There’s a piece in today’s Burlington Free Press about the possibility of banning BPA.  BPA, or Bisphenol A, is a chemical frequently used to line tin cans and to harden the plastics in water bottles and pre-packaged meals.  There is serious controversy as to its use and there are some very good arguments for banning it.

But that’s not why I’m writing this.  I’m writing this because of three words that pop up in the article: American Chemistry Council.  

Fortunately, I’d recently been watching Rachel Maddow:

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And I thought I wonder what “American Chemistry Council” really is?

So I looked them up and Sourcewatch gave me an answer:

The American Chemistry Council (ACC) is a top trade association representing North American chemical manufacturers. ACC represents represents nearly 150 companies and has a $100 million budget. The group spent more than $2 million on lobbying in 2003.

and…

Bisphenol-A Website is a website “sponsored by the Polycarbonate/BPA Global Group” of the American Chemistry Council (ACC) to respond to concerns about the health impacts of the use of Bisphenol A in plastic products.

I don’t mean to nit-pick.  I actually think the Free Press article is mostly excellent. But… okay, I do mean to nit pick, but… seriously… when your piece’s defense of BPA comes from an organization which is an industry flack, you should state who they are when you quote them.  “American Chemistry Council” sounds, on the surface, like a research and development group.  It’s a lobbying group for the chemical industry.  

It is not intended to inform.  

It is intended to promote.