Non GMO Project

kayemme

Interesting read: http://www.nongmoproject.org/2010/10/28/gmo-foods-what-they-are-and-how-you-can-avoid-them/

Genetically Modified Foods are crop plants (fruits, vegetables and grains) that have been altered using molecular biology techniques that intentionally enhance certain properties of the plant that are seen as beneficial for the plants proliferation and growth. This includes things like resistance to toxic herbicides, or bettering the crop’s ability to resist rotting during transportation or producing internal pesticides within the plant itself. Geneticists achieve this by isolating genes from one plant and injecting them into new plants.

(edit by kayemme: genetically modified foods need not be from plant genes to plant genes. Much of that can be done with crossbreeding, but genetically modified foods can deposit genes from an entirely different species into another organism, plant or whatever... )

The Debate

Every day, more research comes out showing the supposed safety of GM technology. This research is often heavily-funded by the very creators and benefactors of GM foods and technologies. In parallel, research emerges showing the apparent dangers of genetically modified foods, although there is little clinical research funded for how these plants may be affecting humans.

It can be very frustrating for you, the consumer, to know what to believe. But I believe that there is an inherent collective knowledge that we share – an instinctive feeling that we are messing with Nature, and that the health consequences could be perilous.

Why You Want to Avoid Genetically Modified Foods

Recent studies have shown that genetically modifying plants (an unnatural process that works against the natural ebb and flow of genetic movement) may be detrimental to human health. Studies are now showing the harmful effects of genetically-modified plants on animals in testing. For example, an early study on GMO crops showed that corn pollen was adversely affecting monarch butterfly caterpillars, causing higher mortality rates in the butterflies that had eaten the GM pollen.

Genetically modified foods have also been shown to create plants that are engineered for herbicide and pesticide tolerance. These plants then cross-bread, and pass on the transfer of genes to other weeds and plants. In this sense, genetically modified crops may be creating what scientists call “superweeds,” which are prone to take over crop lands (promoting food shortage on a global scale). This interbreeding also effects the bees and birds that pollenate the plant.

One potential solution that GMO manufacturers are offering is the creation of “plants that are sterile,” or do not produce pollen. Essentially, plants that are stripped of their creative, fruiting essence. Doesn’t it concern anyone that we are taking out the very creative life of a plant? Not to mention, that these removed essences may offer us, the human consumers, the much-needed life and energy we are all lacking? Moreover, it is surprising to note that while new medicines released into the marketplace undergo stringent testing and approvals, GMO foods (which is designed in a laboratory just like drugs), undergoes very little regulation from the FDA.

It is possible that inserting new genes into plants can create new allergic reactions in humans, particularly those that are already susceptible to allergens. A proposal to incorporate a gene from Brazil nuts into soybeans was abandoned because of the fear of causing unexpected allergic reactions. What is more, these altered forms of DNA do not always completely metabolize in the digestive tract. Gut bacteria are then susceptible to consuming these GM genes and plasmids, making us even more susceptible to disease through antibiotic resistance.

Oftentimes proponents of genetically modified foods site human global food needs as a reason why we need GMO crops. While little academic research supports this statement, leaders from over 20 African states have actually published a statement stating that genetically modified foods do not aid farmers in their 21st century food production needs. These African countries, which includes some of the world’s most poverty-stricken regions, believe that GMO’s actually “destroy the diversity, the local knowledge and the sustainable agricultural systems and undermine our capacity to feed ourselves.” In a plea from the Prince of Wales, he urges us to think of how to better use the billions of dollars spent on researching GMO techniques, to improving the methods of local agriculture that support biodiversity. (7)
The Unknown Health Effects

Another main concern on the issue of genetically modified foods is that we cannot know the long-term health effects of these plants in our bodies. Sadly, actual studies on GM food toxicity are few and far between. In fact, while many opinions exists, there are few clinical studies on how these foods are effecting human health and digestion.

