0:00:07.789,0:00:09.751 Well, first of all, before I get started, 0:00:09.752,0:00:12.927 I want to take the opportunity[br]to thank all of you for being here 0:00:12.928,0:00:18.668 because you are a remarkable[br]group of visionaries and leaders, 0:00:18.669,0:00:21.859 and it is such an honor[br]to spend this time with you today, 0:00:21.860,0:00:25.161 so that you for taking the time[br]out of your weekend. 0:00:26.101,0:00:30.204 As I like to share,[br]I am such an unlikely crusader 0:00:30.205,0:00:32.335 for cleaning up the food supply. 0:00:32.985,0:00:35.856 I was born and raised in Houston, Texas 0:00:36.542,0:00:38.876 on Twinkies and po' boys. 0:00:39.875,0:00:41.525 I wasn't a foodie. 0:00:41.526,0:00:43.994 What I was, was the oldest[br]of four children, 0:00:43.995,0:00:45.354 and as you often hear about, 0:00:45.355,0:00:50.145 I inherited absolutely every single one[br]of those Type A overachieving genes 0:00:50.146,0:00:53.014 you read about in a first-born child. 0:00:53.015,0:00:56.124 And thankfully, I channeled that[br]into business school. 0:00:56.125,0:00:57.584 I received a full scholarship 0:00:57.585,0:00:59.596 and graduated as the top woman in my class 0:00:59.597,0:01:02.532 before going on to serve[br]as a food industry analyst. 0:01:03.623,0:01:07.264 And when management teams[br]would come through our offices 0:01:07.265,0:01:09.250 from Whole Foods and Wild Oats, 0:01:09.251,0:01:12.450 we kind of thought they had[br]a nice marketing niche carved out. 0:01:12.451,0:01:14.749 It was either[br]"Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous" 0:01:14.750,0:01:15.882 or some hippie thing. 0:01:15.883,0:01:19.953 It just wasn't something that[br]we were particularly on board with. 0:01:20.936,0:01:25.959 And after doing that for a while,[br]I traded the briefcase for a diaper bag, 0:01:25.960,0:01:27.969 and with that same Type A energy, 0:01:27.970,0:01:31.764 my husband and I[br]had four kids in five years. 0:01:32.274,0:01:34.051 (Laughter) 0:01:35.797,0:01:38.967 And up until that point,[br]I really had not given a lot of thought 0:01:38.968,0:01:40.785 about what was in the food supply. 0:01:41.122,0:01:44.050 I figured if it was on grocery[br]store shelves, it was safe. 0:01:44.051,0:01:45.381 Don't tell me what to eat, 0:01:45.382,0:01:48.584 and please do not tell me[br]what to feed my kids. 0:01:49.013,0:01:52.271 I had four picky eaters,[br]limited time, limited budget, 0:01:52.272,0:01:53.793 and I didn't want to hear it. 0:01:55.848,0:02:00.410 And then one morning[br]over breakfast, life changed, 0:02:01.308,0:02:03.962 and our youngest child[br]had an allergic reaction. 0:02:04.650,0:02:06.142 And in all candor that morning, 0:02:06.143,0:02:12.917 that breakfast was L'Eggo my Eggo waffles,[br]tubes of blue yogurt, and scrambled eggs. 0:02:13.639,0:02:16.803 And as her face started to swell shut, 0:02:16.804,0:02:20.151 I was so unfamiliar with[br]what a food allergy actually looked like, 0:02:20.152,0:02:22.173 that I turned[br]to my older three and I said, 0:02:22.174,0:02:24.202 "What did you put in her face?" 0:02:25.127,0:02:28.613 And they all gave me[br]those blank, little kid stares, 0:02:29.139,0:02:30.935 and I got so scared. 0:02:31.437,0:02:33.495 And I raced her[br]to the pediatrician's office 0:02:33.496,0:02:36.252 and she says, "Robyn,[br]she's having this allergic reaction. 0:02:36.253,0:02:38.263 What did you feed the kids for breakfast?" 