The lobbying cabal strikes your pocketbook.

You may remember a couple of months ago when Sen. John McCain tried to slip a bill under the radar that would have placed dietary supplements (i.e., vitamins) under control of the FDA and thus the major pharmaceutical companies.  Imagine needing a prescription for Flintstone vitamins or Centrum Silver.  This was under the cloak of trying to get steroids out of the hands of athletes. Since steroids are already under FDA control and require a prescription, this was totally unnecessary and would have been a Christmas gift to the pharmaceutical companies.

Well, somebody actually woke up and bulldog John was forced to pull S. 3002 (https://secure.downsizedc.org/etp/campaigns/119).  However, being the junkyard dog that he is, Johnny is trying to sneak the same provisions into the Food Safety Bill (http://billingsgazette.com/news/opinion/guest/article_dd8056ce-3edf-11df-8410-001cc4c002e0.html).  Now he not only wants to put GNC and other vitamin producers out of business, but all non-corporate farmers and food producers.

This bill is even more Draconian than the straight dietary supplement bill.  When you read through the proposed bill in the Senate (it's passed the House already), you'll note exactly how absurd it is to even have this considered by government.

* regulations that may be reasonable for large industrial processors are excessive for small growers who sell locally
* the fees and compliance costs imposed on small, local growers will run many of them out of business

Also, the bill is unnecessary. Each state has an economic interest to make sure the food it grows has a reputation for being safe. Just a few examples . . .

* Montana has licensing requirements and health standards that small producers and processors must meet to do business http://tinyurl.com/ydy9zwd
* Georgia, where the peanut salmonella scandal originated, toughened its food safety laws shortly after the outbreak http://www.legis.ga.gov/legis/2009_10/sum/sb80.htm
* and in Florida, where tomato growers were hurt by false rumors two years ago, a tomato safety bill is expected to become law shortly  http://tinyurl.com/ydp2hn6

It's obvious to me that now not only are Pfizer, Astra Zeneca, et. al. lining the pockets of Congress, but ADM, Monsanto, Nabisco, and Perdue have a major vested interest in becoming monopolies at your expense while enriching themselves and lawmakers.