Former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack, a strong supporter of the Biotechnology Industry and Genetically Engineered (GE/GMO) crops is now the Secretary of Agriculture. Former vice president and chief lobbyist for Monsanto, Michael Taylor, is the new senior advisor for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Pennsylvania Agriculture Secretary Dennis Wolff may be appointed the new Under-Secretary of Agriculture for Food Safety -- the top food safety post at the USDA. Wolff declared that labeling products rbGH-free was against the law, and ordered all such labels to be removed from Pennsylvania.
The “swivel chair” appointment of industry executives into the regulatory agencies meant to govern them has long been the practice. Obama promised change to his supporters, but this is one more area that we are seeing business as usual. The nation’s food will be as tainted as the people who produce it and regulate it -- Monsanto and company.