0:02:38.670,0:02:42.020 And I said, "L'Eggo my Eggo waffles,[br]blue yogurt and scrambled eggs." 0:02:42.483,0:02:45.624 And she said, "Well, those are three[br]of the top eight allergens." 0:02:45.625,0:02:48.783 And she starts rattling off[br]all of this stuff about food allergies, 0:02:48.903,0:02:52.071 and I'm thinking, "How can a child[br]be allergic to food?" 0:02:53.741,0:02:57.994 And so as we got the baby calmed down,[br]got everybody back home. 0:02:57.995,0:03:00.628 I put everyone down for a nap that day. 0:03:00.629,0:03:04.885 And every single analytical gene[br]in my body went off. 0:03:04.886,0:03:08.513 Because I hadn't known anybody that[br]had had a food allergy when I was a kid. 0:03:08.514,0:03:12.699 So I wanted to dig into this data;[br]I wanted to understand what was going on. 0:03:12.700,0:03:14.611 And that morning five years ago, 0:03:14.612,0:03:17.794 I learned that from 1997 until 2002, 0:03:17.795,0:03:20.556 there had been a doubling[br]of the peanut allergy. 0:03:20.557,0:03:24.099 I also learned at that point that one[br]out of 17 kids under the age of three 0:03:24.100,0:03:25.922 now has a food allergy. 0:03:26.362,0:03:30.199 And I then went on to learn[br]from the Centers for Disease Control 0:03:30.200,0:03:35.529 that there had been a 265 percent increase[br]in the rate of hospitalizations 0:03:35.530,0:03:38.112 related to food allergic reactions. 0:03:38.882,0:03:43.592 That was doctors checking kids[br]into the E.R., that wasn't moms. 0:03:44.902,0:03:48.104 And so I wanted to know,[br]what is a food allergy? 0:03:48.721,0:03:54.549 Well, a food allergy is when your body[br]sees food proteins as foreign. 0:03:54.550,0:03:57.161 And so it launches this[br]inflammatory response 0:03:57.162,0:03:59.850 to drive out that foreign invader. 0:04:00.507,0:04:02.921 And so it begged the question, 0:04:02.922,0:04:09.071 is there something foreign in our food[br]that wasn't there when we were kids? 0:04:11.220,0:04:15.330 And so the analytical side of me, I turned[br]to the US Department of Agriculture, 0:04:16.661,0:04:21.461 and I learned that yes,[br]beginning in the 1990s, 0:04:21.462,0:04:26.522 new proteins were engineered[br]into our food supply. 0:04:28.983,0:04:35.023 And it was done to maximize[br]profitability for the food industry. 0:04:35.528,0:04:38.885 And as Sonny touched on, that made[br]perfect sense to me as an analyst. 0:04:38.886,0:04:42.245 It drove shareholder value,[br]absolutely the fiduciary responsibility 0:04:42.246,0:04:45.781 of the corporations that[br]were introducing these proteins, 0:04:45.782,0:04:52.082 but at the same time, no human trials[br]were conducted to see if they were safe. 0:04:53.251,0:04:56.409 And so milk allergy is the most common[br]allergy in the United States 0:04:56.410,0:04:58.550 according to[br]the Wall Street Journal and CNN. 0:04:58.551,0:05:01.135 And so I wanted to know,[br]is there something in the milk 0:05:01.255,0:05:03.373 that wasn't there when we were kids? 0:05:03.553,0:05:05.488 And beginning in 1994, 0:05:05.489,0:05:09.039 in order to drive profitability[br]for the dairy industry, 0:05:09.040,0:05:12.823 scientists were able to create[br]this new genetically engineered protein, 0:05:12.824,0:05:14.430 and this synthetic growth hormone 0:05:14.440,0:05:17.080 and inject it into our cows[br]to help them make more milk. 0:05:17.081,0:05:20.293 The business model makes perfect sense,[br]it's a brilliant one. 0:05:20.785,0:05:25.243 But at the same time, what happened[br]is that it was making the animals sick. 0:05:25.244,0:05:28.550 It was causing ovarian cysts,[br]it was causing mastitis, 0:05:28.551,0:05:31.869 it was causing lameness,[br]it was causing skin disorders. 