Goverment leaders on rBST

"Consumers are concerned or confused about product labeling" said Pa. Ag. Secretary Dennis Wolff. "It's a subject the department continues to receive many calls about."

"Consumers want affordable food and also want assurance that they are selecting the best product for their families' nutrition and overall health. When these desires are met with confusing or misleading food labels, it is the departments job to help give them the resources necessary to make an informed decision."

"We are concerned and believe there should be a level of integrity in marketing milk products. This action simply addresses where some have overstepped those bounds."

"It's irresponsible to deliberately confuse the consumer and possibly 'trick' them into feeling that they have to pay more for milk to protect the health of their family." Mauree Gingrich Pa. State Representative

"I urge that Ohio adopt a policy ensuring that dairy labels are truthful and accurate and that my right as a consumer to buy the cheaper, compositionaly identical milk is protected." Lyle Ruprecht, Butler Ohio, member of the Ohio Dept. of Agriculture's dairy label review committee

After the organic food standards became effective in Oct. 2002, USDA Sec. Dan Glickman clarified that, "Organic certification expressed a production philosophy and that organic labeling did not imply a superior, safer, or healthier product."




" States should evaluate any rbST labeling statements in the context of all labeling and advertising for the product" [store signs and posters, menus, pamphlets, store handouts, and the like are labeling and thus subject to FDA and state enforcement.
"The FDA explicitly contemplates that state officials will be enforcing state food and drug laws on the basis of the FDA notice.
It is quite unlikely that enforcement officials will tolerate the fraud on consumers and unfair competition that will unavoidably result from false, misleading or unsubstantiated rbST claims in labeling or advertising. We also anticipate that enforcement officials will question any company efforts to avoid enforcement action by making false or misleading claims about their product in publicity releases or statements to the press."Basil R. Eastwood on the FDA labeling guidelines for BST