Introducing foreign genes into the natural web of creation may have long-term harmful impacts on human health. One study out of the University of Aberdeen looked into how the digestive system of rats reacts to genetically modified potatoes. The study observed harmful effects on the intestines of those rats who had a diet of genetically modified potatoes, as compared to rats that ate natural potatoes. To be more specific, rats eating the genetically modified plants had alterations in the gut tissue. This raises questions of the unknown effects that these foods may be having on human digestive health. And, if we look at the overall state of digestion in the Western world, it stands to reason that there are issues at hand.
7 Suggestions For Avoiding Genetically Modified Foods

1. Eat Organic

Organic foods cannot contain GM genes, and although cross-contamination can sometimes occur, this is your best bet for avoidance. Try visiting your local farmer’s market for the freshest produce. Ask if the food is organic or genetically modified. Find out who sells organic foods, and visit them often.

2. Eat Less Dairy and Meat

Dairy and meat products are notoriously high in genetically modified ingredients, especially given that livestock eat so much GM corn and other crops. Alternatively, do some research on the food you eat, before you buy the first thing you find at the grocery store.

3. Avoid Certain High-GM Foods

Eating all organic foods can sometimes be hard. Understandably so. If you cannot always eat organic, at least avoid food products that contain the highest amounts of genetically modified ingredients, such as soy, canola and corn. Zucchini and squash are also highly modified.

4. Avoid Processed Foods

Processed foods contain high amounts of additives, flavors and preserving agents. Not only do they contain a bare minumum amount of nutrients, but genetically modified bacteria and fungi are often used to create these additive agents.

5. Use a Non-GMO or Organic Cooking Oil

If you are cooking with non-organic soy, corn, canola, or cottonseed oil, you are dipping into the highest geneticaly modified oils in the U.S. Try using an alternative cooking oil, such as extra virgin olive oil.

6. The Black List

As a general rule, there are some foods, unless clearly marked as organic, that are notorious for being full of genetic modifications. Below is a list of these foods.

* Tofu
* Cereal
* Margarine
* Mayonnaise
* Salad Dressings
* Baking Powder
* Vanilla Extract
* Powdered Sugar
* Peanut Butter
* Tomato Sauce
* Tamari



* Corn Meal
* Corn Syrup
* Soy Flour
* Soy Protein
* Soy Cheese
* Soy Sauce
* Soy Lecithin
* Fructose
* Dextrose
* Maltodextrin
* Lactic Acid



* Veggie Burgers
* Enriched Flour
* Enriched Pasta
* Protein Powders
* Textured Vegetable Protein
* Most Meat Substitutes
* Instant Infant Formula
* Ice cream & Frozen Yogurt
* Hamburger & Hot Dog Buns
* Citric Acid From Corn
* Chocolate

7. Do Not Consume Aspartame

This pseudo-food is an outcome of genetic engineering. While there is some debate about the overall health dangers of aspartame, it is best to avoid this toxic substance at every opportunity.

Sources
Techniques of Plant Biotechnology from the National Center for Biotechnology Education HYPERLINK “http://www.ncbe.reading.ac.uk/NCBE/GMFOOD/techniques” www.ncbe.reading.ac.uk/NCBE/GMFOOD/techniques.
Transgenic pollen harms monarch larvae (Nature, Vol 399, No 6733, p 214, May 20, 1999).
20 QUESTIONS ON GENETICALLY MODIFIED (GM) FOODS. HYPERLINK “http://www.who.int/foodsafety/publications/biotech/20questions/en/” www.who.int/foodsafety/publications/biotech/20questions/en/
Questions about Genetically Modified Organisms: An article by The Prince of Wales ( HYPERLINK “http://www.princeofwales.gov.uk/speeches/agriculture_01061999.html” www.princeofwales.gov.uk/speeches/agriculture_01061999.html) and Seeds of Disaster: An article by The Prince of Wales ( HYPERLINK “http://www.princeofwales.gov.uk/speeches/agriculture_08061998.html” www.princeofwales.gov.uk/speeches/agriculture_08061998.html)
New tools for chloroplast genetic engineering (Nature Biotechnology, Vol 17, No 9, pp 855-856, Sep 1999)
Tandem constructs: preventing the rise of superweeds (Trends in Biotechnology, Vol 17, No 9, pp 361-366, Sep 1999)
Questions About Genetically Modified Organisms. An article by The Prince of Wales. The Daily Mail, 1st June, 1999. HYPERLINK “http://www.ratical.org/co-globalize/GMO.html” www.ratical.org/co-globalize/GMO.html
(Aug. 1998 ) HYPERLINK “http://www.psrast.org/afrscimo.htm” African Scientists Condemn Monsanto Latest Tactics and Call for European Support. HYPERLINK “http://www.psrast.org/afrscimo.htm” www.psrast.org/afrscimo.htm
Identification of a Brazil-nut allergen in transgenic soybeans (New England Journal of Medicine, Vol 334, No 11, pp 688-692, 1996).
Effect of diets containing genetically modified potatoes expressing Galanthus nivalis lectin on rat small intestine (Lancet, Vol 354, No 9187, pp 1353-1354, Oct 1999)
Schubbert, R., Lettmann, C. and Doerfler, W. (1994) Ingested foreign (phage M13) DNA survives transiently in the gastrointestinal tract and enters the blood stream of mice. Molecules, Genes and Genetics 242, 495-504.
Schubbert, R. Hohlweg, U., Renz, D. and Doerfler, W. (1998) On the fate of orally ingested foreign DNA in mice: chromosomal association and placental transmission in the fetus. Molecules, Genes and Genetics 259, 569-576.