0:05:31.870,0:05:35.732 And for that reason, it increased[br]antibiotic use in those animals. 0:05:36.671,0:05:41.481 And so governments around the world said,[br]"We're going to exercise precaution, 0:05:41.482,0:05:44.528 and we are not going[br]to allow this into our dairy 0:05:44.529,0:05:46.469 and into our milk supply, 0:05:46.470,0:05:49.583 because it hasn't yet been proven safe." 0:05:50.645,0:05:52.579 We took a different approach. 0:05:52.580,0:05:57.665 We said, "It hasn't been[br]proven dangerous, so we'll allow it." 0:06:00.385,0:06:03.860 As I learned that, I thought, 0:06:03.876,0:06:07.794 "How many sippy cups[br]have I filled with this milk? 0:06:09.150,0:06:13.406 And how many bowls of cereal[br]have I poured it on for my husband?" 0:06:14.209,0:06:17.710 Not knowing that Canada, the UK, 0:06:17.822,0:06:21.211 Australia, Japan, New Zealand, 0:06:21.212,0:06:26.485 and all 27 countries in Europe[br]didn't allow it 0:06:26.486,0:06:30.280 when it was introduced in the US in 1994. 0:06:32.786,0:06:34.658 And so I wanted to know 0:06:34.659,0:06:39.113 what are the conditions[br]that we're seeing here in the US? 0:06:39.117,0:06:42.644 Because one of the concerns[br]around this new growth hormone, 0:06:42.645,0:06:44.881 this synthetic protein, 0:06:44.882,0:06:47.283 was that it also elevated hormone levels 0:06:47.284,0:06:51.200 that were linked to breast,[br]prostate, and colon cancer. 0:06:53.083,0:06:56.495 And so I turned to remarkable[br]organizations like LIVESTRONG 0:06:56.496,0:06:59.737 and the American Cancer Society,[br]because I wanted to know 0:06:59.738,0:07:03.757 what the rates of cancer were[br]in the US versus the rest of the world. 0:07:06.472,0:07:11.545 The US has the highest rates of cancer[br]of any country on the planet. 0:07:12.191,0:07:14.323 And according to[br]the American Cancer Society, 0:07:14.324,0:07:18.057 migration studies show that if you were[br]to move here from somewhere like Japan, 0:07:18.177,0:07:21.769 your likelihood of developing cancer[br]increases fourfold. 0:07:22.201,0:07:25.467 One out of two American men[br]and one out of three American women 0:07:25.468,0:07:28.220 are expected to get cancer[br]in their lifetime. 0:07:28.653,0:07:32.111 I also learned that[br]one out of eight women has breast cancer. 0:07:32.974,0:07:34.635 But then what I learned, 0:07:34.636,0:07:39.302 is that only one in ten[br]of those breast cancers are genetic, 0:07:39.303,0:07:43.391 which means nine out of ten of them[br]are environmentally triggered. 0:07:46.044,0:07:49.011 So kind of like, you know, when you're[br]driving down the highway 0:07:49.012,0:07:51.411 and you see an accident,[br]and you just keep looking, 0:07:51.412,0:07:53.200 and you're not really sure why? 0:07:53.804,0:07:57.432 I wanted to know, are these[br]other allergies that we're seeing, 0:07:57.433,0:08:01.220 have foreign proteins been introduced[br]into our food there too. 0:08:01.672,0:08:05.700 And shortly after, milk was engineered[br]with this new protein. 0:08:05.701,0:08:08.081 Scientists then engineered soy, 0:08:08.082,0:08:10.843 and soy is also[br]one of the top eight allergens. 0:08:11.452,0:08:14.275 And again, to drive profitability[br]for the soy industry 0:08:14.276,0:08:18.070 because soy is primarily used[br]to fatten livestock, 0:08:18.071,0:08:20.493 scientists were able[br]to engineer the soybean 0:08:20.494,0:08:24.731 so that it could withstand[br]increasing doses of weed killer. 