The California legislature has passed the country's first ever law requiring meat and milk products produced from cloned animals or their offspring to be labeled. California's Cloned Food Labeling Act, SB 63, introduced by California State Senator Carol Migden, is essential for protecting consumer choice. Two-thirds of Americans are opposed to animal cloning, and 89% want cloned foods to be labeled. The FDA, however, plans to approve cloned animals for food without labels. Cloning, an experimental technology that results in disease and deformity for the vast majority of animals involved, could soon be in your grocery store, but you would never know—unless you help SB 63 become law. The Governor has until October 14 to sign or veto this bill.

What You Can Do:
Please urge Governor Schwarzenegger to sign SB 63 into law and protect your right to make informed food choices for your families. Take action by Oct. 14!

The Governor requires citizens to use his web form to submit comments. To send your comments, follow these simple steps:

Step 1: Click here to go to the Governor's website. (Clicking on this link will open a new window, so you can keep this alert open in order to follow the next steps.)
Step 2: Select the "Have Comment" radio button.
Step 3: Enter your first name, last name, and email address in the fields provided.
Step 4: For the subject, choose "Food and Agriculture."
Step 5: Click "Submit" to be taken to the page to leave your comment.
Step 6: Select the "Pro" radio button on the comment page.
Step 7:Type or paste your comments into the text box. You may copy the following sample letter or write your own.

Dear Governor Schwarzenegger,

I am writing to urge you to sign SB 63 into law. SB 63, California's Cloned Food Labeling Act introduced by Senator Migden to require labeling on any foods derived from cloned animals or their offspring, is essential for protecting consumer choice.

The FDA plans to approve the sale of milk and meat from cloned animals, but would not require labels on such products. However, numerous polls have shown widespread public opposition to animal cloning, with two-thirds of Americans saying that cloning animals for food is immoral. Such concern is not surprising given that more than 95 percent of cloning attempts fail, resulting in disease, deformity, and premature death for the animals involved.

Polls also reveal that 63 percent of people would not knowingly buy cloned food even if it were deemed 'safe,' and 89 percent want food from cloned animals to be labeled. Indeed, the FDA received more than 150,000 comments opposing its proposal to introduce cloned animals unlabeled into to food supply.

It is imperative that California recognizes and protects consumers' right to know what is in our food so that we can make informed choices about what to feed our families. As a leading dairy state, California cannot afford to ignore consumer demand. I want the right to say "no" to a technology I don't want, don't trust, and that is cruel and unnecessary.

Sincerely,
Your Name
Your Address
City, State, Zip

You can access the Governor's website directly at http://gov.ca.gov/interact. You can also call the Governor at (916)445-2841 or mail a letter to Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, State Capitol Building, Sacramento, CA 95814.