> Now is the time to step forward into it and take some time to read some
> or all of the 34 pages of comments that have been received to the end of
> the year on the NOP(e) rule.
 
Arghhh.
 
I did spend some time there and you are right in your analogy.  Seems a
(the?) major topic of interest in the comments section is sewage
sludge.   Anyhow, I find it pretty depressing reading.  I know the motives
behind the whole thing are probably okay, but I heard somewhere about the
road to hell...
 
What with genetic engineering, irradiation, animal handling, and paranoia
about large food interests being big concerns to consumers and trying to
define synthetic and biodegradable in meaningful terms being a tough nut
for the wordsmiths, the thing looks like a real tar baby.  Lawyers will
have *a lot* of fun with this one and I doubt anyone will eat any better
on account of it..
 
I found the comments site format very awkward to read.  There is no 'next'
button, so each comment has to be loaded individually -- a gruelling task
that discourages browsing for nuggets.
 
Did I leave any comments?  Nop(e) I didn't.  Where do you start?
 
I guess there are so many issues that trying to combine them in one
catch-all category -- organic -- is ludicrous.  There are so many
unrelated and sometimes opposing ideas involved.  I truly feel sorry for
anyone who gets tangled in it.
 
I fail to see the need for a second parallel system of government
mandated food grading and am concerned that it will lead to confusion and
an actual lowering of standards.  I think that the matter can be dealt
with best by defining clearly the meaning of a galaxy words allowed on
food labels and leave it at that.  Obviously 'organic' has had it.  It
raises too many divergent expectations.  This government blessing looks
more like last rites than a baptism.
 
Allen
 
---
BEE-L can be searched for items in a particular date range. The
following message (To the LISTSERVER-not BEE-L) retrieves only the
messages since January 1997.
SEARCH formic acid IN bee-l SINCE Jan 1997
The capitals indicate commands which the LISTSERVER responds to
and the small letters indicate the things that you specify.
(Courtey Don Aitken)