0:08:25.282,0:08:29.517 And the business model, as an analyst,[br]made perfect sense. 0:08:29.518,0:08:34.129 You engineer the seed[br]so that you can sell more weed killer. 0:08:34.130,0:08:38.494 And at the same time, you've engineered[br]something new into that seed 0:08:38.495,0:08:40.541 so that you can patent it. 0:08:40.542,0:08:45.711 So now you've got a patent on the seed[br]and you're selling additional weed killer. 0:08:46.728,0:08:48.804 But once again, governments[br]around the world 0:08:48.805,0:08:54.599 said no studies have been done[br]to show if this is safe 0:08:54.600,0:08:58.181 to feed to the livestock[br]and to feed to our consumers, 0:08:58.182,0:09:00.687 and so we're going to exercise precaution 0:09:00.688,0:09:05.916 in order to prevent the onset[br]of any disease that may result. 0:09:06.458,0:09:10.861 And in 1996 here in the US,[br]we took a different approach. 0:09:12.731,0:09:15.643 As I kept learning more[br]about food allergies, 0:09:15.644,0:09:20.141 I was hearing concern from parents[br]about a corn allergy, 0:09:20.142,0:09:24.005 and so I wanted to know,[br]did corn get engineered? 0:09:24.006,0:09:27.683 And interestingly, in the late 1990s,[br]as concern started to grow 0:09:27.684,0:09:31.814 about the spraying[br]of insecticide over cornfields, 0:09:31.815,0:09:38.454 scientists were able to engineer that[br]insecticide into the DNA of a corn seed, 0:09:39.235,0:09:44.490 so that as a corn plant grows,[br]it releases its own insecticide. 0:09:45.345,0:09:52.173 As a result, corn was then regulated[br]by the EPA as an insecticide. 0:09:56.234,0:10:02.993 As you can imagine, this was incredibly[br]hard information to learn. 0:10:04.883,0:10:08.832 We had introduced a term[br]called "substantial equivalence." 0:10:08.833,0:10:13.985 It's a conceptual tool,[br]and it's used by the tobacco industry 0:10:13.986,0:10:16.070 to facilitate the approval process 0:10:16.071,0:10:20.185 of something for which[br]no human trials have been conducted. 0:10:20.186,0:10:22.260 And that was the justification given 0:10:22.261,0:10:26.114 for why we were introducing[br]these things in the US. 0:10:27.539,0:10:29.779 And as I sat down one night[br]with my husband, 0:10:29.780,0:10:32.383 I said, "I can't unlearn this. 0:10:32.913,0:10:37.567 And I don't know what people will say[br]if I try to teach them, 0:10:37.568,0:10:39.021 but I have to try." 0:10:41.115,0:10:45.363 And so the next morning I came downstairs,[br]and I sat our four kids down, 0:10:45.364,0:10:48.704 and I said, "You know how mom[br]has learned some pretty tough stuff 0:10:48.705,0:10:51.010 about what's going on in our food, 0:10:51.011,0:10:53.069 and how it's not in food[br]in other countries, 0:10:53.189,0:10:56.010 and it's especially[br]not in food fed to kids? 0:10:56.980,0:10:59.524 I have to try to do something about that." 0:11:00.713,0:11:03.173 And one of my boys,[br]he looked at me and he said, 0:11:03.174,0:11:07.551 "Mom, how many people are on your team?" 0:11:07.913,0:11:09.322 (Laughter) 0:11:10.521,0:11:14.731 And I said, "Well,[br]it's you four and daddy." 0:11:15.941,0:11:19.490 And he said, "Mom,[br]you need a bigger team." 0:11:19.491,0:11:21.160 (Laughter) 0:11:21.161,0:11:23.402 And he was absolutely right. 0:11:23.403,0:11:26.010 And at that point, I'd had people[br]come up to me saying, 0:11:26.000,0:11:28.920 "You're food's Erin Brockovich,[br]you're food's Erin Brockovich. 0:11:29.040,0:11:31.054 You should reach out to Erin Brockovich." 