NAMA News August 2010
Register for NAMA’s 2010 Annual Meeting
Register today for NAMA’s 2010 Annual Meeting being held on October 14-16, at the L’Auberge Del Mar Resort in Del Mar, California. Registration forms, hotel information and a preliminary schedule are all available on NAMA’s web site at http://www.namamillers.org/2010_AM.html. To receive NAMA’s reduced group room rate, make your hotel room reservation before September 6, 2010. Of special importance on this year’s agenda is a dinner to honor retired NAMA President Betsy Faga. For more information please contact NAMA’s Director of Meetings & Communications Terri Long, tlong@namamillers.org or 202.484.2200 x 11.
Detailed information about the meeting program is on NAMA’s web site at http://www.namamillers.org/2010_AM_Program.html.
Confirmed speakers:
- John Weber, President, Dezenhall Resources, Ltd. – “This Time it’s Your Crisis”
- Roger McElrath, Manager, Advisory Services, Business for Social Responsibility – “Sustainability”
- Thad Kousser, Associate Professor, Dept. of Political Science University of California, San Diego – “The Midterm Elections”
- Beth Johnson, Food and Healthy Living Consultant, Food Directions LLC – “Nutrition Issues”
Technical Committee to meet in DC
The fall meeting of NAMA’s Technical Committee is scheduled for September 21-22, 2010 in Washington, DC. Agenda items include a discussion of the Reportable Food Registry, mycotoxin regulations in the US and Canada, and food safety legislation before Congress. For more information and to register, contact Jim Bair at jbair@namamillers.org or 202.484.2200, ext. 14.
Chairman names Nominating Committee
NAMA Chairman, John Miller, Miller Milling Company, names Nominating Committee. The committee is responsible for recommending four members to the Executive Committee, including a Vice Chairman, and Honorary Members. The Committee includes Chairman Rick Schwein, Grain Millers, Inc.; Paul Maass, ConAgra Mills; Steve Wickes, Agricor, Inc.; Breck Barton, Cereal Food Processors, Inc.; and Mark Kolkhorst, ADM Milling Company.
USDA hears concerns about the deregulation of 3272 amylase corn
Ann Wright, USDA Deputy Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs invited NAMA representatives to a stakeholders meeting to discuss Syngenta’s petition for deregulation (full commercial approval) of 3272 amylase corn. The meeting was intended to provide a collective forum for senior USDA officials to listen and understand stakeholder perspectives regarding the amylase corn petition for non-regulated status and the state of industry discussions to resolve these concerns.
Attendees included representatives from NAMA member companies, the National Grain and Feed Association, the North American Export Association, the Corn Refiners Association, the Grocery Manufactures Association, the Snack Food Association, the Biotechnology Industry Association, the American Seed Trade Association, the National Corn Growers Association, Growth Energy, American Farm Bureau and Syngenta.
Syngenta petitioned USDA in 2005 to deregulate a corn seed with a biotech trait that adds an enzyme—alpha amylase—to the corn kernel. This is an “output” trait – a first for corn. It increases the efficiency of ethanol production by breaking down the starch in corn and converting it to sugar. It does not have an impact on farm yields.
NAMA first contacted Syngenta in 2007 to request information on the impact of functionality. NAMA has since met with Syngenta at the NAMA annual meeting and during the NAMA Technical Committee meeting at Syngenta’s technical facility in Research Triangle Park, NC. In 2009, NAMA and other stakeholder groups submitted comments to USDA asking that CA 3272 not be deregulated until the impact on food functionality could be determined.
In April of this year, Syngenta representatives met with NAMA member food scientists and shared some test results. One test showed a significant, negative impact on food quality and performance at an extremely low level. NAMA expressed concern to Syngenta about the impact this could have on all corn food products.
NAMA shared these concerns in meetings over the summer with officials at USDA and requested a meeting with the Secretary of Agriculture. Stakeholders were given an opportunity at the meeting this month to voice their concerns, but Syngenta disclosed no new information or made any new offers at the meeting. NAMA will organize a meeting of our stakeholder partners to discuss next steps on this issue.
Ag leaders discuss agriculture’s consumer image
NAMA President Mary Waters joined a group of agriculture and food industry leaders who met to discuss how to respond to a growing negative portrayal of food and agriculture. Attendees were invited to share perspectives on communication initiatives to bring balance to the public debate. Left unchallenged, there is concern that attacks could threaten the continued availability of benefits created by technological innovations. There is a belief that the food industry needs to articulate the benefits of today’s food system including affordability, improved taste, convenience, safety, consistency, and variety.
Organizations represented included: American Farm Bureau Federation, Biotechnology Industry Organization, Corn Refiners Association, CropLife America, Food Marketing Institute, General Mills, Grocery Manufacturers Association, Institute of Food Technologists, International Food Information Council, Kellogg Company, Monsanto, National Association of Wheat Growers, National Corn Growers Association, National Council of Farmer Cooperatives, National Grain and Feed Association, National Oilseed Processors Association, and the Snack Food Association. To learn more, please see the meeting report at http://www.namamillers.org/NewsArchives10/Aug12mtgreport.html.
