It’s no secret—the American diet of unhealthy, processed foods is killing us. More than 725,000 Americans die from heart disease and stroke each year. We can shrink this number through healthy eating, but we need our government working for—not against—us. Our new report, The $11 Trillion Reward, shows just how damaging current U.S. food policy is—favoring cheap, processed foods over fresh fruits and veggies—and what we can do to improve it. Check out the report, share it on Facebook and Twitter, and read on for more important updates! —Karla
This Just In
WATCH: The real cost of junk food If Americans ate just one more serving of fruits or vegetables a day, we could prevent 30,000 deaths each year. The benefits of healthy eating are clear, yet our government spends billions subsidizing processed foods like chips and soda that undermine our health, while fruits and vegetables get very little support. Watch our new video to see just how damaging current U.S. policy is—and what you can do to change it. MORE
“What is UCS doing to encourage American farmers to grow more vegetables and fruit that would be healthier for our diets given that so many of them are dependent on government subsidies to grow commodity crops like corn and soybeans?”—Lanni Isenberg, Newton, MAIt is not an accident that the U.S. agricultural landscape looks the way it does. Farm policy plays a critical role in influencing which crops are grown. Today, excessive subsidies are directed to “commodity” crops such as corn and soybeans that are used as animal feed and ingredients in processed junk foods. At the same time, as I describe below, federal farm policy restricts fruit and vegetable production. To make matters worse, significant obstacles exist in some communities for those wishing to use nutrition assistance benefits to buy healthy food at local markets. MORE
DEADLINE: Act now for a healthier Farm Bill There are just days left to win support for healthy food and sustainable agriculture in the Farm Bill, which sets U.S. food policy for the next five years. Despite the importance of this legislation, Congress is locked in ideological battles that threaten to derail chances to pass this legislation before the current law expires at the end of the month. If this happens, programs that support healthy food and sustainable agriculture will suffer the most. If you’ve already contacted your elected officials, now is the time to contact them again. Tell Congress: The time is NOW to pass a Farm Bill that puts healthy food and farms first!
Impressive.
We’re getting reports from our partners in California that this is how the people fighting for Local Principal Reduction (LPR) in Richmond are describing all the support and media attention that’s been focused on them since that city started using that policy to move towards helping struggling families stay in their homes.
Thanks to the efforts of supporters like you, 20,000 people have signed on to support Local Principal Reduction and over 6500 have signed on to support Richmond, CA, efforts in particular. Activists at the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment (ACCE) and the Home Defenders League delivered those signatures directly to Wells Fargo branches the same week the Wells CEO, John Stumpf led the charge of the Wall Street criminals in trying to stop Richmond’s efforts by suing the city the week after Richmond announced its policy. Just last week over 200 of you also called Stumpf’s office to tell him to stop suing and start negotiating.
Another thing that’s impressive is how important this support is in fighting back against Wall Street’s bullying of cities like Richmond. The lawsuit isn’t just about stopping Richmond, it’s about stopping ANY city from trying this common sense solution to fixing what Wall Street broke. The more people standing up the more likely we are to win! Can you help find more fighters by forwarding the Stand with Richmond petition with 5 friends? http://www.homedefendersleague.org/stand_with_richmond_caYou can also share it on Facebook here or on Twitter here.
You can also share this great Facebook graphic that the Home Defenders League created about the LPR fight between Richmond and the criminal bankers led by Wells Fargo CEO John Stumpf (it’s the one in the picture at the top of the email).
This campaign is really heating up because there’s finally a way to fix what Wall Street broke and it doesn’t have anything to do with coddling Wall Street criminals; its main priority is keeping struggling families in their homes. Naturally, Wall Street bankers are desperate to stop it. If you want to stay up-to-date on these fights, the HDL has set up a special section of their website with information, updates, and ways to take action: http://www.homedefendersleague.org/local_principal_reduction
Thanks for standing up and fighting back in support of Local Principal Reduction!
In Solidarity,
Brian Kettenring, Executive Director, Action for the Common Good
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Hope you have a great weekend! Sarah Burris, Daily Kos
Though that’s not the only milestone I’m celebrating.
Last week, the game was shared with its 2 millionth viewer. When it first launched, we got the attention of a whole new audience. People like Jared Leto and Mark Bittman tweeted about it. Gaming sites like Gawker and Vice were writing about. I’m not gonna lie, the game is pretty cool. Check it out for yourself.
But this game isn’t about attracting celebrities. It’s about something much bigger.
If we don’t change how the tuna industry operates, it will be Game Over for our oceans. Overfishing runs rampant in all oceans from the Pacific to the Indian, and countless animals such as sharks, sea turtles, rays and other marine life are killed every year due to the destructive fishing practices of the global tuna industry.
We designed the game to highlight the unsustainable fishing practices of the three major U.S. tuna brands, Chicken of the Sea, Starkist, and Bumble Bee. The industry has used a lot of fancy PR tactics to stop Greenpeace from exposing the truth about how it runs its business. So we came up with a new tactic of our own to get the message out.
Don’t worry about running out of lives either. When you share the game with your friends on Facebook and Twitter you’ll earn a new life. Email the company, and earn two more. Trust me, it ain’t easy being a sea turtle or shark these days. Until things start change, you’re going to need those extra lives.
Have fun outrunning the tuna industry death squad and know that you are helping to bring attention to a critical issue at the same time.
Jeffrey O’Hara Agricultural Economist
Be a Seed for Change 
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