Terry Etherton participated in a discussion of Pennsylvania's milk labeling on WHYY, Tuesday's Radio Times with Marty Moss-Coane. If you listen to the show (here via real player) you will hear him make certain claims over and over - when he wasn't shouting to try to keep the other guest, Consumer's Union Michael Hansen, from making important points about the weakness of Etherton's claims. You could almost gauge just how much Etherton's ox was gored by the level of his yelling.

Etherton was right on message with the behind-the-scenes propaganda campaign to make the world safe for Posilac a/k/a rBST. Wanna see what I mean?

Here is the letter that went out Wednesday in the last minute pitched milk labeling battle to save Monsanto's market:

From: Terri Breon [mailto:tgbreon@breonconsulting.net]
Sent: Wednesday, January 16, 2008 2:12 PM
Subject: Governor Rendell Needs Your Input on Milk Labeling

PDMP Issues Alert!

January 16, 2008

Professional Dairy Managers of Pennsylvania
Seeking to Advance the Dairy Industry in Pennsylvania
Through Improved Productivity and Profitability
From the Desk of Executive Director Alan Novak
Contact PDMP at: info[at]pdmp[dot]org

Your Letter on Milk Labeling
WILL Make a Difference!

Dairy producers from all over the country are sending letters this week to Pennsylvania's Governor in support of the milk labeling actions taken by Secretary of Agriculture Dennis Wolff. But Governor Rendell isn't elected by folks in Kansas or Wisconsin. He wants to know the people of his state are behind him and this policy.

Have you written your letter?

You are reading this at your computer now and it will only take a few minutes to write a letter that may affect the entire future of dairy in the Commonwealth. Our goal is to put dozens of letters on the Governor's desk in the next five days.

The fact is … government responds to the loudest voice and, so far, dairy producers aren't making near enough racket. Everyone figures that someone else will take care of it and that just won't work. In addition, you will really feel better if you put your thoughts on paper and let them tell your story where it counts. Get your friends and neighbors to write, too. We hear that letters from women are having a special impact.

We remind you that your note doesn't need to be the next great novel and you won't be graded on composition. Your four or five paragraph letter just needs to make the point that you wish to make regarding the benefits of verifiable, honest and truthful labels.

Every letter must be personal and unique, so we are not providing a sample or a form you can simply sign and send. At the end of this message we've included some talking points to help you out and here are some suggestions on how to put together a short effective letter:

1. In the first paragraph tell the Governor about you and your family, let him know where your business is located, and tell him why you are writing. Two sentences will do. i.e. For three generations my family has operated a dairy farm in _____ county and we are proud that we have earned a reputation for integrity and honesty during all those years. That is why I support the recent actions of Secretary of Agriculture Dennis Wolff to eliminate mislabeling of milk products in the Commonwealth.

2. In the second paragraph tell the Governor why this is important to the consumer i.e. I have been proud to provide the consumer with high quality, safe and wholesome. Dairy farmers have served the public for years earning a reputation for honestly and integrity. Labels using words like "antibiotic-free" or "no artificial hormones added" deceive the consumer into thinking that there is a difference between the "specialty" products and the milk people have been buying for generations.

3. In the third paragraph use a few sentences to tell something about your personal experience related to milk labeling.

4. Close by once again congratulating Secretary Wolff's actions and telling the Governor that the dairy industry needs his continued support. i.e. The PDA's action to halt mislabeling is to be commended and has my full support. I join with other members of the Professional Dairy Managers of Pennsylvania on behalf of the nearly 9000 dairy producers in the Commonwealth in requesting your continued leadership to keep this industry from being devalued by misleading and dishonest labeling.

Send your letter to:

The Honorable Edward G. Rendell
Governor's Office
225 Main Capitol Building
Harrisburg, PA 17120

If you really want to have an impact back up your letter by calling the Governor's office at 717-787-2500

Be sure to copy Secretary Wolff so he knows where the industry stands:

The Honorable Dennis C. Wolff
Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture
2301 North Cameron Street
Harrisburg, PA 17110
Phone: 717-787-4737

Please let PDMP know about your actions. Otherwise we won't have a way to track the impact of our message. To support you in your efforts, additional information has been posted at www.pdmp.org .

Here are some points dairy producers can make concerning milk labeling:

· Consumers are being confused by mixed messages in the dairy case. Positive benefits from milk need to be expressed on labels, not marketing schemes. The elimination of absence labeling (no antibiotics, no pesticides, no hormones, etc) means fair pricing for the consumers and farmers alike.

· Consumers have a right to know what is in their food. If they seek rbST-free milk, they can go buy organic. No need to create organic lite (rbST-free).

· Applaud the efforts of Secretary Wolff for creating a fair market place and assuring that the consumer is receiving the correct and truthful information and for supporting the farmers he represents.

· Applaud Governor Rendell for backing Secretary Wolff's actions in supporting Pennsylvania's dairy farmers and providing the consumer the truth about what they are buying.

· The PDA's decision is good for consumers. Labels today are misleading. Absence labeling takes away the value of all messages on the labels; consumers lose focus on what means something and what does not.

· This decision is good for consumers. Dairy is one of the government's required food groups. Allowing misleading labels would increase the price of milk, either because processors are looking for a bigger margin or because the price will go up due to less efficiency in the industry, or both. With one in five children growing up in a household whose income is below the poverty level preventing price hikes on dairy products is good for consumers.

· This decision is good for low income consumers and the federal government. According to the UDSA Food and Nutrition Service the government spends over $14 billion dollars on programs like WIC, school breakfast and lunch programs, and food stamps. Misleading labels that lead to the consumer purchasing more expensive milk decrease the impact these programs have.

· This decision is good for the youth of our country. Many children do not receive enough servings each day of dairy products; allowing misleading labels will make that worse.

· The decision is good for our dairy industry. Portraying one milk as good and another as bad will only hurt our industry in the long run.

· This decision is good for our state economy. Keeping all available management tools available to our dairymen will maximize the production of milk and therefore cash flow into our state.

· This decision is good for our dairy farmers. It is a tool that offers increased income to dairies irrespective of size. More profit keeps more dairies in business. That is good for our farmers and their families.

· This decision is good for the infrastructure that serves the dairymen in our state. Keeping dairies viable keeps these folks in business.

· The decision is good for agriculture, it helps keep AG sustainable and it is green. With agricultural exports rising, corn demand up from ethanol use, the prospect of another 100 million people wanting to eat 3 meals a day, here in the US, over the next 35 years, and a decreasing land base we will need to continue to get more productivity per cow, per acre, etc. That is sustainable.

· This decision is good for our dairy processors, it assures them an adequate supply of milk to maximize productivity of their dairy plants.

· This decision is good for our ability to compete in the world market. I think we would all be happy to help out the balance of trade deficits we face.

· This decision is good for the agricultural programs at our universities. Taking safe, approved technologies off the market will limit the amount of research dollars that go into developing new products in the animal health field. That would limit research dollars flowing into agriculture schools.

· This decision is good for humanity worldwide. The world population is expected to grow by 1 billion people in the next 25 years. We will need to increase productivity in order to feed them all.

· Bottom line is, this decision is ethically and morally right at every level, thank you.

You have been included in this message because of your interest in PDMP. If you wish to unsubscribe, click here. This email was sent by the Professional Dairy Managers of Pennsylvania, 174 Crestview Drive, Bellefonte, PA.

By the way, would it come as a surprise to know that on the board of the PDMP is a Monsanto representative? You can read about it here.

• milk,
• dairy,
• rBST,
• rBGH,
• monsanto,
• Posilac,
• Pennsylvania,
• food,
• agribusiness