E-Petition for disclosure of glyphosate safety records – YouTube

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e-413

Petition to the Minister of Health

Whereas:

• Glyphosate is among the most used herbicidal chemical in Canadian Agriculture;
• Safety test records and data on Glyphosate, based on which the ministry is supposed to have approved it for Canadian Agriculture, have not been made public; and
• Public release of a product without releasing its safety test records may be illegal.

We, the undersigned, residents of Canada, call upon the Minister of Health to put in the public domain all safety test records, including all raw data, that is supposed to prove that the chemical Glyphosate is safe to be used in Canadian agriculture.

e-413 (Agricultural industry) Petition to release safety test data on Glyphosate

Petition to the Minister of Health

Whereas:

• Glyphosate is among the most used herbicidal chemical in Canadian Agriculture;
• Safety test records and data on Glyphosate, based on which the ministry is supposed to have approved it for Canadian Agriculture, have not been made public; and
• Public release of a product without releasing its safety test records may be illegal.

We, the undersigned, residents of Canada, call upon the Minister of Health to put in the public domain all safety test records, including all raw data, that is supposed to prove that the chemical Glyphosate is safe to be used in Canadian agriculture.

Sign Petition Here

Senators propose GMO labelling compromise — FT.com

Big food companies argued that on-package labelling would create stigma around ingredients they said had been scientifically proven safe, and would force companies to reformulate their products, hurting farmers. State-by-state laws would create confusion for consumers and would be prohibitively disruptive for company supply chains, the industry said.

Under the bill, fought out by Democrat Debbie Stabenow and Republican Pat Roberts, companies could either provide voluntary on-package labelling of GMO ingredients using words or a symbol, or use smart labels such as a QR code that links to online information about the GMO ingredients.

“The compromise looks as though it’s a pretty big win for the food companies,” said Alexia Howard, a food industry analyst at Bernstein. She added that the smart label option would be less transparent for consumers but would allow those interested to find information if they wanted.

Source: Senators propose GMO labelling compromise — FT.com

Frisch causes fracas over feelings – Comox Valley Record

In a 4-2 vote at its June 20 meeting, Courtenay council defeated a David Frisch resolution to write a letter of regret for comments deemed inappropriate to members of a recent delegation about social procurement practices.

At a May 30 committee of the whole session, Sandra Hamilton, an authority on social enterprise leadership, discussed the concept of deriving social value by leveraging an organization’s purchasing power — “new solutions to complex challenges,” she said. For example, Bill 6 in Ontario includes a provision to include community benefits in infrastructure projects.

Mayor Larry Jangula, unsure of what Hamilton was requesting, suggested the idea is “not our business.” Hamilton disagreed, and grew increasingly frustrated with Jangula as she provided examples of social value throughout the presentation.The mayor questioned council’s role and said the topic is a “grey issue.” Though he could see the potential of a social procurement policy, Jangula said it could be more harmful than good.

At Monday’s meeting, Frisch suggested that council’s response to the May 30 delegation appeared to lack courtesy and respect. Doug Hillian was the only councillor to support the motion.

“I think it is incumbent on us, even if we have hard questions to ask, to be respectful in terms of tone of voice. And I don’t think it’s appropriate to question people’s credentials in a public format,” Hillian said.

“We want to make sure the City of Courtenay is seen as a citizen-friendly and a business-friendly organization. It does make a difference how we respond to people making presentations. I feel this would help to assuage the feelings that people did not feel well regarded.”

Though Jangula’s questions pushed Hamilton’s buttons, Coun. Bob Wells feels the questions were professional and not out of context.

“There’s going to be friction in the way that we view things,” Wells said. “I’d be really nervous about encumbering our ability to ask questions of people who are making presentations.”

Erik Eriksson feels Hamilton, as an experienced business person, is capable of dealing with issues when they arise.

“There were pointed questions, and she gave pointed answers, and when the answers were given, the mayor thanked her for clarifying his concerns,” Eriksson said.

Eriksson is concerned the motive of the motion was not to assuage the feelings of the presenter but to discredit a fellow member of council. Frisch said this was not the case. However, he was uncomfortable with questions that came up about Hamilton’s professionalism.“Questions were asked that sounded quite accusatory,” Frisch said. “I don’t believe this is the venue for that.”

Source: Frisch causes fracas over feelings – Comox Valley Record

http://www.courtenayvideo.ca/uploads/media/2016-05-30.html

Social Procurement takes a walloping from Courtenay’s combative Mayor – The Island Word

Sure, let’s cut The Record staff a little slack and accept that the title to the July 7 article “Frisch causes fracas over feelings” is just a silly attempt to introduce a little alliteration and levity into the story about Courtenay Councillor David Frisch’s motion to send an apology to Sandra Hamilton for the verbal […]

Source: Social Procurement takes a walloping from Courtenay’s combative Mayor – The Island Word