Breaking NEWS: Quaker Oats sued over glyphosate contamination

(NaturalHealth365) Quaker Oats and their parent company PepsiCo have recently been sued for not disclosing that 17 of their food products are contaminated.

What’s the problem?  These products contain troubling levels of glyphosate, the world’s most widely used weed killing herbicide ingredient.  The company says its products are ‘healthy,’ but would any rational person really believe their marketing hype?

Morgan Steckler of California filed suit at the end of October 2018 on behalf of himself as well as others who reside in his area. The complaint was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California and cites Unfair Competition Law and the Consumers Legal Remedies Act.

Could Quaker Oats be destroyed by these lawsuits?

There have been similar lawsuits filed against Bob’s Red Mill and the General Mills corporation over the same issue – glyphosate found in their food products.  According to the State of California, glyphosate is considered a known carcinogen.

General Mills is facing a class action suit after a Florida woman called them out for not alerting the public about Cheerios and Honey Nut Cheerios cereals containing glyphosate.  General Mills is being sued for deceptive business practices.

In the Quaker Oats complaint: they are being accused of manufacturing, marketing and selling contaminated products while touting the ‘health benefits’ of these products on their packaging.

Fact: An alarming number of processed foods contain glyphosate

Recent testing by the Environmental Working Group was also referenced in the suit, which revealed the presence of the weed killer chemical. The plaintiff alleges the Quaker Oats company and PepsiCo Inc. made both material omissions and false health representations on the product labels.

Plaintiff Morgan Steckler has requested a jury trial and seeks restitution, disgorgement, attorneys’ fees and other costs. The recent legal cases regarding food brands follow a landmark cancer trial verdict against the most hated (biotech) company in the world, Monsanto.

Monsanto has been ordered to pay over $78 million in damages (the original judgment was $289 million) to Dewayne Johnson. Johnson is a former school groundskeeper who now has non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma from his use of Roundup, the company’s popular glyphosate-based weed killer.

Testing by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) found that 100 percent of kids’ cereals tested contain the toxic herbicide glyphosate.  Of these products, which include Cheerios, Quaker Chewy S’Mores and Apple and Cinnamon Quaker Instant Oatmeal, around 93 percent had levels of glyphosate over 160 parts per billion – the EWG benchmark considered “safe” for human consumption.

Action step: Favor locally-grown, organic food choices – as much as possible

As you probably know, glyphosate has been in use since the 1970s and is the most commonly used weed killer in the world.  And, contrary to popular belief, its carcinogenic effects have been widely documented for years.

Editor’s note: The only reason – in my opinion – that we still use such deadly chemicals in our food production is a lack of public awareness.  We need more people to learn the truth, expose the deception and, then, we’ll see companies change their behavior.

Glyphosate is also linked to genotoxicity, oxidative stress and DNA damage – all known precursors to cancer cell growth.  Even the World Health Organization calls glyphosate a “probable carcinogen.”

In addition to Quaker oatmeal products, glyphosate is showing up in foods like packaged bagels, yogurt, coffee creamer, potato products and even eggs. This insidious chemical is getting into the food chain and who knows what long-term effects it may have on plants, animals and humans.

As awareness grows, we’ll be able to hold food manufacturers accountable for their actions – especially when it involves a violation of public safety and trust.

Ultimately, it’s up to each and every one of us to protect our health.  Buy organic, locally-sourced food as much as possible.  Buy your groceries at farmers markets, get involved in community supported agriculture (CSA) projects or, if possible, grow your own food.

Bottom line, we have options and we should take advantage of every opportunity to eat high-quality food.  Eating chemical free (highly-nutritious) food will always have an amazing impact on our health.

Sources for this article include:

SustainablePulse.com
NaturalHealth365.com