Document ppEE8BZNBBxRJBGYmNR397rkD

Monsanto :- ; i FROM (LOCATION) St. Louis DAU ; October 15, 1969 SUBJECT : PCB CRISIS OP THE WEEK REFERENCE : TO , Mr. Howard S. Bergen HBERG CC; Dr. R. S. Gordon - RGORD Dr. K. H. Maddy - KMADD Mr. J. E. Springgate - JSPRI You will recall that the letter I received last week from Professor Olcott, University of California at Berkeley, contained the following closing paragraph: "In connection with the upcoming White House Conference on Pood, Nutrition, and Health, our panel is supposed to consider the future of legislation on 'food safety.* In order to consider PCB residues and what course the Government should take in controlling them, we would appreciate very much learning from you the present status of your observations." I have enclosed some background information on the White House Conference which he referred to. Important portions are indicated in red. Ken Maddy tells me that Dr. Gene Mayer, the over-all conference chairman and special consultant to the President, is from Harvard, has done consulting work for Monsanto, and is a friend of Dr. R. S. Gordon. You will note that he 26 panels will prepare provisional recommendations which will be transmitted to Dr. Mayer by November 1. Although Dr. Mayer indicates that these pro visional recommendations may be quite different from the final recommendations, I have had experience with such White House or National Conferences in the past where there was little or no change in the "provisional recommendations" and they did not necessarily reflect the conclusions reached during the actual conference. You will note on Page 5 the.committee or panel which Pro fessor Olcott referred to. Serving on the panel (as is the case with several of the others) is one of Ralph Nader'b recent "raiders." I know of no action Monsanto can take to influence the contents of the provisional recommendations or the final report unless we can enlist the support of Dr. Gordon. In addition to his acquaintance with Dr. Mayer,he has, I believe, retained Professor Olcott in the past as a consultant on Monsanto projects. IN- 10 NEV, 64 EPW/ln mer P. Wheeler DSW 147886 STLCOPCB4039496