https://advocacy.organicconsumers.org/page/94199/action/1? Go here to take action
Protect Food and Environmental Activists’ Right to Free Speech! Block & Repeal Food Libel & Ag-Gag Laws!
“Food Libel” and “Ag-Gag” laws are the corporations’ attempt to keep us from knowing where our food comes from and how it’s produced.
Food Libel laws let corporations take their critics to court, while Ag-Gag laws criminalize investigations into animal abuse at factory farms.
TAKE ACTION: Tell Your State Legislators to Protect Food and Environmental Activists’ Right to Free Speech! Block and Repeal Food Libel and Ag-Gag Laws!
In an alarming move, Florida is considering expanding its food libel law with a provision to broaden “food disparagement” restrictions. A victory for free speech was won last week when the Senate dropped the issue, but a House bill still includes it.
While Florida’s current law is limited to perishable food products like fruits and vegetables, the proposed changes seek to broaden the scope in two major ways:
- The removal of “Perishable”—This expansion would include all agricultural products.
- And addition of “Farm Practices”—The provision explicitly adds agricultural practices, such as fertilizer use and pesticide application.
This would allow powerful agricultural corporations like Bayer and Corteva to use a new legal weapon to target those who speak out publicly about farming practices, including pesticides, water pollution, and harmful health effects.
This expansion would heavily prioritize industry interests, making it perilous for individuals, organizations, and farmers to speak up about harmful practices and undermine efforts to create a safer, more transparent food system nationwide.
In a frightening example of how food libel laws like Florida’s can be misused, Apeel is currently using it to sue Robyn Openshaw, the Green Smoothie Girl, for her campaign to educate consumers about how to avoid its “edible” fruit and vegetable coating.
We need to act now!
If passed, Florida’s expanded food libel law would set a dangerous precedent, stifling free speech and silencing environmental and health advocates, while creating a food system that prioritizes industry interests over public health and safety.
TAKE ACTION: Tell Your State Legislators to Protect Food and Environmental Activists’ Right to Free Speech! Block and Repeal Food Libel and Ag-Gag Laws!
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