Sandra L. Trend7352 Huntington Square Lane

#155 Citrus Heights, CA 95621

January 11, 2010

President Barack ObamaThe White House1800 Pennsylvania Ave. NWWashington, DC 20500

Dear President Obama,

In December of 2009 I received a reply letter from the USDA in answer to my February 23, 2009 letter to them. I am most grateful the White House had contacted the USDA; because without this intervention, I doubt I would have ever heard from them. Below you will find page 1 of the 2 page letter from the USDA. This page concerns me greatly.

My February 23, 2009 letter to the USDA was written with much forethought and I do not take the issues I presented to them lightly.

The lack of concern the USDA has; concerning safety in the biotechnology industry; IE: non-GE (genetically engineered) organisms being used in the production of bio-control products (for use on human and/or animal feed, ornamental crops and/or used for insect control) is most alarming.

There is a given danger to human health when some non-GE organisms (microorganisms; living bacteria and fungi) that are used for bio-control; as there is scientific documentation that there are “cross-over” infections to humans from many plant/soil/insect diseases. Those who work in the industry are at the greatest risk for contracting an illness and/or disease from one of the organisms. The USDA has had knowledge of this fact and merely choses to ignore this.

I suppose one can only assume the USDA’s reasoning (and other governmental agencies as well) for turning a blind eye to “cross-infective” microorganisms is for “advancement in science”. However, when you are the one whose life has been affected and ruined forever because your health will never return as was once known; then one feels they were nothing more than a guinea pig or a lab rat for the “advancement in science”.

President Obama, the biotechnology industry is out of control. Two prime examples of this are the cases of David Bell and Becky McClain (although there are numerous others). David Bell worked at a research and development biolab as an Assistant Researcher and was exposed to known and unknown microorganisms as well as chemicals, while Becky McClain; working as a molecular microbiologist was exposed to virus’s in a different area of biotech research and development. Bell and McClain became extremely ill because of occupational exposures from their workplace environment’s.

In both cases; Bell and McClain were not afforded their civil and judicial right’s in knowing what they were and had been exposed to under the Federal Hazard Communication Act as well as California and Connecticut labor laws of; Employee Right-To-Know of hazards in the workplace.

Complicating this are the issues of “Trade Secrets” and “Non Disclosure Agreements”; which prevent worker’s in the biotech industry and the public from discovering the reality of numerous serious human health and safety problems.

The Becky McClain case, like David Bell’s show the systemic failure of all governmental agencies (USDA, FDA, EPA and OSHA) in assuring safety in the workplace which is then carried over to the destructive deregulation in the workers’ compensation system. The difficult, if not IMPOSSIBLE, task of confirming workplace injuries and illness’s in the biotech industry; under Federal and state legal statutes, including workers compensation laws are excluding worker’s in the biotechnology and nanotechnology industry their right’s to a safe occupational and working environment.

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The above does not even address the issue of products being developed and distributed without the proper oversight from governmental agencies.

Last, but certainly not least, in the enclosed letter to the USDA you will find a statement made by my son’s former employer concerning her company’s efforts to get the product, Serenade registered. I am most concerned as there seems to be political interference in the biocontrol product registration process. WHY are member’s from Congress involved?

“OK, Serenade took 20 months for registration, actually that seems fast to me now, but at the time...where was I? I started up the company in ‘95, I raised my first venture capital in ‘97, submitted the package for Serenade in ‘98 ... 2000 it still wasn’t approved, investor’s were on my tail. I raised 20 million at that point. Investor’s were hounding me, they thought I was incompetent and... and what’s going on? And so, finally what they did was they actually called their congress people on their own to rattle around and put pressure on the agency to approve Serenade. That does not endear you to the agency, actually it’s counter productive to do... to do that actually, but in this case I couldn’t hold back my investors there was... they were the money people and that’s just the way it was.”

Mr. Obama, there seems to be an awful lot of conflicts of interest going on here. Numerous member’s of both state and Federal governmental agencies sit on biotech industries commission’s and boards. Many of them, I believe, have financial interest/s in biotechnology companies.

Thank you for your valuable time Mr President. Please find my reply January 11, 2010 letter to the USDA (including enclosures) following this letter to you. This letter goes into greater detail.

Sincerely,

Sandi Trend

cc: David Bell file

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