Care2, SumOfUs, CREDO, Friends of the Earth, Beyond Pesticides, Organic Consumers Association, Food & Water Watch Join Moms Across America at Rally Outside White House Followed by March to EPA
Washington, DC – Today, a large coalition of national organizations delivered over 400,000 petitions to the EPA demanding an end to glyphosate use in America. The groups held a rally outside the White House before marching over to EPA headquarters. The event organized by Moms Across America and Care2 was also joined by Organic Consumers Association, Beyond Pesticides, Friends of the Earth, SumOfUs, Food & Water Watch and CREDO Action.
This comes the week after news reports of the European Union indicating they will re-approve glyphosate’s registration in the US, despite fierce public outcry, for another 10 years. Though the approval, due this month, will have considerable restrictions, America citizens say these restrictions are not enough. The EPA’s finding that glyphosate is “not likely to be a carcinogen” yesterday has these organizations inclined to believe the EPA will renew the license of glyphosate, an act which many say, due to health implications, America cannot afford.
“The EPA is simply ignoring hundreds of scientific studies showing harm. The fact is that plenty of science shows that the contamination of glyphosate in our wine, beer, tap water, urine, breast milk, cotton products, cereal and breakfast foods is a major contributing factor to America’s skyrocketing illnesses. This widespread contamination of this probable carcinogen, neurotoxin and endocrine disruptor must stop. The EPA MUST revoke the license of glyphosate now and protect the people, not the profits of the chemical companies. ” – Zen Honeycutt, Director of Moms Across America
“This is a pivotal moment for the EPA and the United States government, where they have the chance to show how much they value the health and safety of the people of the United States by revoking the license of glyphosate. More than 400,000 concerned citizens have signed petitions demanding that the EPA take responsible action against this toxic chemical. There is an outpouring of concern and anger about our government’s continued appeasement of corporations that do not have our best interests at heart. We will hold the EPA accountable, and we challenge the EPA to demonstrate its commitment to democracy and to our well-being.” – Miranda Becker, Care2 Member Activism Coordinator
“Tragically, the EPA’s preliminary cancer finding doesn’t only contradict the WHO determination that glyphosate is a probable carcinogen. It also contradicts the lived experience of many members of the Organic Consumers Association and people in the US around the world who have been exposed to glyphosate and now have cancer. There’s a word for the harm Monsanto has caused with poisons like Roundup and Agent Orange: ecocide. Ecocide should be a crime and Monsanto should be charged. That’s why OCA is helping to organize the Monsanto Tribunal at the Hague on World Food Day.” – Alexis Baden-Mayer, Political Director for Organic Consumers Association
“If the EPA continues giving Monsanto a free pass to poison our food, it will be making a mockery of its mission to ‘protect human health and the environment.’ There is ample evidence that Roundup poses myriad risks to our health, yet the EPA has relied on shoddy, outdated, industry-funded studies to turn a blind eye. It’s time for the EPA to get out of the pocket of Monsanto and start protecting our health.” – CREDO Climate Campaigns Director Elijah Zarlin
“The current science confirms that glyphosate and Roundup are anything but safe. This probable carcinogen has no place on our lawns or foods. We have safer, alternative methods of managing our lawns and growing food that do not rely on glyphosate or other toxic inputs. It is time that EPA recognizes its responsibility to move away from hazardous and unnecessary pesticides.” – Nichelle Harriott, science and regulatory director, Beyond Pesticides.
“Glyphosate continues to be pushed onto the marketplace despite mounting evidence that it causes environmental harm and was found to be probably carcinogenic by the World Health Organization. Consumers and communities worldwide are sick of putting the corporate profits of multinationals before sound science and public health — it’s time to take it off our shelves.” – Rosa Kouri, SumOfUs Campaigns Director.
“Clear science shows glyphosate is harming our environment—leading to the decline of monarch butterflies and the ecosystems we depend on for sustainable food and farming systems. We are at a critical moment to end the use of this pesticide. We urge EPA to act immediately.” – Tiffany Finck-Haynes, Food Futures Campaigner at Friends of the Earth