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Philippe Binard: 30 years serving the European Fruit and Vegetables chain

admin — Tue, 20 Jun 2017 09:44:46 +0000

The 20th of June 2017 Freshfel AGM celebrated the 30 year work anniversary of Philippe Binard, General Delegate. He has been given a congratulation book with a lot of pictures and testimonies.

Quite emotional.

To smile: For a full DHMO ban

admin — Mon, 27 Mar 2017 07:25:13 +0000

DHMO has already been a matter of campaigns, at little scale. We’ve already reported them here and here.
Now the Association for DHMO Ban has launched a petition on Change.org.

DHMO, DiHydrogen MonOxide is a colorless and odorless chemical compound.

It’s used as solvant, dilutant and coolant. It could be found in biopsies of pre-cancerous tumors and lesions. It is a known causative component in many thousands of deaths and is a major contributor to millions upon millions of dollars in damage to property and the environment.

For more information, there is also a DHMO Awareness facebook page and a DHMO Awareness site

In short, it’s time to définitely ban DHMO. And you can contribute by signing the petition.

17 Questions (and Answers) About Glyphosate (Thoughtscapism)

admin — Tue, 13 Sep 2016 15:48:15 +0000

That’s the title of this article (in English) : detailed, a bit long, but very clear. It’s on Thouhtscapism, a blog on science, creativity, environment, health, fiction by Iida Ruishalme, biologist.

Here is the presentation by The Risk Monger on his blog:
“It is a bit long but answers, very clearly and patiently, every question anyone with concerns about the continued use of this herbicide might have. If you are a journalist, please read this. If you are a policy-maker, please read this. If you are going to share an anti-GMO or anti-conventional farming meme, please read this. If you are going to the Monsanto Tribunal next month, … please learn to read!”
Worth reading.

Her 17 questions:

99.99% of the pesticides we eat are… natural

admin — Wed, 20 Jul 2016 18:28:47 +0000

In “Myth busting: Are synthetic pesticides, used with some GMOs, more dangerous than natural ones?“, on Genetic Literacy, L Katiraee reminds us the Bruce Ames works in a clear and interesting way.

“Plants and animals have evolved mechanisms to fight against their predators. Some of them are mechanical, like thorns or spines on a puffer fish, but some are chemical in nature. As a result, our food is full of natural pesticides and toxins.
One of the more common natural pesticides that we ingest is solanine” (especially in potatoes).
In general, it’s safe. “But when the potato starts to green or sprout (i.e. the ‘eyes’ start growing), then the amount increases significantly […] [so] A Current guidelines from the NIHrecommends throwing out spoiled potatoes or those that are green below the skin.”
And Solanine is “just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to natural pesticides.” Here are a few others: caffeine, nicotine, capsaicin, DIMBOA[1]. And, as well, all these substances which give flavors to herbs and spices.
“The list is very long. In 1990, Bruce Ames published a paper entitled “Dietary pesticides (99.99 percent all natural)”. In it, he and his coauthors outline that we eat an estimated 1.5 grams of natural pesticides a day, “which is about 10,000 times more” than the amount of synthetic pesticide residues we consume. […] The concentrations of these pesticides are in parts per thousand or parts per million, whereas the amount of synthetic pesticides we find on our food are in the parts per billion range.
[…] Of all the chemicals tested for chronic cancer tests in animals, only 5 percent have been natural pesticides and half of these were carcinogenic.
Think about that for a moment. While there’s an uproar about parts per billion amounts of synthetic pesticide residues on our food, there are more concentrated compounds in fruits and veggies actually known to cause cancer. In addition, some of the more commonly used pesticides in agriculture have mechanisms of action that are specific to the pests their targeting, making them far safer than many natural pesticides”
“This should be a nuanced discussion. Just because an agricultural pesticide has a benign toxic profile does not mean that we shouldn’t try to minimize its use when possible. […] Yet we shouldn’t consider our food to be “unsafe” or shun traditional farming practices because of the use of synthetic pesticides.
Remember: it’s all in the dose.”

To go further:
““There’s No Such Thing as a Chemical-Free Lunch””
« Références sur résidus et sécurité des aliments »
« Les idées reçues : la tasse de café »

[1] Acronyme évitant de donner son nom barbare : 2,4-dihydroxy-7-méthoxy-1,4-benzoxazine-3-one

To smile and think: Is glyphosate drinkable?

admin — Thu, 23 Jun 2016 16:43:04 +0000

It’s a “Stuicide”. In this vidéo, a “stupid” guy drinks Glyphosate to show that it is non-toxic to humans at realistic concentrations. And in fact it’s not that stupid.

Don’t do that at home. But watch the video before making your mind.

