 |
|
     |
    
WhiteWave Foods Pasture Statement Remarks delivered at the August 15, 2005, NOSB meeting by Kelly Shea, Director of Government and Industry Relations for WhiteWave Foods Company. August 15, 2005 Horizon Organic, which is now part of the WhiteWave Foods family, has been a leader in the organic dairy movement since its inception nearly 15 years ago. As the first national organic milk brand, we are proud to have helped create today's growing organic dairy marketplace, as well as the standards that govern our industry practices, and the seal that now differentiates organic dairy products from others. Our strict and unwavering adherence to the best practices of the organic movement is a cherished part of our heritage. Organic is all we do at Horizon Organic; it's all we've ever done. All of us who work at Horizon Organic are passionate about bringing healthful organic products to more American lunchboxes and dinner tables - and doing it in a way that respects the land, the animals, and the resources they provide us. We know this mission is shared by the entire organic community. We believe the guidance on pasture that you will consider tomorrow will help further our common efforts, by providing welcome certainty for farmers, dairy companies and consumers. So on behalf of Horizon Organic Dairy, I would like to publicly reiterate our full and unequivocal support of grazing guidelines, and take this opportunity to thank you for helping the organic dairy industry achieve consensus on such an important facet of organic dairy production. It's an exciting time for organic agriculture, and we are proud to be part of such a dynamic industry. It's also an important time. Now, more than ever, what matters is that we stand together in defense of our shared values and our common support for strong organic standards. We are encouraged by the industry consensus reached on pasture, and hope to see this sort of constructive dialogue occur with other challenges we will undoubtedly face as an industry. On that final note, Horizon Organic would encourage the United States Department of Agriculture to move as quickly as possible to publish a federal register notice on the rule change which closes the "lactation as stage of production" loophole. We fully support this rule change and want all organic farmers--including those in the process of transitioning to organic--to have certainty versus ambiguity wherever possible. About Horizon Organic |
  Food produced without antibiotics, added growth hormones or pesticides means better health and a cleaner environment.    |
