February 26, 2015

Neil Young announces boycott of Starbucks over food labelling

Ultimate Classic Rock - The next time you’re in line for a latte, don’t look for Neil Young.

Young has taken to his official site to denounce Starbucks’ involvement in an ingredient-labeling lawsuit against the tiny state of Vermont. Headlined “GOODBYE STARBUCKS!!!,” Young’s post asks his fans to join him in standing against corporations that would shield important information about how food is made from consumers.

“Tell Starbucks to withdraw support for the lawsuit — we have a right to know what we put in our mouths,” Young writes. “Starbucks doesn’t think you have the right to know what’s in your coffee.”

Starbucks is actually suing Vermont in tandem with Monsanto, a huge multi-national agricultural and biotechnology company best known for its work in genetically modified organisms — typically abbreviated as GMOs. Together, they hope to overturn a new state law set to go in effect July 1, 2016 that would force companies to identify these genetically modified ingredients. Young says their worry is that a domino effect would follow, as other states adopted similar requirements.

“There’s much more at stake here than just whether GMO foods will be labeled in a single U.S. state,” Young adds. “Vermont is the very first state in the U.S. to require labeling. Dozens of other states have said that they will follow this path — in order to encourage this, we need to ensure that Vermont’s law stands strong."

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