Tell Congress to Oppose 2,4-D Crops
Dear Readers,
Thanks to people like you, over 500,000 people around the country wrote to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) telling it not to approve the use of the toxic herbicide 2,4-D specifically for Dow’s genetically engineered (GE) corn!
In response, Representatives Peter DeFazio (D-OR) and Chellie Pingree (D-ME) have written a Congressional sign-on letter urging the EPA and USDA to deny approval of 2,4-D crops and this new version of Dow’s 2,4-D herbicide.
EPA is timing its approval process with that of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Both agencies appear poised to approve Dow’s 2,4-D crops and its new formulation of 2,4-D.
Dow Chemical, the same company that brought us Dursban, Napalm and Agent Orange, is now in the food business and is pushing for an unprecedented government approval: genetically engineered (GE) versions of corn, soybeans and cotton that are designed to survive repeated dousing with 2,4-D, half of the highly toxic chemical mixture Agent Orange.
Agent Orange was the chemical defoliant used by the U.S. in Vietnam, and it caused lasting environmental damage as well as many serious medical conditions in both American veterans and the Vietnamese.
Wide scale use of Roundup with Roundup Ready GE crops has already led to an epidemic of resistant weeds, and the next step in the chemical arms race is 2,4-D — a chemical linked to major health problems including cancer, Parkinson’s disease, endocrine disruption, and reproductive problems. Industry tests show that 2,4-D is contaminated with dioxins—often referred to as the most toxic substances known to science.
EPA has reported that 2,4-D is the seventh largest source of dioxins in the U.S.Dioxin contamination in the rivers and soil around Dow Chemical’s headquarters in Midland, Michigan has led to the highest dioxin levels ever found by the EPA in fish, and has been linked to increased breast cancer rates in the contaminated areas.
EPA’s approval would lead to a massive increase in the use of 2,4-D on our farms—and our exposure to this toxic herbicide—yet the government has completely failed to investigate the harms such increased use would cause. This is part of a growing problem, an escalating chemical arms race going on across America’s heartland.
Dow Chemical is hyping GE 2,4-D corn, soy, and cotton as the “solution” to Roundup-resistant weeds caused by GE Roundup Ready crops. But by driving up 2,4-D use, Dow’s crops will generate even more intractable weeds resistant to 2,4-D and other herbicides. This GE crop system ensures a toxic spiral of ever-increasing chemical use on our land and food, which benefits no one but Dow.
Thanks for everything you do,
Center for Food Safety
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