Organic Consumers Association & Networking

[EWerb at aol.com]

The Organic Consumers Association - the OCA is a national grassroots 
consumers campaign which grew out of the massive organic consumer response to 
the USDA's first round of Organic Standards (over 270,000 comments were 
submitted on the first round) in 1998. Many of us were part of the SOS/Save 
Organic Standards Campaign. 

We need your help in developing a network of consumers, coops/stores, 
farmers, and others tobuild a national organic movement to educate and 
mobilize consumers about the dangers of genetic engineering and food 
irradiation, and to submit comments to the USDA on the National Organic 
Standards.

Join the Organic Consumers Association in your local area.
If you want to become a member or a volunteer--or make a donation--call 
(218)726-1443

We have free OCA materials we can send you. 
Food agenda 2000 flyers/posters,  petitions, ge fact sheet and more, see 
below!

SUBSCRIBE:
Interested in receiving Organic View, our free email newsletter, and 
occasional action alerts that deal with national organics issues and updates, 
including information on  Genetically Engineered food issues, USDA's Second 
Round of Organic Standards, labeling of irradiated food and more?

Please subscribe to our free electronic newsletter, Organic View, via our 
website or send an email to: info at organicconsumers.org with the message: 
subscribe Organic View is devoted to organic food issues and the work of the 
OCA.

Organic View currently goes to over 25,000 coops, health food stores, 
nutrition centers, activists, food buying clubs, CSA's, farmers markets, 
organic farmers, organic consumers, health care professionals, organic 
businesses and distributors, and organizations.  We also maintain an 
international list.

Our Food Agenda 2000 campaign calls for:
1) Global Moratorium on Genetically Engineered Foods and Crops until 
adequate safety testing has been done. (We were the first organization in '98 
to call for a global moratorium);
2) Stop Factory Farming and Phase-Out Industrial Agriculture;
3) Convert US Agriculture to at least 30% Organic by 2010.

We have free packets available:
1) Food Agenda 2000 packets for individuals contain: 2 anti-GE petitions, a 
GE fact sheet (you can make more copies), leaflets, and a  Consumer Warning 
Leaflet targetting the top 15 food manufacturers to  stop using GE 
ingredients.
2) Store display packets contain 2 GE petitions,  GE fact sheets, Consumer 
Warning leaflet, Food Agenda 2000 leaflets, a counter top display holder, and 
1 poster. Please let me know how many display packets you would like me to 
send to you for your coop/store/buying club/organizations/CSA/farmers market 
or event. For buying clubs and CSA's, please let me know how many members you 
have so I can include enough leaflets to send you.

What else can you do to support our Food Agenda 2000 campaign?

***You can help recruit new subscribers to our newsletters by sending this 
entire message out to everyone on your email lists.

Volunteer:
- We need individuals to help identify coops/health stores in your area that 
do not have our Food Agenda 2000 flyers and petitions. Send us a contact name 
(manager), store name, address, telephone/fax numbers, and email/website URL 
and we will send them a free pkt.
- If you want to volunteer, please send me your complete address, phone and 
fax so I can add you to our data base and connect you with other activists in 
 your area.

Coordinators:
- We need regional and state coordinators that can help distribute our Food 
Agenda 2000 petition and our flyers to stores, organizations and groups that 
are not hooked up to email  and that are not in our data base. You can help 
us develop local OCA Chapters, table at events, and help build a local data 
base of activists and those interested in the issues (for email, fax, and 
telephone "trees").  Make sure you visit our websites on a regular basis for 
new articles and information.

Donations:
- We need donations to help pay for flyers and posters. Donations can be sent 
to: OCA, 6114 Highway 61, Little Marais, MN 55614
- Help organize a fundraising potluck and/or video showing (we have a free 
video lending library).

Action:
- We need people to contact their elected Congressional senators and 
representatives, the United States Department of Agriculture, the President 
and Vice-President  about the importance of strong organic standards.
president at whitehouse.gov(President Bill Clinton)
vice.president at whitehouse.gov (VP Al Gore)
Daniel.Glickman at usda.gov(Dan Glickman, Secretary of the US Department of 
Agriculture)
Main website for US Representatives: http://www.house.gov/
Main website for US Senate: http://www.senate.gov/
- Write letters to the editor on organic issues.

Please pass this message on to your email lists. We are trying to build an 
email network that can quickly submit comments to the USDA /FDA and elected 
officials about organic standards and organic issues.

Thanks for your support!

Debbie Dunbar Ortman
National Field Organizer
Organic Consumers Association
3547 Haines Rd.
Duluth, MN 55811
(218) 726-1443
(218) 726-1446 Fax
debbie at organicconsumers.org
http://www.purefood.org

The OCA  has speakers (Ronnie Cummins, Debbie Ortman, and  Simon Harris) 
available but we do need transportation/lodging expenses paid for and an 
honorarium would be helpful. We are also available for media interviews.

OCA is affiliated with the BioDemocracy Campaign.