Action Alert: Keep Telling the House Committee
on Agriculture to Take Mandatory Animal ID Out of the Farm Bill
Weston Price Foundation 7/9/07(KBC Note: it's always best to
put letters in your own words)
The House Committee on Agriculture has delayed consideration of
the Farm Bill yet again. So if you haven't called them yet, you
still have time! And if you have called, feel free to call
again!!
Chairman Peterson has released a new Chairman's Mark for Full
Committee Consideration.
http://ent.groundspring.org/EmailNow/pub.php?module=URLTracker&cmd=track&j=151724858&u=1465628
The good news is that federal pre-emption provision (Section 123)
has been taken out!! The bad news is that the new version still
includes a section that would link NAIS to Country of Origin
Labeling. It has been re-numbered as Section 11101. Like the
previous Section 121, Section 11101 would allow the USDA to use a
mandatory animal identification system in order to implement
Country of Origin Labeling (COOL). Read more about why mandatory
animal ID should not be used for COOL at
http://ent.groundspring.org/EmailNow/pub.php?module=URLTracker&cmd=track&j=151724858&u=1465629.
First, contact Chairman Collin Peterson:
Phone: 202-225-2171
Fax: 202-225-8510
Email:
agriculture@mail.house.gov
Second, contact any member of the House Agriculture Committee
who comes from your state. They are all listed below, in
order of their states, starting with Alabama and ending with
Wisconsin.
Third, contact Senator Harkin and any member of the Senate
Agriculture Committee who comes from your state. They are
listed after the House Committee below. The Senate Committee will
be starting work on the Farm Bill at the end of July, and this may
be our best hope for getting NAIS taken back out of the Farm
Bill.
Last, contact your own Representative and Senator. Go to
http://ent.groundspring.org/EmailNow/pub.php?module=URLTracker&cmd=track&j=151724858&u=1465630
and
http://ent.groundspring.org/EmailNow/pub.php?module=URLTracker&cmd=track&j=151724858&u=1465631
, or call the Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121. Ask your
Congressman and Senators to speak with the Chairs of the
Committee, and any members of the Committee from your state, on
your behalf.
MESSAGE: Please strip Section 11101 from the draft Farm Bill. The
law barring the USDA from using mandatory animal identification to
implement COOL should not be changed, and NAIS should not be put
into the Farm Bill.
If you have any questions, contact
Judith@farmandranchfreedom.org or call 866-687-6452.
HOUSE COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE
Name (State), Phone number, Fax number. If you want to use
e-mail, then go to the Congressperson's website, which you can
find at
http://ent.groundspring.org/EmailNow/pub.php?module=URLTracker&cmd=track&j=151724858&u=1465632
Terry Everett (AL), (p) 202-225-2901, (f) 202-225-8913
Michael Rogers (AL), (p) 202-225-3261, (f) 202-226-8485
Jo Bonner (AL), (p) 202-225-4931, (f) 202-225-0562
Joe Baca (CA), (p) 202-225-6161, (f) 202-225-8671
Dennis Cardoza (CA), (p) 202-225-6131, (f) 202-225-0819
Jim Costa (CA), (p) 202-225-3341, (f) 202-225-9308
Kevin McCarthy (CA), (202) 225-2915, (f) 202-225-2908
John T. Salazar (CO), (p) 202-225-4761, (f) 202-226-9669
Marilyn Musgrove (CO), (p) 202-225-4676, (f) 202-225-5870
