Howard Lyman

Howard is probably best known as the controversial guest on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" whose comments about mad cow disease caused an angry cattle rancher to sue him and Oprah, a suit that Oprah and Howard won. He has crusaded for years to change the way America produces its food and to change the way Americans think of their relationship to food and the environment. After having transformed his small family farm into an intensive factory farm which made extensive use of chemical pesticides and fertilizers, Howard developed a tumor on his spine which paralyzed him. After surgery gave him back the use of his legs, he vowed to crusade for environmentally sustainable agricultural policies and practices that would save our ecology, economy, and promote better human health. Towards that end, Howard has worked for the Montana Farmers Union and as a lobbyist for the National Farmers Union. For five years he worked on Capitol Hill for America's family farmers, and helped to pass the National Organic Standards Act. Howard ran for Congress in Montana in 1982 and lost by less than a 4 percent margin to a six-term incumbent. Howard was the executive director of the International Beyond Beef Campaign, which was able to organize over 2,400 teams consisting of over 10,000 people who handed out over 1,000,000 pieces of information to educate consumers about their food choices. He has spoken to thousands of groups--from small audiences to an assembly of over 25,000 people at the Earth Day celebration in Oakland, California. He has also written a book, Mad Cowboy, with Glen Merzer. His message is always the same; If there is to be a bright future for our children and grandchildren, it will come from consumer support of producers who work in concert with nature -- organically, sustainably, and humanely.