0:11:32.025,0:11:36.832 And at that point, I did not want[br]to be food's Erin Brockovich, 0:11:36.833,0:11:40.854 and I thought, "How in the world[br]could I possibly reach out to her?" 0:11:41.854,0:11:45.967 But then, all of those Type A genes[br]started going off, 0:11:45.968,0:11:49.678 and I thought, "I have to at least try." 0:11:49.683,0:11:52.315 If I could get through[br]to somebody like Erin Brockovich, 0:11:52.435,0:11:55.798 then maybe we could create[br]this change here in the US. 0:11:56.453,0:12:02.374 And so channeling all of that energy,[br]I honestly spent about two weeks 0:12:02.375,0:12:05.907 crafting a four sentence e-mail[br]to Erin Brockovich. 0:12:05.908,0:12:07.760 (Laughter) 0:12:08.193,0:12:10.400 And I fired it off. 0:12:10.401,0:12:14.024 And I don't know if I ever[br]really expected her to reply, 0:12:15.395,0:12:17.182 but when she did, 0:12:18.941,0:12:23.582 to have someone like that cheering you on 0:12:24.443,0:12:31.160 suddenly makes you think that[br]maybe one person can make a difference. 0:12:31.620,0:12:33.040 (Whoops) 0:12:34.510,0:12:37.823 (Applause) 0:12:39.478,0:12:41.843 So as I began to really dig into this, 0:12:41.844,0:12:45.050 and look at the fact that we were using[br]all of these new ingredients 0:12:45.170,0:12:48.888 in the US food supply[br]that we weren't using in other countries, 0:12:48.889,0:12:54.187 I've got to admit, it drove me absolutely[br]nuts now expensive organic food was. 0:12:55.415,0:12:57.772 And so I looked into the business model. 0:12:58.711,0:13:01.691 And what I learned is that[br]as a national family, 0:13:01.692,0:13:06.610 sitting down to our national dinner table[br]with our national budget, 0:13:06.611,0:13:10.470 our taxpayer resources are being used 0:13:10.471,0:13:15.357 to subsidize the growth of these crops[br]with all these chemicals. 0:13:15.802,0:13:20.107 And then over here, the crops that[br]are grown through the organic process, 0:13:20.108,0:13:23.081 which means without[br]the use of synthetic chemicals, 0:13:23.082,0:13:27.991 those guys are charged fees to prove[br]that their stuff is grown without it, 0:13:27.992,0:13:32.030 then they're charged fees to then[br]label those things as grown without it, 0:13:32.031,0:13:34.280 and on top of that,[br]they don't get the insurance 0:13:34.400,0:13:38.775 and marketing program assistance[br]that these guys over here do. 0:13:39.145,0:13:44.431 So not only is their cost structure[br]higher over here, 0:13:44.432,0:13:47.021 but then on top of that, what I learned 0:13:47.022,0:13:50.399 is that it wasn't just those[br]farmers that it was impacting. 0:13:51.186,0:13:55.467 The farmers who are fourth[br]and fifth generation farmers, 0:13:55.468,0:13:59.621 who have been feeding[br]our country for generations, 0:13:59.622,0:14:03.105 because those seeds are patented, 0:14:03.106,0:14:06.321 they now have a cost structure[br]that's new too, 0:14:06.322,0:14:11.592 because they have to pay royalty fees,[br]licensing fees, and trait fees 0:14:11.593,0:14:15.542 to even begin to plant[br]those seeds on their farm. 0:14:19.298,0:14:21.622 And so when I thought[br]about this, I thought, 0:14:23.762,0:14:28.790 how are our American corporations[br]exporting their products 0:14:29.508,0:14:33.376 if these other countries[br]don't allow these ingredients? 0:14:34.118,0:14:39.308 And that's when I realized,[br]and found research, 0:14:39.309,0:14:46.114 that Kraft, and Coca-Cola and Walmart,[br]they are doing a remarkable job 0:14:46.115,0:14:50.701 of responding to consumer demand[br]in other countries. 