforced with steel and the shape was molded with chicken wire and papier-mâché with a fiberglass glossy finish, Metcalf said.
Metcalf will continue to drive the cars until after the November election, she said.
Source: Shelby Rowe, The Western Front
Posted: September 16th, 2013 | Filed under: Fishy Tomato, Press | Tags: Ann Pougiales, Annmarie Gianni Skin Care, BASF Plant Science, Community Rights Coalition, Dow Agrisciences, DuPont, Initiative 522, Jefferson County Farmers Markets, Kathie Meyer, Little Theater, Montsanto, Nancy Metcalf, Nash's Farm Store, Pamm Larry, Port Angeles, Port Townsend, Quimper Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, Sequim, the Food Co-op, Washington |
Port Townsend organic food outlets support GMO labeling
By Charlie Bermant, Peninsula Daily News
PORT TOWNSEND — The Food Co-op and the Jefferson County Farmers Markets have endorsed an initiative on the state Nov. 5 general election ballot that would require the labeling of foods that contain genetically modified organisms, or a GMOs, in food outlets.
Port Townsend two major organic food merchants announced support of Initiative 522 last week.
If passed, it would require all genetically modified food sold in the state to be identified on its packaging.
“It’s important that people know what’s in their food and can make a choice about what they are eating,” said Ann Pougiales, vice president of the Jefferson County Farmers Market board.
Pougiales said that GMOs are not an issue at the farmers markets in Port Townsend and Chimacum, since organically grown produce is almost always free of modifications, aside from corn.
“Those selling at the farmer’s markets use organic seeds and know the source, so if there is any GMO food there, it is without the knowledge of the vendor,” she said.
Kathie Meyer, the Food Co-op’s marketing and outreach, education and marketing manager, said the requirement to label GMO food wouldn’t change how food manufacturers do business “because they are changing their labels all the time.
“We believe that everyone has the right to know what is in their food,” she said.
On Friday, the Co-op hosted an appearance from Nancy Metcalf, a farming activist from Van Zandt, a small Whatcom County town, who drove a car decorated with a representation of a giant tomato with the fins and tail of a fish on its roof and a host of pro-522 signs.
The car, a 2003 Honda Civic with 83,000 miles, was driven from Washington, D.C., and will be circulating around the Northern Olympic Peninsula over the next few weeks as part of the I-522 campaign.
Metcalf said the giant tomato fish weighs 300 pounds and consists of a steel frame covered by chicken wire and wrapped in papier-mache and fiberglass.
“When the car is parked outside of a store, people come up to me out of the blue and want to talk about the issue,” she said.
“So what would normally be a 90-minute shopping trip can take six hours.”
Pamm Larry — who started Proposition 37, the GMO labeling act that was voted down by California voters in 2012 — also will be appearing at speaking engagements in Port Angeles, Sequim and Port Townsend.
Major grocery chains and agribusiness interests spent $46 million fighting Propostition 37, the online Seattle PI said.
Larry will speak at:
— Quimper Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, 2333 San Juan Ave. in Port Townsend, at 7 p.m. Friday.
— Nash’s Farm Store, 4681 Sequim-Dungeness Way in Sequim, at 1:30 p.m. Saturday.
— Little Theater at Peninsula College (Room J-16), 1502 E. Lauridsen Blvd. in Port Angeles, at 6:30 p.m. Saturday.
These events are free and open to the public.
Larry will speak about Prop 37, why it failed in 2012, and why she feels it is important to pass I-522.
Larry, a farmer, midwife and grandmother of three, said she was so concerned about the modern-day food system that she quit her day job to educate herself on GMOs and how to apply for a ballot initiative.
Annmarie Gianni Skin Care is funding the tour.
“I-522 will require that most foods containing GE [genetically engineered] and/or GMO ingredients must be labeled, and will give each of us the Right To Choose what we eat and feed our families,” the Community Rights Coalitin of Jefferson County says on its website, http://communityrightsjeffersoncountywa.org.
The initiative has drawn heavy opposition.
Supporters of the initiative have put together a $3.5 million war chest, the Seattle PI said last week.
Contributors include DuPont, Dow Agrisciences, BASF Plant Science and Montsanto.
The “No on I-522” campaign quotes Mike LaPlant, president of the Washington State Farm Bureau, as saying that “I-522 would force Washington farmers and food companies to implement costly new labeling, packaging, distribution and recordkeeping requirements that do not exist in any other state.”
The campaign against the measure also says that 522 would require fruits, vegetables and grain-based products to be labeled but would exempt meat and dairy products from animals fed GE grains.
Source:
Charlie Bermant, Peninsula Daily News
