Section 10

Maintaining the Integrity of Agricultural Law

    This section relates to ensuring that inspections are upheld with organization, competence, and transparency. Besides holding inspectors to a higher standard, it also addresses the inner relationship and lobbying between corporate meat and dairy organizations and government officials. Democratically elected representatives are voting on agricultural policy, based on their financial contributions from CAFO’s and the BigAg monopolies, instead of the healthcare of the people. Legislators and Agricultural Committee members shall not have the right to disregard the health of this nation by accepting donations from agricultural organizations like the PorkPac, DFA, NCBA, National Chicken Council, TURPAC, United Egg Producers, USPOULTRY, or any other organizations.

    Unfortunately, the U.S. government has not legislatively addressed this and instead subsidizes the industry with over 30 billion dollars annually. This is comparable to artificial food companies being in the pockets of the FDA and USDA. This is the kind corruption that results in our citizens being poisoned. How many people must die and get sick because  the FDA is not doing their job? Our society is sick, and it has and will continue to get worse if we allow BigAg to keep dictating the outcome of agricultural law.

    Why can the FDA label something as GRAS, generally regarded as safe, letting companies self-test? It is estimated that 1000 “GRAS substances” have entered the food chain without FDA knowledge (47). This “GRAS” category needs to be eliminated completely. New additives and ultra processed foods need to be fully reviewed by legitimate food scientists before being released to the public. If we want to make America healthy, this corruption needs to be legislatively addressed at the federal level. If you are not for getting rid of “GRAS”, then it means you are in favor of poisoning our kids and all future generations. It is imperative that the inspection of new additives and substances  be taken seriously. Food companies have no right to self-regulate.

 Bringing back the ethics to agricultural law should be our top priority. Having competent inspections is essential. This means state and federal safety and inspection agencies will have to start doing their job with more orginaization. Federal inspection laws are essential and adhering to the FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) should not be an optional choice to entities being audited. If it takes the FDA seven years to process a FOIA claim (43), that indicates they are not being transparent. This section clearly outlines proposed laws that would give the public the transparency they deserve. Our democracy is “by the people, for the people” not “by the government for the corporations”. With this section passed as federal law, it will make our inspections proper, our food better regulated and will stop corporate monopolies, BigAg representatives, and lobbyists from influencing our policies. Section 10 is the most important of all the policies, because without it all the laws within this document are useless.