Thank you I couldn’t agree more that a National food Policy is imperative to our countries health. It is long overdue and I applaud it. How refreshing to read something so important and holistically thought out. We need a program like this to heal and revitalize the destructive path we have been going down for far too long. As a society caring for our soil, seeds, animals, farmers, and population could not be more important. This is a movement gaining steam.

I founded a company called Urban Remedy with the premise of using food as a means of healing, it’s my life’s work, my passion. I’ve made a career of helping people improve their health using food, lifestyle modifications and principles of Traditional Eastern Medicine, but sadly, the more I learn about our food system here in the US, the more despondent I become about our ability to have control over our own health. The more I understand about the power of the food industry, the more concerned I become thinking of our children and those suffering diseases perhaps caused by the creation of these cheap calories with zero nutritional value that big food industries promote as “healthy” and “low fat”. Words consumers relate to as being good for them and their families when in reality many of these processed foods raise blood sugar levels, promote obesity and inflammatory disorders. High fructose corn syrup is a great example according to the market research firm NPD Group, over 50 percent of Americans say they are concerned that high-fructose corn syrup poses a health risk. What did they do? Changed the name to “fructose syrup” or “fructose”.

The reality is, in order to be truly beneficial and nourishing, our food needs to be sourced, raised and processed to do no harm. In order to get the best from our food supply, we need to do right by our farmers and our planet, using methods known to be safe and sustainable. The food supply is a complex series of steps and sadly, today, our country fails us at each turn. How naïve we are to assume the government has our best interest in mind when, time after time, legislation fails to protect us from hideous poisons or processes in order to feed the bottom line of mega corporations.

While we allow growth hormone, GMOs and insecticides in our food supply (though other countries do not) it is a hard-fought battle to simply produce and sell organic food. Speaking from experience, it took me a year to get Urban Remedy certified organic and non-GMO. It was ridiculously expensive and labor intensive, but I would not have it any other way. These days, growing, selling and working with organic, non-GMO foods is a political act. As a mother, health educator and acupuncturist, my whole life is devoted to helping heal people, and I use food as a primary means of improving health. I find it devastating and maddening that, for all the resource in this country, our government continues to allow big food industry to taint our food supply with chemicals linked to deadly diseases all in the name of greater profit margins. What kind of civilized society knowingly lets its citizens ingest poisons and turns a blind eye to the damage they do in order to reap more reward? It’s a sickening discovery to learn, as I have, the many ways our society fails us when it comes to acting responsibly about food.

In my acupuncture practice, I saw many people who had inflammatory disorders that I traced directly to diet. As we altered dietary behaviors and choices, many of these same patients watched their health turn around and conditions abate. As I set out in my career, I viewed each case as an interesting phenomenon. As I’ve conducted more research and educated myself about the realities of our food practices in this country, I’ve become deeply distressed about the very clear ways in which big food industry puts all of us on the line.

We should be ashamed that this generation of children is the sickest in the history of the U.S. If we were honoring the land and the animals, using clean farming practices, and taking care to restrict substances that might do harm, we wouldn’t find ourselves in this dire situation. Just looking at the statistics of cancer in this country compared to other modern nations tells a bleak story. But the harsh reality is, big food doesn’t care about the health of the populace. Industry is motivated by money, not the health of our children.

We are in a dire situation and we desperately need policy change on so many issues concerning our food supply. It’s not enough to decide for oneself to choose not to eat tainted food. The big food industry is so committed to keeping its profits up, it takes measures to deceive the public by refusing to label foods as they are and creating campaigns that mislead and confuse people who want nothing more than to eat safely.

This is why I support the call for a National Food Policy. To say such a measure is urgent is an understatement. But we must try to correct the ills driven by greed so pervasive in our food policy. We must fight for ourselves and our families, and for those already sick from allergens and cancer-causing elements in our food sources.

As I write this, the Senate battles over labeling GMO foods, while a powerful lobby works to ensure people are kept in the dark about the food they eat. I wholeheartedly support a National Food Policy that finally fights for our health and protects citizens at the most basic level: the food we eat to survive. It is something essential to our very existence, and yet it’s threatened every day by those elected to ensure our wellbeing. I am honored to be a part of the conversation and I am committed to fighting the good fight. People deserve to know the truth about their food and make informed decisions.