Read more on the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association’s GMO-Right to Know Resources page at mofga.org
What YOU can do to help label GMO’s in Maine:
Call members of the Joint Standing Committee on Agriculture, Conservation
and Forestry and ask them to support LD 718, An Act To Protect Maine Food
Consumers’ Right To Know about Genetically Engineered Food (contact info below)
Talking Points for Contacting the ACF Committee:
If you are a mom or dad:
• I am careful about what I feed my family/kids.
• I read labels when deciding what to feed my family.
• I would prefer to know how much GMO content is in the food I feed my children.
• I have a right to know how the food I buy for my family was produced.
If you are a small farmer or food processor:
• LD 718 would not regulate or effect Maine agriculture
• Most crops grown in Maine and sold as human food are not genetically modified.
• Adding another label to a product is relatively cheap and easy for producers.
• Labels allow consumers to make informed choices about what they buy.
• Maine’s thriving local food economy would only benefit from Right to Know—
GMO labeling.
If you are someone with food allergies, dietary restrictions or religious beliefs that cause
you to avoid certain ingredients in foods:
• LD 718 allows for informed consumer choices necessary for the free market to
work.
• In 2011, more than 90 percent of soybeans and cotton and over 85 percent of field
corn cultivated in the United States were genetically modified.
• Nearly 75 percent of processed foods sold in grocery stores contain GMOs.
• Biotechnology companies allow very little independent research on their patented
crops.
• The Federal government does not do safety testing on GMOs.
• The potential long-terms risks to public health from genetically modified foods
are currently unknown.
Add a reason why YOU want a label, like:
• I have allergies
• I have health concerns
• I have dietary restrictions from my religion
• I am careful about what I feed my family/kids
• I use my grocery dollars to influence food production practices
Senator Troy Dale Jackson (D-Aroostook), Chair
Senate District 35
Home telephone: (207) 436-0763
Senate: 207-287-1515
http://senatedems.maine.gov/jackson/email.htm
Senator James A. Boyle (D-Cumberland)
Cellphone (207) 899-9606
Senate Telephone (207) 287- 1515
http://www.mainesenate.org/contact-us/contact-senator-boyle/
Senator Roger L. Sherman (R-Aroostook)
Senate District 34
Phone: (207) 532-7073
Office: (207) 287-1505.
rsherm_2000@yahoo.com
Representative James F. Dill (D-Old Town), Chair
House District 14
Home Telephone: (207) 827-3498
Business Telephone: (207) 581-3879
Cell Phone: (207) 949-2155
jdill@umext.maine.edu
Representative Peter S. Kent (D-Woolwich)
House District 65
Home Telephone: (207) 442-9255
Cell Phone: (207) 319-4708
pskentz5@hotmail.com
Representative Craig V. Hickman (D-Winthrop)
House District 82
Home Telephone: (207) 377-3276
RepCraig.Hickman@legislature.maine.gov
Representative Brian L. Jones (D-Freedom)
House District 45
Home Telephone: (207) 385-5226
representativebrianjones@gmail.com
Representative William F. Noon (D-Sanford)
House District 144
Cell Phone: (207) 432-1790
NoonforMaine@gmail.com
Representative Robert J. Saucier (D-Presque Isle)
House District 5
Cell Phone: (207) 227-1160
saucierforpi@gmail.com
Representative Dean A. Cray (R-Palmyra)
House District 28
Home Telephone: (207) 938-2006
Business Telephone: (207) 478-8279
dacray@msn.com
Representative Donald G. Marean (R-Hollis)
House District 131
Home Telephone: (207) 727-5527
Cell Phone: (207) 653-8927
Home E-Mail: lindonfarm@sacoriver.net
State House E-Mail: RepDon.Marean@legislature.maine.gov
Representative Russell J. Black (R-Wilton)
House District 90
Home Telephone: (207) 645-2990
Business Telephone: (207) 491-4667
Cell Phone: (207) 491-4667
Home E-Mail: russellblack@juno.com
Representative Jeffrey L. Timberlake (R-Turner)
House District 96
Home Telephone: (207) 225-6016
Business Telephone: (207) 225-6000
Cell Phone: (207) 754-6000
Home E-Mail: jtimberlake_us@yahoo.com