Releases

Food & Water Watch Joins With Campuses Across the U.S. to Launch First Annual Campus Day of Action

2009-10-14

Press Release: Today, the national consumer advocacy group Food & Water Watch joined with 11 colleges and universities around the U.S. for the first annual Campus Day of Action. The event connects the work of students around the U.S. in their efforts to educate their campuses and communities about the benefits of choosing to drink tap water and the environmental, social, and economic drawbacks of bottled water. The Campus Day of Action is an extension of Food & Water Watch’s Take Back the Tap campaign, which works with campuses and restaurants around the country to help them replace bottled water with tap water.

Food & Water Watch Applauds Senator Vitter for Helping Put Brakes on Gulf of Mexico Offshore Fish Farming

2009-10-09

Press Statement: Food & Water Watch, a national consumer advocacy organization, applauds Senator Vitter of Louisiana for introducing an amendment to the annual appropriations bill for Departments of Commerce and Justice, and Science, and Related Agencies to slow regulations that would for the first time allow development of ocean fish farms in U.S. federal waters. Ocean fish farming, or offshore aquaculture, is the mass-production of fish in huge floating net pens or cages about three to 200 miles from shore.

Crystal Geyser’s Plans to Retreat from Oxford, Wisconsin a Victory for Local and National Activists

2009-10-08

Washington, D.C.—“Last week, activists in Oxford, Wisconsin, celebrated a significant victory when the water bottling giant Crystal Geyser announced it would cancel plans to open a bottling facility there. The proposed plant would have pumped 360,000 gallons of water a day from the Upper Fox Watershed, a practice that would have compromised Oxford’s ecosystem by negatively impacting the quality and quantity of the local water supply. The plant would also have introduced between 40 and 60 fume-emitting trucks a day to this quiet, rural area.

Bill to Prevent Privatization of Milwaukee Water Works Would Protect Vital Public Resource

2009-10-06

Press Release: “Last week, State Representative Frederick P. Kessler (12th Assembly District) introduced a bill to the Wisconsin State Assembly that would forbid the privatization of the Milwaukee Water Works. A publically controlled utility, the water works has been the subject of intense debate since October 2008 when the Milwaukee Common Council took initial steps toward leasing it to a private company as a means of alleviating the city’s budget crunch.

Food & Water Watch and Other Organizations Sue Secretary of Commerce and Agencies on Offshore Aquaculture Plan

2009-10-02

Press Release: Today, Food & Water Watch, in conjunction with several other organizations, filed suit against the Secretary of Commerce, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), over a plan to allow offshore industrial fish farming in the Gulf of Mexico. Food & Water Watch, a national consumer advocacy organization, sued because the plan and the process by which it was developed and enacted violates existing federal laws. The group, which has opposed the plan throughout its development, asserts, among other issues, that these entities did not take required actions in allowing the plan to be finalized, and do not have the authority to permit ocean aquaculture.

Conditions Met, Congress Approves Chinese Chicken Imports

2009-10-02

Statement: “Today, the House-Senate Conference Committee on the FY 2010 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Appropriations reached an agreement on the importation of processed poultry and processed poultry products from the People’s Republic of China, provided that several conditions were met. The U.S. Congress enacted bans on the importation of such products for FY 2008 and FY 2009 because the Bush Administration rushed the approval process through the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) even though its own inspectors found serious food safety problems in Chinese poultry processing and slaughter facilities when audits were conducted of those facilities in 2004 and 2005.

Congress Continues to Serve Bad Milk to Kids

2009-10-01

Statement: “Consumer advocacy group Food & Water Watch is disappointed that Congress will not be able to re-write the 2004 Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act so that schoolchildren will have access to safe and wholesome milk before it expires on September 30. The Congress will pass an extension for the 2004 Act – a law that includes the nutritional requirements for students who participate in the National School Lunch Program – without providing an option for schoolchildren to have access to artificial hormone-free milk. The failure of Congress to act in time leaves children susceptible to the dangers associated with drinking milk produced with recombinant bovine growth hormone (rBGH).

Food & Water Watch Hands Petition to Members of Congress Calling for Continued Ban on Chinese Chicken

2009-10-01

Press Release: Food & Water Watch today handed a petition containing over 17,000 signatures from all 50 states to members of Congress and the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), calling for the continued ban on processed poultry imports from China. The petition was delivered to Senator Herb Kohl (D-WI), Representatives Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), and Mark L. Pryor (D-AR), and USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack. Kohl and DeLauro are co-chairs of the joint House-Senate conference committee that is considering the ban.

Ohio ACT Coalition Launched to Fight Agribusiness Initiative

2009-10-01

Press release: Ohio Against Constitutional Takeover (Ohio ACT), a new coalition representing Ohio farmers and consumers, has emerged to prevent corporate agribusiness from cementing its influence into the Ohio state constitution through the November 3rd ballot initiative known as Issue 2. The coalition was created to oppose Issue 2, which would amend the Ohio Constitution to create an appointed Board with unchecked power over livestock regulation.

Hannah King of Dallas Wins Food & Water Watch’s “Take Home Chef Rocky” Contest

2009-10-01

Press Release: Food & Water Watch, a national consumer advocacy organization, today announced Hannah King of Dallas, Texas, as the grand prizewinner of the “Take Home Chef Rocky” contest. King’s YouTube video was selected from among dozens of entries from across the country and features King, who has multiple sclerosis, in her kitchen talking directly to the camera about why she needs Chef Joseph “Rocky” Barnette to come to her home and transform her lifestyle. The “Take Home Chef Rocky” contest is part of Food & Water Watch’s Edible EcoUnderground initiative, an innovative new venture that aims to get people more involved with the purchasing, preparation and enjoyment of their food, and help consumers get the information they need to make healthy, sustainable eating choices.

