Organic Consumers Association
6101 Cliff Estate Road, Little Marais, MN 55614
Phone 218-226-4164 | Fax 218-226-4157 | Email info@organicconsumers.org

Adbusters Adbusters and the Organic Consumers Association both endorsed the National Ad Slam Contest, sponsored by Ralph Nader’s Commercial Alert. The contest, started in 2001, gave cash prizes to schools that removed advertising from their campuses.

American Corn Growers Association The American Corn Growers Association and the Organic Consumers Association both endorsed a March 2000 petition demanding that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration begin requiring warning labels on all genetically improved foods. The petition was written, organized, and promoted by the misleadingly named Center for Food Safety, which is underwritten by organic food marketing companies.

Center for Food Safety The Center for Food Safety (CFS) and the Organic Consumers Association (OCA) are both part of the Genetically Engineered Food Alert, a food-scare effort designed by leftist Washington PR guru David Fenton. In addition, the two groups have one board member in common, John Stauber, who also runs the Center for Media and Democracy. OCA was also a co-signer of a March 2000 CFS legal petition targeting genetically improved foods. CFS legal director Joseph Mendelson and OCA president Ronnie Cummins were both mentored by noted anti-technologist Jeremy Rifkin at his Foundation on Economic Trends.

Center for Media & Democracy In addition to serving as executive director of the Center for Media and Democracy, John Stauber sits on the Organic Consumers Association’s policy board, and also on the advisory board of the Center for Food Safety.

Center for Science in the Public Interest The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) and the Organic Consumers Association endorsed the “childhood obesity agenda” of Ralph Nader’s Commercial Alert. That agenda includes banning from schools foods with hydrogenated vegetable shortening, including graham crackers, peanut butter, margarine, cheese, and salad dressing. It would prohibit the sale of so-called “junk food” on school property (making bake sales a thing of the past), and “prohibit the distribution of junk food as a reward or prize for good behavior or exemplary performance.” The agenda also demands that schools serve more “local and organic products.” CSPI and the Organic Consumers Association also endorse Commercial Alert’s “National Ad Slam Contest.”

EarthSave International EarthSave International president Howard Lyman serves on the Organic Consumers Association’s policy board, and also on the advisory board of the Center for Food Safety. In addition, Lyman is a “National Council” Member of the Farm Animal Reform Movement.

Environmental Media Services The Organic Consumers Association is one of seven organizations that make up the Fenton Communications-run “GE Food Alert” coalition, a group of anti-biotech nonprofits that use the www.gefoodalert.org web site to collaborate on strategies and “actions” designed to scare consumers about consuming genetically improved foods. Fenton Communications also uses Environmental Media Services as a “front group” to promote these anti-biotech activities.

Foundation on Economic Trends The Organic Consumers Association (OCA) evolved out of the Foundation on Economic Trends' (FOET) "Pure Food Campaign." Ronnie Cummins, who ran that campaign, is now OCA's executive director. FOET president Jeremy Rifkin and OCA both signed onto Genetically Engineered Food Alert's "Call to Action" and the Pacific Declaration. OCA sponsored Rifkin's Treaty Initiative to Share the Genetic Commons.

Humane Society of the United States Both the Humane Society of the United States and the Organic Consumers Association are members of the Global Safe Food Alliance, a Naderite association of junk science peddlers. The two groups also lent their names to the Turning Point newspaper ads, which attacked modern farms with a vengeance.

Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy Ben Lilliston, IATP’s director of communications, co-authored an anti-biotech book with Organic Consumers Association chief Ronnie Cummins (titled Genetically Engineered Food: A Self-Defense Guide for Consumers). In addition Mike Iba, who runs Japan’s Network for Safe and Secure Food & Environment, sits on IATP’s Board of Directors as well as on the Organic Consumers Association’s policy board. Both the Organic Consumers Association and IATP are active members of the Global Safe Food Alliance, a coalition of tax-exempt animal-welfare, anti-corporate-farming, and sustainable-agriculture groups organized by Public Citizen.

Institute for Social Ecology When activists from the Institute for Social Ecology’s “NorthEast RAGE” project took it upon themselves to stick permanent “biohazard” labels on food all over New England grocery shelves in 2001, the Organic Consumers Association incited much of the resulting property damage. OCA head Ronnie Cummins officially lent his organization’s imprimatur to this unlawful vandalism, and also promoted the protest in advance on his group’s web site.

Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine Both the Organic Consumers Association and Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine are active members of the Global Safe Food Alliance, a coalition of tax-exempt animal-welfare, anti-corporate-farming, and sustainable-agriculture groups organized by Public Citizen.

Ruckus Society In March of 2000, a group of environmental organizations sponsored a “People’s National Town Hall Meeting” in Sacramento, in order to attempt to inject the 1999 Seattle protest agenda into the upcoming presidential campaigns. Among the featured speakers were the Ruckus Society’s Han Shan and Simon Harris of the Organic Consumers Association.

Sierra Club Former Sierra Club forest committee coordinator, Victor Menotti, is now a policy board member with the Organic Consumers Association (OCA). The Sierra Club and the Organic Consumers Association (OCA) have joined forces on several occasions to lobby against genetically modified food. In 1999 the two groups joined Greenpeace to hold demonstrations outside Food and Drug Administration meetings on genetically enhanced food. In 2000 Sierra and OCA petitioned FDA to put "warning" labels on genetically enhanced food products and even remove them from grocery shelves.

Turning Point Project The name “Organic Consumers Association” (OCA) showed up in several Turning Point advertisements (mostly those concerning “industrial agriculture”). This is not surprising, considering that OCA used to be a pet project of Turning Point leader Andrew Kimbrell -- before it was spun off and entrusted to Minnesotan Ronnie Cummins. Both Kimbrell and Cummins had the same mentor in rabid anti-technology commentator Jeremy Rifkin (of the Foundation on Economic Trends).

Union of Concerned Scientists Like the Union of Concerned Scientists, the Organic Consumer’s Association is a member of the Genetic Engineering Action Network. It also joined UCS in legal action aimed at forcing the FDA to apply ever-more-rigid restrictions on biotech foods.

United Poultry Concerns Both the Organic Consumers Association and United Poultry Concerns are active members of the Global Safe Food Alliance, a coalition of tax-exempt animal-welfare, anti-corporate-farming, and sustainable-agriculture groups organized by Public Citizen.

Western Organization of Resource Councils The Western Organization of Resource Councils and the Organic Consumers Association are both charter members of the Global Safe Food Alliance (GSFA), a front group set up by animal-rights organizations like Farm Sanctuary and the Humane Farming Association. The coalition’s purpose is to bamboozle the mass media with the suggestion that there is nationwide, “grass roots” support for a wholesale overhaul in the way farm animals are raised for food. GSFA also tries to connect food safety with “humane” farm animal treatment in the public consciousness. Predictably, its proposals would dramatically raise the final cost of meat, milk, dairy products, and eggs to consumers. Other members include the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, the Humane Farming Association, the National Catholic Rural Life Conference, the Organic Consumers Association, Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, Public Citizen and the Global Resource Action Center for the Environment.

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