“Amish use GMOs, pesticides yet cancer rates remain very low”

admin — Tue, 24 May 2016 07:23:05 +0000

The Amish, an insular people in the United States for nearly 200 years, avoid modern technologies such as telephones, automobile, and even zippers. Many people think the Amish must also eschew genetically modified crops and pesticides.
In addition, Amish are healthier than the rest of the US population. Their cancer rates are very low. So the anti-pesticides and anti-GMO paranoïa is right? You get it all wrong…

On the opposite, in “Amish use GLOs, pesticides yet cancer rates remain low”, Genetic Literacy, a scientific pro-GMO website, demonstrates that Amish “use pesticides, and they use genetically modified crops in their fields. Enthusiastically.”
Moreover, “Amish farmers see organic as a new technology, and some are reluctant to adapt to it.”

Common sense get one thing right: Amish have indeed very low cancer rates. The main reasons are :
– Avoidance of tobacco
– Lifestyle : they are more active
– Observation bias due to their refusal of cancer screenings
– Endogamy which favorites genetic diseases, but also genetic advantages. It would be the main reason according to Genetic Literacy.

Main conclusion : keep away from common sense, it could be misconceptions…

Food risks : John Oliver mocks misleading science with Todd Talks

admin — Tue, 10 May 2016 13:33:31 +0000

Most eat-this-don’t-eat-that studies are garbage, in the way that garbage could become a Dr. Oz endorsed superfood with a scientific study designed to generate the desired answer. John Oliver agrees on a sarcastic, hilarious AND serious talk-show on HBO.

Barfblog, a reference blog in food safety, publishes a good written summary.
It concludes “That’s where his idea for Todd Talks comes in. “Do you love science in all its complexity but wish it could be a little less complex and a lot less scientific?” asks an announcer. “Introducing Todd Talks, where the format of Ted Talks meets the intellectual rigor of morning news shows.”
Highlights of the hilarious talks include warnings about chocolate — “Mmm. It will kill you,” says one pseudo scientist — and some intriguing if not alarming findings on alcohol — “And in my research I found out, red wine makes babies 20 percent more sociable,” explains another.”

A new style for ForumPhyto

admin — Wed, 27 Apr 2016 13:48:17 +0000

Our site appearance is changing, with 3 main objectives:

– A clearer and more readable display
– A more simple display for mobile terminals (smartphones and tablets)
– In consequence, a better indexing on search engines

Notinhing else has changed : every former address is still functional.

Your remarks are welcome.

To smile and think: “Salt, Vinegar, and Glyphosate”

admin — Wed, 27 Apr 2016 12:52:25 +0000

A “homemade” herbicide recipe is floating around the web : salt, vinegar and dish soap. Many of you have probably seen it posted to Facebook or Twitter or Pinterest, or on your favorite home gardening site. Is it efficient, safe and cheap? That is the question Control Freaks, a Weed Science blog which is linked to USDA, answers to in “Salt, Vinegar, and Glyphosate”
A funny and well-documented story which is worth reading.

Effectiveness
Homemade herbicide is efficient on annual weeds. But for perennials, glyphosate is paramount.

Cost
Glyphosate is clearly “less expensive than the homemade mixture on a per-gallon, ready-to-spray basis”.

Toxicity
Both homemade and glyphosate are really not so toxic per se.
Nevertheless, acetic acid is more toxic than glyphosate.
But the main thing is you need to apply 6-times higher rates for homemade herbicide.
Globally, the homemade herbicide is “nearly 10 times more lethal to mammals than glyphosate, one of the most potent weed killers on the planet”

The author concludes: ”

Maybe you’re not worried about the safety aspect; you simply don’t want to purchase Roundup because you dislike Monsanto. Well, don’t forget that vinegar is often made from corn, and most corn in the US has the Roundup Ready trait (which was developed by Monsanto). So the vinegar you are using to spray your weeds is probably made from corn that was sprayed with glyphosate: the very herbicide you were trying to avoid.
All joking aside, the important thing to keep in mind is that both the homemade vinegar + salt mixture and Roundup are pretty darn safe when used properly, they’re both relatively inexpensive, and both can provide effective weed control in the appropriate situation. Now, all this discussion has made me hungry for some Roundup Ready sweet corn, with just a little salt, and a salad with a nice vinaigrette dressing.”
Bon appétit!

In Canada, free seeds to bring back the bees

admin — Wed, 16 Mar 2016 15:52:02 +0000

In Canada, General Mills, owner of the Honey Nut Cheerios trademark, has decided to put away their bee-mascot from packaging for some weeks. This way, they aim to make their customers be aware of the massive bee death. They offer free wildflowers seeds to every Canadian to bring back the bees.

Have a look to #bringbackthebees (in English) or ramenonslesabeilles (en français)

This initiative relies on a 2013 TED talk video by Maria Spivak, a bee specialist at Minnesota University (USA). Recent data show a better bee health than told in the talk. In addition, Maria Spivak feed a disputable argument against neonicotinoids. But she stresses the essential role of a diversified and abundant food to make bees happy and healthy..

For sure, it’s also an easy way for promoting the trademark Cheerios. A kind of « greenwashing » in a way.
But this effort to make young people active in a positive way for bee health and well-being may be appreciated.

One could encourage European retail companies to act the same way, instead of inflicting new non-regulatory, non-realistic and counterproductive requirements everyday to growers.