WASHINGTON, Aug 18, 2008

USDA's Federal Crop Insurance Corporation Board of Directors, at its Aug 14, 2008 meeting, approved additional seed technologies and states for a premium rate reduction for producers who plant certain qualifying corn hybrids.

Except from Cyndi O'Meara's Changing Habits August Newsletter

The last couple of weeks have been a whirl wind of troubling news with regards to nutrition and health. 

Last week Channel 9's Brisbane Extra called me to make a statement regarding the latest information on trans fats.  It will be aired Monday night in SE Queensland.  Then on Tuesday the 12th of August 2008, I'll be on Channel 10's 9AM program with Kim and David at around 9.45am talking about trans fats and hydrogenated vegetable oils. 

I was so excited about the calls as I thought after years of talking about the dangers of partially hydrogenated vegetable oils (trans fats) they were finally going to be banned from the Australian shelves and I wanted to be a part of this historic event.  Of course, that was my conclusion, as for the last eighteen months it has been public knowledge that trans fats are a very dangerous fat and that saturated fats were not after all the big ogre.  In fact we know if there is a 2% increase in trans fats in the diet then the chances of heart disease increase by 23%.

Local Farmers Defend Consumer Right to Know
(July 31^st - Bungendore) As a result of the state government's recent lifting of the moratorium on growing genetically modified (GM) crops, our local Molonglo District Council of the NSW Farmers Association, introduced and supported important motions at the Association's Annual Conference last week to protect consumers and farmers in a GM world.

Our district was represented at the conference by Howard Crozier, Richard Graham, Brett Falkiner, Vern Drew, Joan Limon, and Denise McMurtrie.  They brought with them this motion approved by the district farmers:  "That the Association support full transparent labelling of GM ingredients in all imported and domestic [food] products including livestock."