kayemme

and the Prince of Wales says, http://www.ratical.org/co-globalize/GMO.html

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Do we need GM food in this country?

On the basis of what we have seen so far, we don't appear to need it at all. The benefits, such as there are, seem to be limited to the people who own the technology and the people who farm on an industrialised scale. We are constantly told that this technology may have huge benefits for the future. Well, perhaps. But we have all heard claims like that before and they don't always come true in the long run - look at the case of antibiotic growth promoters in animal feedstuff...

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Is GM food safe for us to eat?

There is certainly no evidence to the contrary. But how much evidence do we have? And are we looking at the right things? The major decisions about what can be grown and what can be sold are taken on the basis of studying what is known about the original plant, comparing it to the genetically modified variety, and then deciding whether the two are 'substantially equivalent'. But is it enough to look only at what is already known? Isn't there at least a possibility that the new crops (particularly those that have been made resistant to antibiotics) will behave in unexpected ways, producing toxic or allergic reactions? Only independent scientific research, over a long period, can provide the final answer.

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Why are the rules for approving GM foods so much less stringent than those for new medicines produced using the same technology?

Before drugs are released into the marketplace they have to undergo the most rigorous testing - and quite right too. But GM food is also designed in a laboratory for human consumption, albeit in different circumstances. Surely it is equally important that we are confident that they will do us no harm?

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How much do we really know about the environmental consequences of GM crops?

Laboratory tests showing that pollen from GM maize in the United States caused damage to the caterpillars of Monarch butterflies provide the latest cause for concern. If GM plants can do this to butterflies, what damage might they cause to other species? But more alarmingly perhaps, this GM maize is not under test. It is already being grown commercially throughout large areas of the United States of America. Surely this effect should have been discovered by the company producing the seeds, or the regulatory authorities who approved them for sale, at a much earlier stage? Indeed, how much more are we going to learn the hard way about the impact of GM crops on the environment?

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Is it sensible to plant test crops without strict regulations in place ?

Such crops are being planted in this country now - under a voluntary code of practice. But English Nature, the Government's official adviser on nature conservation, has argued that we ought to put strict, enforceable regulations in place first. Even then, will it really be possible to prevent contamination of nearby wildlife or crops, whether organic or not? Since bees and the wind don't obey any sort of rules - voluntary or statutory - we shall soon have an unprecedented and unethical situation in which one farmer's crops will contaminate another's against his will.

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How will consumers be able to exercise genuine choice?

Labeling schemes clearly have a role to play. But if conventional and organic crops can become contaminated by GM crops grown nearby, those people who wish to be sure they are eating or growing absolutely natural, non-industrialised, real food, will be denied that choice. This seems to me to be wrong.

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If something goes wrong with a GM crop, who will be held responsible?

It is important that we know precisely who is going to be legally liable to pay for any damage - whether it be to human health, the environment, or both.

Will it be the company who sells the seed or the farmer who grows it? Or will it, as was the case with BSE, be all of us?

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Are GM crops really the only way to feed the world's growing population?

This argument sounds suspiciously like emotional blackmail to me. Is there any serious academic research to substantiate such a sweeping statement? The countries which might be expected to benefit certainly take a different view. Representatives of 20 African states, including Ethiopia, have published a statement denying that gene technologies will 'help farmers to produce the food that is needed in the 21st Century'. On the contrary, they 'think it will destroy the diversity, the local knowledge and the sustainable agricultural systems * and undermine our capacity to feed ourselves'. How much more could we achieve if all the research funds currently devoted to fashionable GM techniques - which run into billions of dollars a year - were applied to improving methods of agriculture which have stood the test of time? We already know that yields from many traditional farming systems can be doubled, at least, by making better use of existing natural resources.

