- Urge your Congressmen/women to support State as well as Federal legislation (like the bills above) that provide health and environmental safety testing, farmer protection, and labeling for all GE foods already on the market and for those currently being reviewed for market approval.
- Letters, phone calls, email messages, and visits to members of Congress are important ways to build support for mandatory labeling of GE food. Responding to constituent requests is a function of all congressional offices, but unless you are contacting your own U.S. Representative or Senators, it is unlikely that you will receive a response to your concerns. In other words, only Congress people who represent your own district will likely respond.
- For all written correspondence, clearly indicate your name and mailing address on the letter or postcard. State up front that you are a "constituent" (i.e., live in the congressional district or state represented by that particular U.S. Representative or Senator, respectively).
- To identify and/or contact your U.S. Senators via the Internet, go to the Senate's Website:
www.senate.gov To identify and/or contact your U.S. Representative via the Internet, go to the House of Representatives' Website at: www.house.gov To identify and/or contact your U.S. Senators via telephone, call the U.S. Capitol: (202) 224-3121. An operator will direct your call to a particular Senator or Representative's Office.
2. Write/Talk to your local grocery store managers about their store policy regarding GE foods. Also, direct your complaints to The Grocery Manufacturers of America (GMA), a national organization representing major food producers:
- Ask your local grocery store managers if they can tell you which items contain GE ingredients, and that you would like these foods labeled or taken off the shelves. Grocery stores normally allow customers to fill out a form, giving you the opprtunity to make your complaints official.
- Among your requests, ask managers to create or expand their organic food section.
- Call or fax the GMA and tell them that grocery manufacturers should stand up for consumer's wishes. Urge them to stop promoting food that you don't want to eat. You can send or fax your written comments to the following recipient:
Manly Mopus
President & CEO
Grocery Manufacturers of America
1010 Wisconsin Ave. NW, 9th floor
Washington, DC 20007
Tel. (202) 337-9400
Fax (202) 337-4508
Submit comments via the web at: www.gmabrands.com/contact/feedback.cfm
NOTE: Please forward any written responses from store managers or the GMA to: The Center for Food Safety, 660 Pennsylvania Ave., SE, Suite 302, Washington, DC 20003.
3. Write or call companies that produce popular food products and demand that they ban the use of GM ingredients in their products:
Below are some food companies and their consumer hotlines:
- *A&P Bird's Eye
(201) 930-4240 (800) 563-1786 - Burger King Dannon
(305) 378-7011 (800) 321-2174
(or check local listings) - Del Monte Food Lion
(800) 543-3090 (check local listings) - Healthy Choice Kellogg's
(800) 323-9980 (800) 962-1413 - Kraft M & M/Mars
(800) 431-1003 (888) 604-9529 - McDonalds Nabisco
(check local listings) (800) 622-4726 - Nestle PepsiCo
(800) 851-0512 (914) 253-2000 - Pillsbury Procter & Gamble
(800) 767-4466 (800) 543-1745 - Quaker Star Market/Shaws
(800) 856-5781 (800) 843-7827
*Includes Kohl's, Waldbaum's, SuperFresh, Food Emporium and other A&P affiliated stores.
NOTE: Most likely, these food companies will issue a letter of response to your concerns. Please forward any written responses from these companies to: The Center for Food Safety, 660 Pennsylvania Ave., SE, Suite 302, Washington DC 20003.
4. Additional information abut GE foods can be found at: www.centerforfoodsafety.org
5. Also look in links section of this website under Biotechnology.
Consumers deserve the opportunity to buy foods that are safe for human health and the environment. Thank you for helping us spread this important message.