Sludge Watch ==> Veggie Disparagement Law Author Explains Herself

[Maureen Reilly]

Sludgewatch Admin:

Hmmm...'knowingly and recklessly providing media with unverified information 
on food safety"
Sounds like what the EPA has been doing for years when talking about food 
grown or grazed on sludged fields.

False info on food safety should cut both ways.


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Safety of food we eat is not a laughing matter
04.mar.07
Ventura County Star (CA)

http://www.venturacountystar.com/vcs/opinion/article/0,1375,VCS_125_5393510,00.html

Assemblywoman Audra Strickland, R-Westlake Village, who represents the 37th 
Assembly District, which includes Camarillo, Fillmore, Moorpark, Ojai, 
Thousand Oaks, Santa Paula and Simi Valley, writes regarding The Star's 
March 1 editorial, "No disparaging words" to say that the Star's editorial 
on my legislation — AB 698, which protects farmers whose products are 
falsely reported as contaminated — was admittedly humorous. However, I think 
all would agree that there is nothing funny about contamination in our food 
supply.

As the mother of a 16-month-old child, I need to be assured that the food I 
feed my family is safe. You can then understand how troubling it was to hear 
the news reports last year of E. coli outbreaks originating at a Ventura 
County farm. Because I could not take the chance of giving my daughter 
contaminated food, I stopped feeding her fresh vegetables.

As it turned out, the produce from the local farm was absolutely safe and 
the incorrect reports stemmed from someone providing the media with 
unverified information. This reckless act resulted in this farm having to 
put a significant portion of it operation on hold at a considerable cost to 
the farmer, its employees and our community.

No one has the right to cause financial damage by knowingly dispensing false 
information about the safety of our food. That is why I have introduced 
Assembly Bill 698, which would hold accountable those who knowingly make 
these false remarks about a specific farm's perishable produce.
Twelve states already have laws that protect their farmers from damaging 
false reports. Because California not only leads the nation but actually 
dominates in agricultural production, we must also protect our farmers and 
those who depend on them — like farmworkers and families, who rely on a safe 
food supply.

AB 698, sponsored by the Ventura County Agricultural Association, is written 
with many provisions to protect against abuse. In order for an action to be 
successful, farmers need to meet and prove all of four criteria: the false 
statements are clearly about the farmer and his or her perishable product 
and not just about produce in general; the statement was disseminated to the 
public; the statements were known to be false by the source; and it is 
recognizable that the false statements would cause financial harm.

I, like many other parents, take food safety very seriously. My family 
depends on my food judgment to keep them healthy and safe. And because we 
depend on our local farmers to provide safe produce, it is only right that 
we protect them from damaging false claims.