USDA no longer testing for StarLink
As of August 15, 2010 the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Federal Grain Inspection Service (FGIS) no longer offers testing services for the presence of StarLink corn. StarLink corn has not been produced since 2000 when Aventis withdrew its registration; subsequently, testing has not yielded positive results for the past five years. “[USDA] no longer advises testing corn to be utilized for any purpose; no other country maintains testing requirements; and the number of service requests has dropped substantially over time. Therefore, FGIS perceives no need to continue providing this official service.” Other agencies under FGIS may continue testing unofficially if there is a need.
Food Safety bill to be introduced in Senate
A bipartisan group of senators released a food safety bill that they plan to offer during Senate debate after the August recess. The group includes Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA), Ranking Member Mike Enzi (R-WY), authors of The FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (S. 510) Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Judd Gregg (R-NH,) and lead cosponsors Chris Dodd (D-CT) and Richard Burr (R-NC). Specific provisions of interest are:
- Traceback - There is no requirement beyond the current one step forward, one step back requirement. It does require FDA to establish a pilot project to test and evaluate new methods for rapidly tracking foods in the event of a food borne illness outbreak.
- Hazard analysis and preventive controls - Requires food facilities to have a HACCP plan and gives FDA access to these plans and documents.
- Imports - Requires importers to verify the safety of foreign suppliers and imported food. Allows FDA to require certification for high-risk foods, and to deny entry. Creates a voluntary qualified importer program in which importers with a certification of safety for their foreign supplier can pay a user-free for expedited entry into the US.
- Inspection - Gives FDA additional resources to hire new inspectors and requires FDA to inspect food facilities more frequently.
- Mandatory Recall Authority - Gives FDA the authority to order a mandatory recall of a food product.
- Increased FDA Resources - Increases funding for FDA's food safety activities through increased appropriations and targeted fees for food facility re-inspection, food recalls, and the voluntary qualified importer program.
To view the bill in full, please visit http://help.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/WHI10337.pdf.
InterGrain and Monsanto form new wheat breeding collaboration
Monsanto and InterGrain – a leading wheat breeding company in Australia – announced a technology collaboration agreement. InterGrain varieties make up about 45 percent of the wheat grown in Australia. After years of little private investment in wheat improvement, this announcement is additional good news.
Specifically, prospective advances are expected in areas such as yield performance, disease resistance, end use qualities, and drought tolerance. This is a positive step for wheat research, which has traditionally fallen behind other crops in terms of private investment and interest. Over the past year, several technology companies have announced major investments in both conventional and biotech wheat research.
NAMA submits comments to FDA on food transportation and sanitary practices
In April, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requested comments on the food transportation industry and its practices before drafting regulations to implement the 2005 Sanitary Food Transportation Act. NAMA submitted comments, which noted that the grain milling industry is committed to maintaining food safety and takes very seriously our responsibility to ensure that the wholesome foods produced in our mills are not compromised. The notice requesting comments referenced a report prepared for FDA by Eastern Research Group, Inc. (ERG). The report noted that transportation of grains and milled grain products (e.g., flour) presents a low food safety risk relative to other types of foods. ERG conducted an expert opinion elicitation study to help FDA identify food product types and modes of transportation where the hazards are of high importance to public health. On a risk index ranging from 1 to 11 with 1 representing the highest risk, bulk raw ingredients (which includes grain and flour) that are transported by truck and rail were assigned a risk index of 7. Those that are transported by sea freight were assigned a risk index of 8. Soft-packed non-perishables (which includes flour) that are transported by truck, rail, and sea freight were assigned a risk index of 9. Both categories of products were judged to present below average risk regardless of the mode of transportation.
To read NAMA’s comments in full, please visit http://www.namamillers.org/NewsArchives10/Comments_Transportation_August2010.html.
Conference calendar
2010 Annual Meeting, Del Mar, CA
L'Auberge Del Mar Resort
October 14-16, 2010
2011 Division Meetings, Marco Island, FL
Hilton Marco Island Beach Resort & Spa
March 12-14, 2011
2011 Annual Meeting, Colorado Springs, CO
The Broadmoor Colorado Springs
October 6-8, 2011
2012 Division Meetings, Naples, FL
Naples Grande Beach Resort
March 10-13, 2012
2012 Annual Meeting, Asheville, NC
The Grove Park Inn
October 25-27, 2012
The North American Millers' Association prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, gender, marital or family status, age, disability, political beliefs or sexual orientation. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact NAMA at 202.484.2200 (voice and TDD). To file a complaint of discrimination, write to Mary Waters, President, 600 Maryland Avenue SW, Suite 825W, Washington, DC, 20024 or call 202.484.2200 ext. 12. NAMA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.
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