For years, the Organic Consumers Association has been taking action, along with the International Labor Rights Fund, to stop abusive child labor in the cocoa industry in West Africa. As a result of the constant pressure, major chocolate companies like M&M/Mars and Cadbury have recently agreed to stronger labor and environmental standards in the production of the cocoa they use. But one iconic US brand is lagging behind – and they need to hear from YOU! Ask Hershey’s to switch to Fair Trade & Organic certified cocoa and sugar — for all of their products.

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McDonald’s, Chiquita, Mars, Wal-Mart, and Kraft apparently now all have products certified "sustainable," sharing, among other things, the little green frog label of the Rainforest Alliance. On the other side of the labeling world, we have Fair Trade, the original product certification initiative aimed at building equitable and sustainable trading partnerships and creating opportunities to alleviate poverty. What’s the difference? See a comparison here.

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As reported in Organic Bytes #176, Monsanto and the biotech industry are mobilizing their propaganda machine to force-feed genetically engineered (GE) wheat to consumers. A recent poll reveals, however, that 69 percent of Canadian wheat farmers are opposed to "franken-wheat", given the fact that it’s banned in Europe, and most U.S. consumers don’t want it. As a result, the biotech industry is attempting to shift public perception by inundating the press with genetically engineered misinformation. The OCA’s Honor Schauland takes a look at some recent quotes spewing out of the GE-wheat spin machine, most of which are more humorous than factual.

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The Pesticide Action Network has launched a new online searchable database designed to make the public problem of pesticide exposure visible and more understandable. Whether you want to find out what’s in your apple juice, milk, peanut butter, or bottled water, this innovative tool links pesticide food residue data with the toxicology for each chemical, making this information easily searchable for the first time.

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• The average child gets 5+ servings of pesticides in their food and water each day.
• The pesticide Atrazine is so toxic it is banned in Europe, but it is used so widely in the U.S., that it is found in 71% of the U.S. drinking water.
• Currently, over 400 pesticides can be legally used in the U.S. For example, apples can be sprayed up to 16 times with 36 different pesticides. None of these chemicals are present in organic foods.
• According to the US Department of Health and Human Services, organophosphate pesticides (OP) are now found in the blood of 95% of Americans tested, and the levels are twice as high in blood samples taken from children. Exposure to OPs is linked to hyperactivity, behavior disorders, learning disabilities, developmental delays and motor dysfunction.

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