Conventional Strawberries About to Get More Toxic

California’s Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) recently approved the carcinogenic new pesticide, methyl iodide, for use in the state’s strawberry fields - despite opposition by DPR's own panel of independent scientists.

The science against methyl iodide is compelling:

• Methyl iodide is a known carcinogen, thyroid toxicant, causes spontaneous, late-term miscarriages and presents risks for developing brains.
  
• After conducting a thorough review, DPR’s own panel of independent scientists declared, "methyl iodide is a highly toxic chemical and we expect that any anticipated … use of this agent would result in exposures to a large number of the public.” They further concluded that methyl iodide would be “difficult if not impossible to control.” DPR registered it anyway.
  
• Over 50 esteemed scientists, 6 of them Nobel Laureates, went on record opposing the chemical’s federal registration, saying they were “astonished” that officials would “legalize broadcast releases of one of the more toxic chemicals used in manufacturing into the environment.”

(Source: Pesticide Action Network North America (PANNA))

To me, this is pretty crazy ... as well as reminiscent of the approval of PPO for use on almonds. Except the science against methyl iodide is even more alarming than PPO. (Not that I'll eat a PPO

TAKE ACTION!

1. Write to your representatives and let them know you oppose the approval of methyl iodide for use as a pesticide.
https://writerep.house.gov/writerep/welcome.shtml

2. Write to California Governor-elect Jerry Brown. Brown has a pretty good record on environmental issues so there is still hope that he will override DPR's decision.
http://action.panna.org/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=5123

3. Write a letter to the Editor of your local newspaper to spread the word. Pesticide Action Network  provides talking points and a zip code look-up of local papers:
http://action.panna.org/letter/?letter_KEY=1354

4. Tell California Strawberry growers that you will NOT buy their product. Then follow through. Strawberries were already one of the most pesticide-bathed fruits on the market. Organic strawberries will not be treated with this pesticide, of course. Most strawberries come from CA or abroad but there are local options in many states from Oregon to Pennsylvania.

Furniture without Flame Retardants: Mission Impossible?

When I was in college, one of my friends could not even fill her A cup training bra. When a date ventured for a feel, she'd dubbed it "going on mission impossible." Twenty years later, I think those hapless lads had a better chance than I do on my quest for non-toxic, flame retardant and formaldyhyde free furniture.

Lots of furniture manufacturers lout their green qualifications these days, but I find that nearly all of them are "green-washed." Let's be clear: mixing in a little soy with your chemical laden foam is not green.

I've spend countless hours calling and writing furniture manufacturers to find out what is really in their furniture. Here is what I've discovered so far:

BEST

Furnature - www.furnature.com

Furnature sells truly chemical free upholstered furniture. They start with untreated kiln-dried hardwood and wrap it with natural rubber, organically grown hand-picked cotton from Peru and pure-bred wool. Their fabrics are 100% organically grown or they will use your own material (COM -  Customer's Own Material). Plus, they can create custom furniture from a picture or drawing.

Cisco Brothers - www.ciscobrothers.com
Cisco Brothers uses Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified wood in their upholstery frames and wood furniture. Cisco offers a variety of cushion options that incorporate natural latex, down, feathers, or soy-based foams (I'm not crazy about the soy foams since they still require fire retardants, but at least Cisco Bros has other options). And they use water based glues and vegetable dyed leather. Furniture is made in South Central LA, where Cisco is committed to helping the neighborhood flourish.

Viesso: Viesso lets you customize the materials that go into your furniture, so the piece can be very green - or pretty conventional. You can choose:
- natural latex OR polyurethane foam
- down fill OR polyester fill
All products use FSC certified wood, water-based glues, greener stains and natural and recycled fabric.


Some futon furniture: Not all futon furniture is green. Some use flame retardants in their polyurethane foam cores. Either flame retardants or boric acid will need to be used on the cotton batting unless it is either (1) wrapped in wool or (2) specially made without flame retardants which typically requires a doctor's prescription.  In Portland, OR, futon maker Cotton Cloud is very conscious of their material content, using PU foam without flame retardants, boric acid (without a wool wrap) and no flame retardants at all if a wool wrap is used.  Talk to your futon manufacturer to learn about their materials and philosophy!

BETTER THAN NOTHING...

Herman Miller: Herman Miller does use flame retardants but they choose the least toxic (given what is known today) option for their application and do not use brominated flame retardants. If I'm left without a "best" option, I will buy Herman Miller because (1) they are thoughtful about every material they use and (2) they follow a "cradle to grave" ethos.

IKEA: While IKEA does not use brominated flame retardants, they do use chlorinated TRIS (which was banned in childrens sleepwear in 1977 after it was shown to be carcinogenic and absorbed through the skin.) They also use organic phosphorous flame retardants, which are likely halogenated. Some experts say halogenated flame retardants are no better than brominated - there is simply less evidence against this newer class of flame retardants at this point.

SERIOUSLY - YOU CALL THIS GREEN?!?
All of the companies below feature FSC (or similar) certified hardwoods, water based glues and recycled fibers in their upholstery. Unfortunately, the soy-based foa they feature are still doused in harmful fire retardants (some PBDEs) just like PU foam.


Crate & Barrel - a soy foam option does not make furniture "green." Enough said.
Lee Industries - I give Lee credit for responding promptly to my request for information - and for actually knowing what was in their furniture. I will keep my eye on this company - they seem to have a commitment to making greener furniture but still have a ways to go.
Pottery Barn - Again, I give them credit for responding promptly and knowing what's in their furniture. However, they use conventional flame retardant - and they often use MDF (they say their products do not exceed formaldehyde emission standards - but there is no evidence that any level of formaldehyde exposure is safe.)

Also interviewed:
Ethan Allen - When I spoke to Ethan Allen's corporate office last year, they were in the process of asking all the suppliers if they still used brominated fire retardants. They still had not received responses from all suppliers. Also, they were asking the suppliers which fire retardants or chemicals they did use.