Timothy Mahoney (FL), (p) 202-225-5792, (f) 202-225-3132
David Scott (GA), (p) 202-225-2939, (f) 202-225-4628
Jim Marshall (GA), (p) 202-225-6531, (f) 202-225-3013
John Barrow (GA), (p) 866-890-6236, (f) 202-225-3377
Leonard L. Boswell, (IA), (p) 202-225-3806, (f) 202-225-5608
Steve King (IA), (p) 202-225-4426, (f) 202-225-3193
Timothy Johnson (IL), 202-225-2371, (f) 202-226-0791
Brad Ellsworth (IN), (p) 866-567-0227, (f) 202-225-3284
Joe Donnelly (IN), (p) 202-225-3915, (f) 202-225-6798
Nancy Boyda (KS), (p) 202-225-6601, (f) 202-225-7986
Jerry Moran (KS), (p) 202-225-2715, (f) 202-225-5124
Charles W. Boustany, Hr. (LA), (p) 202-225-2031, (f) 202-225-5724
Tim Walberg (MI), (p) 202-225-6276, (f) 202-225-6281
Collin Peterson (MN), (p) 202-225-2165, (f) 202-225-1593
Timothy J. Walz (MN), (p) 202-225-2472, (f) 202-225-3433
Sam Graves (MO), (p) 202-225-7041, (f) 202-225-8221
Earl Pomeroy, (ND), (p) 202-225-2611, (f) 202-226-0893
Mike McIntyre (NC), (p) 202-225-2731, (f) 202-225-5773
Bob Etheridge (NC), (p) 202-225-4531, (f) 202-225-5662
Robin Hayes, (NC), (p) 202-225-3715, (f)202-225-4036
Virginia Foxx (NC), (p) 202-225-2071, (f) 202-225-2995
Jeff Fortnberry (NE), (p) 202-225-4806, (f) 202-225-5686
Adrian Smith (NE), (p) 202-225-6435, (f) 202-225-0207
Kirsten Gillibrand, (NY), (p) 202-225-5614, (f) 202-225-1168
John R. "Randy" Kuhl, Jr. (NY), 202-225-3161, (f) 202-226-6599
Zachary T. Space (OH), (p) 202-225-6265, (f) 330-364-4330
Jean Schmidt (OH), (p) 202-225-3164, (f) 202-225-1992
Frank D. Lucas (OK), (p) 202-225-5565, (f) 202-225-8698
Tim Holden (PA), (p) 202-225-5546, (f) 202-226-0996
Stephanie Herseth Sandline, (SD), (p) 202-225-2801, (f)
202-225-5823
Lincoln Davis, (TN), (p) 202-225-6831, 9f) 202-226-5172
Henry Cuellar (TX), (p) 202-225-1640, (f) 202-225-1641
Mike Conaway (TX), (p) 202-225-3605, (f) 202-225-1783
Randy Neugebauer (TX), (p) 202-225-4005, (f) 202-225-9615
Nicholas Lampson (TX), (p) 202-225-5951, (f) 202-225-5241
Bob Goodlatte (VA), (p) 202-225-5431, (f) 202-225-9681
Steve Kagen (WI), (p) 202-225-5665, (f) 202-225-5729
SENATE COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE
Name (State), Phone number, Fax number. If you want to use
e-mail, then go to the Congressperson's website, which you can
find at
http://ent.groundspring.org/EmailNow/pub.php?module=URLTracker&cmd=track&j=151724858&u=1465633
Chair: Tom Harkin (IA), (p) 202-224-2035, (f) 202-224-9369
Blanche Lincoln (AR), (p) 202-224-4843, (f) 202-228-1371
Ken Salazar (CO), (p) 202-224-5852, (f) 202-228-5036
Saxby Chambliss (GA), (p) 202-224-3521, (f) 202-224-0103
Mike Crapo (ID), (p) 202-224-6142, (f) 202-228-1375
Charles Grassley (IA), (p) 202-224-3744, (f) 515-288-5097
Richard Lugar (IN), (p) 202-224-4814, (f) 202-228-0360
Pat Roberts (KS), (p) 202-224-4774, (f) 202-224-3514
Mitch McConnell (KY), (p) 202-224-2541, (f) 202-224-2499
Debbie Stabenow (MI), (p) 202-224-4822, e-mail:
senator@stabenow.senate.gov
Norm Coleman (MN), (p) 202-224-5641, (f) 202-224-1152
Amy Klobuchar (MN), (p) 202-224-3244
Thad Cochran (MS), (p) 202-224-5054
Max Baucus (MT), (p) 202-224-2651, (f) 202-224-0515
E. Banjamin Nelson (NE), (p) 202-224-6551, (f) 202-228-0012
Kent Conrad (ND), (p) 202-224-2043, (f) 202-224-7776, E-mail:
http://ent.groundspring.org/EmailNow/pub.php?module=URLTracker&cmd=track&j=151724858&u=1465634...
