Kissing California wine goodbye

Image courtesy of George Hodan

I'm frustrated and a bit pissed off, actually (please excuse the language). My writing friends and I frequent a nearby restaurant where the only wines they serve come from California. Well, we're trying a different place tonight. A place that serves Australian wine (which is guaranteed to be non-GMO). 

Why the change? Recent testing by the national GMO awareness group, Moms Against Monsanto, revealed some disturbing findings. They found that 100% -- one hundred percent -- of wines from California contained trace amounts of glyphosate. You know what glyphosate is, right? It's that nasty toxic substance in Monsanto's RoundUp and 700 other herbicides. Just what I want with my dinner -- a side of RoundUp!

Glyphosate has been in the news a lot lately... and none of it is good. Just this week, the green slime started washing up on the shores of Lake Erie. Nasty.

I've had it. I'm so over Monsanto and its destruction and greed. But what can I do? Other than avoid their products and spread the word, there's not much I can do when battling this monster. Our politicians are in bed with them, with one in particular who is running for president. 

But back to the wine -- even the organic wines from California are contaminated, although at a 28 times lower rate than the conventional wines. Apparently, the highest level of glyphosate was in a 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon. The brand was not specified in the article I read, but it did mention the fact that it was from a vineyard that was chemically-farmed. On the other hand, the lowest level detected was in a 2013 Syrah from an organic vineyard free of pesticides. According to MAM founder Zen Honeycutt, the fact that the organic wines are tainted shows the very real problem of the drift of chemical sprays from neighboring vineyards.

Glyphosate has been identified as a probable carcinogen by the World Health Organization. Concerned about breast cancer? Well, you'd be best to avoid California wines, as glyphosate is known to stimulate the growth of breast cancer cells. Yikes. Let me repeat that. Glyphosate is known to stimulate the growth of breast cancer cells. Got it? The California Dept. of Health released data indicating the cancer rates in Mendocino, Napa, and Sonoma counties are 10-20% higher than the national average. That is significant, don't you think? And what about all the pending lawsuits against Monsanto over the link between RoundUp and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma? 

And then there are the suspected miscarriages and birth defects connected to it.

Like I said, I'm pissed off. For the love of all living things, if you are using RoundUp or other herbicides (such as those used by lawn care companies like Scott's), please STOP!! Enough is enough. We're exposed to so many dangers every single day. Don't knowingly add more to the list. 

As for California wines, I guess I'm swearing off. Perhaps one now and then isn't going to do much damage. But I'm not even sure about that. 

Oh, and it really makes you wonder about the grape juice people are giving to their kids. When will it end?

I let you know how I'm feeling about it. How about you?