Amid Growth Hormone Qualms, Monsanto Seeks to Ban Labels

Anderson-Erickson Dairy the latest to tout "rBST-Free" milk

Would you like some "recombinant bovine somatotropin" in your glass of milk today?

The Food and Drug Administration says the chemical is harmless, and it's been widely used by dairy producers since 1994. It's a growth hormone for dairy cows, commonly called "rBST" or "rBGH," and regularly injecting it into dairy cows can result in significant increases in milk production.
 
But despite the FDA's seal of approval and widespread usage for well over a decade, more and more consumers around the country are starting to seek out dairy products that weren't produced with the growth hormone. Here in Iowa, shoppers are now likely to find more "rBST-Free" dairy products in grocery stores around the state.

On Feb. 1 Des Moines-based Anderson-Erickson Dairy, one of the largest independent dairy processors in the state, announced that all of its products would now be rBST-free. Kim Peter, marketing director, told Iowa Independent that the Des Moines dairy has responded to customer demand.

"In response to customer requests, we have chosen to use raw milk that is completely rBST-free," said Peter.

Andersen-Erickson is not alone. Other dairy processors selling products in Iowa, like Missouri-based Heartland Creamery, prominently place the "rBST-Free" claim on the front page of their Web sites. "You asked for milk with no added hormones … so the herd we milk for the Creamery is not treated with rBST/rBGH," the site states.

These claims come with a disclaimer: "No significant difference has been shown between milk derived from rBST-treated and non-rBST-treated cows." This language must be included on any such labeling nationwide because of an FDA ruling that says you can't insinuate that there's anything wrong with a product like rBST.

But even with the disclaimer, the creator of the bovine growth hormone, Monsanto, doesn't like these "rBST-Free" labels. Monsanto continues to maintain that its rBST product, sold under the brand name Posilac, is completely safe. A Monsanto-maintained Web site states that Posilac does not increase natural levels of BST in milk, does not create any risk for allergies and is just safe as milk from nontreated cows.

And since it's considered completely safe by the FDA, some organizations have begun to appear that want to ban any promotion of products as "rBST-Free."

So now there are reports of several states considering restrictions on "rBST-Free" labeling. Legislatures in Vermont, Kansas and Missouri have considered bills that would limit the ability of dairy processors to promote products as "rBST-Free," and the governors of Ohio and Utah have proposed new labeling regulations.

The International Dairy Foods Association is opposed to the labeling restrictions, stating on its Web site that such restrictions "would deny consumers the right to receive — and dairy processors the right to provide — information about whether the products contain milk from cows not treated with rBST."

There doesn't appear to be much talk about placing new restrictions on dairy labeling here in Iowa. Dustin Vande Hoef, spokesman for the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, told Iowa Independent Wednesday that he knows of no movement in the Iowa Legislature to ban "rBST-Free" labeling.

Erin Vagts, industry relations manager for the Iowa State Dairy Association, told Iowa Independent that the official policy of ISDA is to "support the enforcement of current labeling laws in the state of Iowa."