0:14:50.702,0:14:55.027 And they have formulated[br]their products differently. 0:14:55.617,0:15:00.158 So Kraft and Coca-Cola and Walmart,[br]they don't use these ingredients 0:15:00.159,0:15:03.071 in the products they distribute[br]in other countries. 0:15:03.610,0:15:08.424 Now when I first learned that,[br]at first, it was kind of depressing. 0:15:08.425,0:15:12.562 But then I thought, we just need[br]to teach each other here. 0:15:14.311,0:15:18.111 And as I reflected on the fact[br]that we'd introduced these proteins, 0:15:18.112,0:15:21.700 there'd been all of this toxicity concern,[br]I wanted to know, 0:15:21.701,0:15:26.243 what are we spending on healthcare[br]versus the rest of the world? 0:15:29.574,0:15:35.210 The US spends more on healthcare[br]than any country on the planet. 0:15:35.611,0:15:41.989 Sixteen percent of our GDP[br]goes towards managing disease. 0:15:42.930,0:15:45.915 What that means[br]is that a company like Starbucks 0:15:45.916,0:15:49.815 spends more on healthcare costs[br]than they do on coffee. 0:15:52.755,0:15:55.450 And as an American, I realized, 0:15:55.451,0:16:01.397 this very easily could be affecting[br]our global competitiveness. 0:16:02.055,0:16:06.699 Because rather than driving profitability[br]towards our core competencies 0:16:06.700,0:16:10.170 in the global marketplace,[br]we're managing disease. 0:16:12.320,0:16:15.690 And I thought, we don't need[br]to wait for regulation, 0:16:15.691,0:16:17.831 we don't need to wait for legislation, 0:16:17.832,0:16:22.047 we can begin to exercise precaution[br]in our own families, 0:16:22.048,0:16:25.486 in our own communities,[br]and in our own corporations, 0:16:25.487,0:16:29.203 so that we can protect the health[br]and well-being of our families, 0:16:29.204,0:16:31.531 and ultimately, of our economy. 0:16:32.050,0:16:34.422 And as I was coming through[br]all of this knowledge, 0:16:34.423,0:16:38.709 and having dismissed all of it,[br]it was pretty paralyzing. 0:16:38.710,0:16:42.212 But then I realized, you can't make[br]the perfect the enemy of the good. 0:16:42.213,0:16:45.804 And it's really all about progress,[br]not perfection. 0:16:46.224,0:16:51.710 And while none of us can do everything,[br]all of us can do one thing. 0:16:52.764,0:16:56.422 And just as you don't[br]potty train a kid overnight, 0:16:56.423,0:17:00.323 and you don't wean them[br]from a sippy cup overnight, 0:17:00.324,0:17:04.165 this is a process that,[br]it doesn't happen overnight. 0:17:05.030,0:17:11.502 But that as each and every single[br]one of us does one thing, 0:17:12.353,0:17:16.867 we have the ability[br]to affect remarkable change. 0:17:17.611,0:17:23.874 Because each and every single one of you[br]has talents and attributes 0:17:23.875,0:17:26.577 that you are uniquely good at. 0:17:27.462,0:17:31.718 And when you leverage that with something[br]that you are passionate about, 0:17:31.719,0:17:37.040 you can affect remarkable change,[br]in the health of your family, 0:17:37.041,0:17:39.276 in the health of your company, 0:17:39.277,0:17:41.332 and in the health of our country. 0:17:42.530,0:17:44.650 And the bottom line 0:17:44.651,0:17:50.130 is there is nothing more patriotic[br]that we could be doing. 0:17:50.131,0:17:51.368 Thank you. 0:17:51.369,0:17:54.768 (Cheers) (Applause) 0:18:18.640,0:18:21.911 Host: You might get a standing ovation[br]every time you give this talk, 0:18:21.912,0:18:23.933 but we don't get[br]to give them all the time, 0:18:23.934,0:18:25.537 so thank you for taking that in.