Ohio's governor conspires to keep you ignorant

Guess who doesn't want you to know you're using their product? That would be Monsanto, manufacturer of the artificial growth hormone farmers are putting in your milk.

Now guess who is helping them hide that fact? That would be your very own Governor Stickland, who recently issued an emergency rule to shore up Monsanto's secrecy campaign.

Here's the word on that slight-of-hand from Consumers Union:

"Some dairy farmers use an artificial growth hormone, produced and sold by Monsanto, to make cows produce more milk. But many retailers, as well as all organic dairies, sell dairy products from cows that are not injected with synthetic growth hormones, and you can choose "rbGH-free" milk easily from the label.

"If Monsanto has its way, your dairy labels will suddenly get very complicated, or they may no longer help you distinguish these products at all.

"Ohio Executive Order 2008—03S creates bureaucratic barriers to simple labeling. Many retailers may just stop distinguishing "rbGH-free" products altogether. If they keep a label, they will have to use misleading disclaimers and meet detailed requirements for exactly how the label looks that are unique to Ohio. Most retailers sell the same product in several states.

...

"The federal government has already said that existing labels on milk are not misleading. There is no reason for Ohio to issue any more regulations on this subject."

If you want to tell Ohio's governor how you feel about this, CU has provided a web page to get you started. Here's the link.