Declaration for Food Independence

MyDeclaration

The history of food production and distribution in the U.S. is one that is arguably the single most threatening national security issue to the U.S. The incredible amounts of hormones, pesticides, chemical fertilizers as well as the inhumane and unsanitary practices used by agro businesses are putting our population and environment at a high risk. Irresponsible agricultural practices are depleting our soil and causing environmental disasters.

Corporations, where not one individual or a group of individuals are personally responsible, use their impunity shield to enrich their pockets at the expense of our population’s health. Lobbyists are easily convincing politicians to get on their side, not because of any supporting evidence but because of their monetary interests fueled by corporate donors. By doing so, they are selling their constituents and allowing all of us, and our precious environment to pay the price of a fractured democracy.

This price is too high to bear in silence. The number of cases of autoimmune illnesses such as obesity, cancer, diabetes and digestive ailments is staggering and the numbers are rising and never before experienced in the history of humanity. The so-called “technological advances” are merely fueled by monetary shortsighted interests and are taking us to the road of destruction. Our specie and our planet are getting very sick very fast and we are at the brick of a public health and environmental crisis.

I declare independence from agro-businesses and mega corporations deciding what to put in our food and keeping us blind about it. GMO organisms need to be labeled as such and the public needs to be informed and educated about all the chemicals and practices that are used in the food system and their consequences. Most importantly, mega agro-corporations, such as Monsato, need to be accountable and make reparations accordingly by putting resources into educating people on how to become self-sufficient, regenerate our planet and how to save our precious seeds. On the other hand, family farmers need to be supported by local and federal government agencies for the good of the general public and the health of our planet. I envision green cities as thriving positive ecosystems where communities employ homesteaders and support urban farming practices, and where food gardens are not only providing our main source of food but also beautifying and strengthening our communities.

I invite all of those concerned about our current food system to get informed, to put pressure on their politicians, to only vote for green-minded leaders and to take steps in their everyday lives towards food independence by:

Refusing to consume anything that you don’t know where it is coming from or how it was raised;
Refusing to buy products from unethical corporations;
Boycotting grocery stores that support the anti-GMO labeling movement;
Buying from food co-ops;
Taking small steps in your own backyard or community garden to produce some of your food;
Supporting your local farmers by buying most of your produce from them or by participating in their CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) programs;
Composting at home or using a service to pick up your weekly compost;
Eating locally grown food in season;
Planting a (fruit) tree.

Welcome to Food Independence!

— Cecilia Chapa Phillips, Philadelphia, PA