Sherrod Brown (OH), (p): 202-224-2315, (f) 202-228-6321
Robert Casey, Jr. (PA), (p): 202-224-6324, (f) 202-228-0604
Lindsey Graham (SC), (p) 202-224-5972
John Thune (SD), (p) 202-224-2321, (f) 202-228-5429
Patrick Leahy (VT), (p) 202-224-4242
TALKING POINTS TO STOP NAIS
* Please strip Section 11101 from the draft Farm Bill. The law
barring the USDA from using mandatory animal identification to
implement COOL should not be changed, and NAIS should not be added
to the Farm Bill.
* Country of Origin Labeling can and should be implemented without
mandatory animal identification
* Requiring all imported livestock to be identified with a country
of origin marking is enough to implement COOL
* Requiring U.S. cattle producers to individually identify all
domestic cattle to prove their eligibility for a USA label is not
necessary for COOL.
* Using mandatory animal identification to implement COOL would
impose heavy burdens on American farmers and ranchers, in both
time and money. NAIS will drive independent ranches and farms in
America out of business.
* The purpose of COOL is to provide information so that consumers
can choose whether to buy domestic or foreign products and, as a
hoped-for result, providing American farmers and ranchers with
economic rewards for raising food in this country.
* Mandatory animal identification would harm American farmers and
ranchers, contrary to the goal of COOL.
* The right to know where our food comes from will be an empty
right if it is purchased at the price of a mandatory animal
identification system, such as the National Animal Identification
System (NAIS). If mandatory animal ID is implemented, consumers
would be fooled into believing that they were supporting American
farmers and ranchers through the "Made in the USA" label. Yet more
and more of the food labeled that way would be raised by
international corporations that are willing and able to comply
with NAIS.
SAMPLE LETTER OR EMAIL -- Personalize for the greatest impact
If you use email, be sure to put a clear subject line, such as
"Strip Section 11101 from the Farm Bill - Keep NAIS out of the
Farm Bill"
Dear Chairman Peterson and Members of the Committee:
I ask that you strip Section 11101 from the draft Farm Bill. The
law barring the USDA from using mandatory animal identification to
implement Country of Origin Labeling (COOL) should not be changed,
and the National Animal Identification System (NAIS) should not be
added to the Farm Bill.
I am a _______ (farmer, consumer, ... . Tell them a few sentences
about yourself and why you care about this issue)
COOL can be implemented simply by requiring all imported livestock
to be identified with a country of origin marking, which is
already a requirement for cattle imported from Mexico or Canada.
Requiring U.S. cattle producers to individually identify all
domestic cattle to prove their eligibility for a USA label is
simply not necessary. Using mandatory animal identification to
implement COOL will impose heavy burdens on American farmers and
ranchers, in both time and money. NAIS will drive independent
ranches and farms in America out of business.
The purpose of COOL is to provide information so that consumers
can choose whether to buy domestic or foreign products and, as a
hoped-for result, providing American farmers and ranchers with
economic rewards for raising food in this country. Mandatory
animal identification will harm all Americans' rights and our
economy. Mandatory animal identification will cancel out the goals
of COOL.
The right to know where our food comes from will be an empty right
if it is purchased at the price of a mandatory animal
identification program such as the National Animal Identification
System (NAIS). If NAIS is implemented, consumers will be fooled
into believing that they were supporting American farmers and
ranchers through the "Made in the USA" label. Yet more and more of
the food labeled that way would be raised by international
corporations that are willing and able to comply with NAIS.
Please strip Section 11101 from the draft Farm Bill, and keep NAIS
out of the Farm Bill.
Sincerely,
Name
Address
City, State Zip
Email ( if you have it)
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