Wellness Foods - February 2008 - (Page 3)

Well Noted February 2008 • Volume 10, Number 1 a special supplement to Food Processing Visit our site at www.wellnessfoodsonline.com Putman Media, Inc. 555 W. Pierce Road, Ste. 301, Itasca, IL 60143 Phone: (630) 467-1300 • Fax: (630) 467-1179 Send in the Clones hey say confession is good for the soul. Well, I’m a genetically engineered, dual-DNA-source clone. Some DNA from my father was mixed with that of my mother and, after an eightmonth period in a controlled incubation environment, voila! One human being from the genetic material of two others. OK, I know that’s not the true definition of a clone, but the point is, the FDA just released its decree that it’s OK to sell meat and dairy derived from cloned animals. The public sees an “Island of Dr. Moreau” situation, with abominations of nature along the lines of living turduckens attacking children in rabid, inbred frenzy; the farmer sees a way to perpetuate a desired set of traits. The FDA’s announcement provided a double-whammy for any back-to-nature activist fearing Frankenfood. In addition to declaring foods from cloned animal sources safe, the agency also said it could not insist on labeling of clone-derived product because such product “is the same as conventional food” and doesn’t pose a safety risk. The Agriculture Dept. asked for a continued, voluntary moratorium on sales of the product, Connecticut Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro introduced legislation to demand labeling and the Organic Trade Assn. restated its position that “meat, milk and other products produced from cloned animals will not be able to be sold as organic” in the U.S. This followed a release from the National Organic Program at the USDA, which is responsible for oversight of the organic industry, declaring “cloned animals, and their progeny, are strictly banned from organic livestock production.” The Cornucopia Institute, in response to the FDA decision, noted consumer reac- Editor, David Feder, R.D. dfeder@putman.net News & trends Editor, Diane Toops dtoops@putman.net Field Editors, Mark Anthony, Leslie Krasny, Kantha Shelke Managing Editor, digital Media, Michael Ermitage mermitage@putman.net Editorial advisory Board Mark Anthony, Ph.D., Robert Brown, Ph.D., MPH, Robert Earl, MPH, R.D., Mark Messina, Ph.D., Dalip Nayyar, Ph.D., David Schmidt, Kantha Shelke, Ph. D., and Connie M. Weaver, Ph.D., R.D. group art director, Stephen C. Herner sherner@putman.net art director, Jason Vargas jvargas@putman.net production Manager, Anna Marie McCann amccann@putman.net group publisher, Kay Ross-Baker kross-baker@putman.net senior account Manager, Tony Fasano tfasano@putman.net regional sales Manager, Tom Schoen tschoen@putman.net digital sales specialist, Emily Rogier reprints Marketing Manager, Claudia Stachowiak Foster Reprints 4295 Ohio Street, Michigan City, IN 46360 (866) 879-9144 ext.121, fax (219) 561-2019 claudia@fostereprints.com president and cEo Vice president Vp of content Vp circulation circulation Manager a d M i N i s t r at i V E s ta F F rEpriNts puBlisHiNg dEsigN & productioN Editorial T John M. Cappelletti Julie Cappelletti-Lange Keith Larson Jerry Clark Patricia Donatiu s u B s c r i p t i o N s / c u s t o M E r s E rV i c E : (888) 644-1803 tion would be negative (most consumers polled would reject clone-sourced product) and cited previous and similar situations (dairy industry adoption of synthetic bovine growth hormone – rBGH/rBST). Cornucopia dove right into a list of cases for concern. Yet the anti-clonistas underplay the release’s best point: Consumers vote with their wallets. Congresswoman DeLauro, the Cornucopia Institute, the OTA and other anti-clone organizations should recognize forced labeling or outright banning might not be necessary. Consumer response to rBGH/rBST drove up not only sales of organic milk but of milk proudly self-labeled as not containing it. Irradiation of meat, CalGene tomatoes and many GMO products failed to take off as expected for similar reasons. I’m neither for nor against cloned animal products. The causes for concern I’ve seen are legitimate, but I also see much of the FDA’s point. My biggest concern is where such products will slip into the food chain without our knowledge. Not restaurants – they understand marketing better than many of us. I’m talking about our schools and other institutions. This doesn’t matter so much, though. The combination of informed consumers and savvy marketers will see to it that products from cloned animals are labeled whether their producers want them so labeled or not. As with organic milk, there’s a lot of money in selling the alternative to a public already predisposed to prefer it. Wellness Foods (ISSN 1545-6366) [a supplement to Food processing (ISSN 0015-6523)] is published bi-monthly (6 times per year) by Putman Media, Inc. (also publishers of Chemical Processing, Control, Control Design, Industrial Networking, Pharmaceutical Manufacturing, Plant Services and The Journal), 555 W. Pierce Road, Suite 301, Itasca, IL 60143 (Phone: 630-467-1300 Fax: 630467-1179). Periodicals Postage Paid at Itasca, IL, and at additional mailing offices. Canada Post International Publications Mail Product Sales Agreement No. 40028661. Canadian Mail Distributor information: Frontier/BWI, PO Box 1051, Fort Erie, Ontario, Canada, L2A 5N8. Printed in the U.S.A. POSTMASTER: Send change of address notices to Food Processing, P.O. Box 3436, Northbrook, IL 60065-3436. FAX: (847) 291-4816. David Feder, R.D., Editor Tel: 630/467-1300, ext. 317 E-mail: dfeder@putman.net Birth of a Wiki Check out the new ingredient Wiki at www.foodprocessing.com/wikis/ ingredients_glossary. Food Processing’s Wellness Foods™ www.wellnessfoodsonline.com February 2008 | http://www.wellnessfoodsonline.com http://www.wellnessfoodsonline.com http://www.foodprocessing.com/wikis/ingredients_glossary http://www.foodprocessing.com/wikis/ingredients_glossary http://www.wellnessfoodsonline.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Wellness Foods - February 2008

Wellness Foods - February 2008 Well Noted Healthbites New Ingredient Profiles Cover Story: Women Take Heart Going Gluten Free Not Your Momma's OJ Aloe - Nutrition Beyond the Trends On the Shelf Expert Opinion - Soy Update

Wellness Foods - February 2008

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