Food & Water Watch Launches Affordable, Sustainable Seafood Recipe Contest

2009-09-21

Press Release: Today, Food & Water Watch launched the “Frugal Fish” recipe contest, a challenge to savvy cooks to create a seafood dinner for four people that costs $25 or less, using fish recommended in Food & Water Watch’s Smart Seafood Guide. Contest entries will be judged by Chef Rocky Barnette and Food & Water Watch staff, and one grand-prize winner will receive $250. Food & Water Watch’s Fish Program promotes safer and more sustainable seafood that is healthier for consumers and our environment; the “Frugal Fish” contest adds some friendly competition in cooking up fish creatively.

EU Agricultural Council Fails Milk Farmers

2009-10-13

Statement of Food & Water Europe Executive Director Wenonah Hauter – “The 7 September Agricultural Council showed once again that the fate of small and medium-size dairy farmers in the European Union is of little concern to governments or the European Commission."

Cargill Poses Threat to Consumer Health, the Environment and Human Rights, New Research Finds

2009-10-13

A new fact sheet issued today by consumer group Food & Water Europe examines how Cargill, the agribusiness giant and one of the key players in the global food market, is posing harm to consumer health, workers and the environment and causing food instability around the world. Cargill, a leading oilseed and grain processor and top U.S. meat packer, is the largest private company in the U.S., with 160,000 employees in 67 countries and operations in 21 European countries. Cargill seemingly escaped the economic downturn in 2008 by reporting sales of over 83 billion Euros and record profits of over 2.5 billion Euros, its sixth straight year of record-breaking earnings. However, recently, its net profit for the fourth fiscal quarter was down by 69 percent from the same period last year. Maybe it is time for Cargill to rethink its operations, since it benefited from the race in commodities prices which started in 2002, particularly in the last two years when food prices swelled.

Safety Claims Regarding Off-Shore Oil Drilling Greatly Exaggerated 


2009-09-17

Press Statement: Earlier this month, British Petroleum (BP) announced the discovery of a ‘giant’ oil field 250 miles southeast of Houston. This may come as good news to BP, but it’s a nightmare to conservationists and fishermen given BP’s performance and recent history in the Gulf of Mexico. During Hurricane Dennis, BP’s Thunder Horse oil platform nearly capsized there due to an incorrectly installed valve. Further investigation revealed that several of the welds had failed on several critical components. This kind of oversight is especially troubling owing to recent allegations from a whistleblower that BP violated federal laws by failing to submit the proper final drawings and designs for the world’s largest floating offshore platform, BP Atlantis, in the Gulf of Mexico. The Minerals Management Service (MMS), the federal agency that oversees offshore energy production, which should have caught BP’s failure to submit proper documents, also acknowledges reports of oil leaking from undersea manifolds and the needed replacement of flow lines. BP Atlantis has only been operating since October 2007.

Bill to Establish Human Right to Water in California Passes State Assembly

Press Release: “Last week, a bill that would declare the human right to water as a policy of the state of California passed out of the state legislature. Authored by Assembly Member Ira Ruskin (D- Redwood City) and co-sponsored by the national consumer advocacy group Food & Water Watch, Assembly Bill 1242 would add language to the California Water Code guaranteeing all people in the state the right to clean, safe, affordable water. It will also allow the State to coordinate the activities of all the agencies involved in water policy, including the departments of Public Health and Water Resources, in order to make water supply and delivery decisions with this need in mind.

Food & Water Watch Hands Petition to Members of Congress Calling for Continued Ban on Chinese Chicken

2009-09-15

Press Release: Food & Water Watch today handed a petition containing over 17,000 signatures from all 50 states to members of Congress and the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), calling for the continued ban on processed poultry imports from China. The petition was delivered to Senator Herb Kohl (D-WI), Representatives Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), and Mark L. Pryor (D-AR), and USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack. Kohl and DeLauro are co-chairs of the joint House-Senate conference committee that is considering the ban.

[···]

Public Backlash Against Triclosan Builds Momentum as Many Participate in Food & Water Watch’s Wash Your Hands of Triclosan Drop-Off

2009-09-12

Press Release: Consumers in Washington, D.C. today took steps to rid their homes of a dangerous chemical when they participated in Food & Water Watch’s Wash Your Hands of Triclosan Drop-Off. The national consumer advocacy group collected personal care products containing the pesticide triclosan at the Whole Foods in Logan Circle, and later brought them to the Fort Totten Trash Transfer Station, the local Department of Public Works-approved hazardous waste collection facility for proper disposal.

Hearing on Ocean Fish Farming Promotes Controversial Industry Despite Known Problems

2009-09-11

Press Statement: “This week, the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Insular Affairs, Oceans and Wildlife held an oversight hearing in an effort to show that ocean fishing farming – the mass production of fish in floating cages or pens in open ocean waters – would be a viable and valuable industry for the U.S. if national standards are set.

Activists Celebrate Nestle’s Withdrawal From McCloud, Calif.

2009-09-11

Press Release: Food & Water Watch and the McCloud Watershed Council achieved a major victory today when Nestle Waters of North America announced it would withdraw its proposal to build a bottling facility in McCloud, Calif. The news came after 6 years of intense public debate regarding the plant and its potential impact on water resources in the area. At one point the deal would have allowed Nestle to pump up to 200 million gallons of water from nearby Mt. Shasta springs- enough water for 614 typical U.S. families.