A letter to a Canadian Member of Parliament
To: Honorable MP Bill Casey
cc: Honorable minister Carla Qualtrough
Dated: Saturday, June 30, 2018
Subject: Need to review how safe glyphosate is, for Canada
Honourable Mr. Casey,
I am a Canadian citizen that has been trying to get the Government to disclose hitherto hidden safety test documents that are supposed to prove that some glyphosate in food is safe for humans. Health Ministry saw such safety test data before approving the use of Glyphosate in Canadian agriculture back in the 1970s, but has been hiding it from the people for two generations now. This technically makes approval of glyphosate illegal, the way I read the law.
I have a multi-year Access to Information appeal (Access request Health Canada – A-2015-00743) ongoing where I demanded that Health Canada discloses all the safety test data and report it received in the 1970s based on which it first approved the use of Glyphosate. The Government acknowledges that I have the right to the documents. And yet, it has been dragging its feet and the documents remain hidden till now.
I had met my MP, honourable Carla Qualtrough, and handed over almost 25,000 signatures of people demanding that the Government releases hitherto hidden safety test documents on glyphosate, and have had a meeting with her. She took the data to Ottawa and has since gone silent, and refuses to revert why she no more wants to correspond about disclosing those hidden safety test reports.
A further e-petition raised by me on the House of Commons platform also have resulted in obfuscation and obstruction, and the public is still denied the chance to scrutinize the test results that are supposed to prove that glyphosate in safe for animals.
MP Bill Casey
The province of New Brunswick has a nasty history of poisoning the land and the people with continued use of glyphosate that has been decimating its wildlife and making the area the cancer capital of Canada.
You know California has passed a law to have all glyphosate based herbicide sold in the state to carry a warning that glyphosate is known to cause cancer.
I write this letter to you to not only initiate a government review on glyphosate, but also to:
- Demand full public disclosure of all safety test reports and data, involving comparison of health parameters of lab animals subjected to glyphosate exposure with another group of identical animals eating glyphosate free food. These tests results and reports have been conducted by Monsanto in USA and elsewhere.
- Initiate independent government funded tests on safety of glyphosate
- Review the basis for Health Canada’s Maximum Residue Limit (MRL) levels set for glyphosate in various kinds of food, and a historical trend of increasing the safe limit continuously, when presumably actual levels in food keeps reaching the previously set safe limits. The Government is yet to show proof that glyphosate at any level is safe to be in foods such as grains or pulses, till date.
This is a public interest letter. I am a food security activist that have dedicated large parts of my time to pushing for transparency on this extremely dangerous molecule, glyphosate. This letter may be published on my blog (tonu.org) or be otherwise made public on social media. I shall be glad to also make public any positive step from your office.
MP and honourable minister Carla Qualtrough. She took over 20,000 signatures and met me about asking Health Canada to disclose hidden safety documents on glyphosate. But then she went totally silent. Later she voted against bill C-291 which would have made it mandatory to label all GMO items in food. She ensured that such a bill is defeated so the people cannot tell if they are or are not eating GMO. She did not ask her constituents, which includes me, if they want this bill defeated. She took a unilateral decision to deny the people a right to know. This I believe explains where Minister Qualtrough stands, on issues of food safety and food security.
I am copying this letter to MP Carla Qualtrough since she is mentioned here. I may also separately write to MP Karen Ludwig of New Brunswick, who I understand is also interested to push for glyphosate review.
I am currently visiting India, my birth country, but can be reached by email or phone.
Thanking you
Tony Mitra
Home address: 10891 Cherry Lane, Delta, BC, Canada
Currently in India using local phone +91-98317 13068
Currently in India using local phone +91-98317 13068