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What effect will GM crops have on the people of the world's poorest countries?

Christian Aid has just published a devastating report, entitled Selling Suicide, explaining why GM crops are unlikely to provide solutions to the problems of famine and poverty. Where people are starving, lack of food i s rarely the underlying cause. It is more likely to be lack of money to buy food, distribution problems or political difficulties. The need is to create sustainable livelihoods for everyone. Will GM crops really do anything to help? Or will they make the problems worse, leading to increasingly industrialised forms of agriculture, with larger farms, crops grown for export while indigenous populations starve, and more displaced farm workers heading for a miserable, degraded existence in yet more shanty towns?

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What sort of world do we want to live in?

This is the biggest question of all. I raise it because the capacity of G M technology to change our world has brought us to a crossroads of fundamental importance. Are we going to allow the industrialisation of Life itself, redesigning the natural world for the sake of convenience and embarking on an Orwellian future? And, if we do, will there eventually be a price to pay? Or should we be adopting a gentler, more considered approach, seeking always to work with the grain of Nature in making better, more sustainable use of what we have, for the long-term benefit of mankind as a whole? The answer is important. It will affect far more than the food we eat; it will determine the sort of world we, and our children, inhabit.

absie107

righteous. seriously. we need more people thinking this way.

themyriadthings

Thank you thank you thank you! This kind of information needs to be more widely distributed and understood. It does seem inherently wrong to be messing with nature this way. We humans are too arrogant for our own good, much of the time.

NikkisNewStart

It is sad that the only way I have found this info is to seek it out myself. The majority of people won't, or have no clue this is a major issue. We live in a fat, processed, fast food nation and it is a shame that this has taken precedance over real food... keep spreading the word!

kayemme

It is sad that the only way I have found this info is to seek it out myself. The majority of people won't, or have no clue this is a major issue. We live in a fat, processed, fast food nation and it is a shame that this has taken precedance over real food... keep spreading the word!

it's true that this information is slightly covered, but it does exist. it's up to us to know; there's a lot of money and industry that prevents the information from being mass distributed, but the more you learn, the more you know!

just last night i was reading about how bpa in plastics may contribute to low thyroid, decreased metabolism and therefore obesity. that's not to say that eating poorly or overeating doesn't also contribute a more significant factor, but there are many, many reasons people are suffering from obesity, myself included.

keep yer ear to the ground!

kayemme

i'm bumping this because it's important information.

angisnee

Very interesting information that's made me think. I'll be honest and say I didn't read the entire article, but the part that stood out to me was the food allergies part. I cannot, for fear of my throat swelling shut, eat a mango from the US. But I went to the Philippines a few years ago, and I ate mangos every day without any allergic reaction whatsoever. I was told by my doctor that I had an allergy to the protein in the fruit, but how can that be if I can eat it just fine in another country? Makes me wonder if all the crap the US puts on their crops isn't what I'm 'allergic' to!

I think I'll be searching out more organic foods.

HealthyChanges2010

bump!

Thanks:flowerforyou:

elainegsd

Very interesting information that's made me think. I'll be honest and say I didn't read the entire article, but the part that stood out to me was the food allergies part. I cannot, for fear of my throat swelling shut, eat a mango from the US. But I went to the Philippines a few years ago, and I ate mangos every day without any allergic reaction whatsoever. I was told by my doctor that I had an allergy to the protein in the fruit, but how can that be if I can eat it just fine in another country? Makes me wonder if all the crap the US puts on their crops isn't what I'm 'allergic' to!

I think I'll be searching out more organic foods.

Highly likely that you are allergic to something sprayed on the mango crops. My mom is allergic to raw celery, and a holistic nutritionist suggested pesticides as the root of her allergy. I have inherited her allergic reactions, and have NO reaction to some organic versions of my trigger foods, and an anaphylactic response to the non-organic form of the food (though I rarely test this because it never seems like a good day to die). Also, allergies build up over time. I used to eat my trigger foods regularly without an issue, now can't eat them without risking a severe reaction.