Anti-Organic Industry Groups Smear for Profit

An anti-organic report 'Organic Industry Groups Spread Fear for Profit' was launched on September 21st 2000 via NoMoreScares.com - a website which now seems to have disappeared only to make way for StopLabelingLies.com .

NoMoreScares.com's members include the National Center for Public Policy Research, from which one of the authors of the report comes, which is an anti-environmentalist "think tank" advised by, amongst others,  Dennis Avery  -- the big daddy of organic scare stories.

Another of the report's authors, Graydon Forrer, as well as being a former Monsanto PR man is also the current managing director of Life Sciences Strategies, LLC which specialises in "communications programmes" for the bio-science and pharmaceutical industries.

The third of the report's authors is Alex Avery who is described as from the Center for Global Food Issues. The latter is part of the right wing Hudson Institute from whence Dennis Avery , Alex's father, has spread many of his bogus organic attacks. The Hudson Institute's sponsors include biotech corporations Aventis, Dow, Monsanto, Novartis and Zeneca.

The contact for NoMoreScares.com is given as the self-styled "Junkman", Steven Milloy. Evidence exists that Milloy's internet mission against what he terms "junk science"was founded with Philip Morris tobacco money as part of their campaign to undermine industry-critical research. The Philip Morris campaign was waged via front organisations such as The Advancement of Sound Science Coalition, of which Milloy was director, and which is listed as the originator of the Junk Science website. Junkscience.com is the only other member listed for NoMoreScares.com, other than the aforementioned National Center for Public Policy Research. Milloy is also behind StopLabelingLies.com (see The Junkman's identity crisis)

The reports' authors acknowledge editorial, writing and research support from "the London Institute for Economic Affairs." A pro-GM clique centred on the IEA has been the source for many of the anti-organic scare stories on this side of the Atlantic, such as those put out in the Counterblast TV programme, coordinated by Roger Bate co-Director of the Environment Unit at the  IEA.

Many GM proponents are quoted in the report. For example, Thomas J. Hoban of North Carolina State University is quoted as saying, "This
anti-biotechnology campaign is a key marketing strategy for the organic industry" Hoban's GM promotion is so extreme and misleading that he was the subject of a PR Watch article, "The Professor Who Can Read Your Mind", by Karen Charman (PR Watch Vol. 6, No. 4 / Fourth Quarter 1999  - link from https://members.tripod.com/~ngin/pblinks.htm)

Needless to say among the GM proponents the report quotes with approval is one 'Sir John Krebs'.