Thoughts on sweetcorn?

LabRat529

[Lots of things are genetically modified. Depends, really, on how you define 'genetic modification'. By some definitions, you could include grapes, watermelon, tomatoes, and a million other things. Regardless... most of the negative hype you hear about GMOs is just alarmist baloney. I've never seen any data to suggest that the GMOs in our food supply are harmful to humans. They do have other problems (example: being overly aggressive and out-competing non-modified plants... ), but there's really no justifiable reason to be scared of them.

Interesting opinion. But can you tell me if GMO's aren't harmful, then why is Monsanto giving 4.2 MILLION dollars to defeat Californians' right to know what's in their food? Other major new contributions against Proposition 37 (California GMO labeling) were given by E. I. Dupont de Nemours ($1,273,600), Dow Agrosciences ($1,184,800) and PepsiCo ($1,126,079). If GMO's aren't harmful then why have FIFTY (50) countries, including France, Germany and Italy banned or restricted GMO's while the United States doesn't even require labeling? Why can't we know what's in our food, and where it came from if GMO's aren't harmful? Personally, I don't think "natural flounder" created by genetic engineering is actually "natural", yet that's what the package says. I prefer to eat things that were actually made by nature. K thanks.

Ahhhh... Monsanto. Not my favorite company. I'm not a fan of bullies. BUT I don't buy the conspiracy theories. I have faith in the scientific process. I'm part of it. For every unethical researcher willing to sell their soul to the almighty dollar, there's a dozen or more people like me who are genuinely dedicated to the truth and to improving human health.

Of course some of us are being driven out due to lack of funding... but that's a rant for another day.

We could certainly improve the way we handle things. Certainly, transparency (aka labels) is a good thing. And I'm not a fan of lobbying when it comes to medicine and agriculture... but there's really no need for the fear mongering either.

France, Germany, and all those other countries have there reasons for banning GMOs. There reasons are likely part political, part financial, part mistrust of the United States, part liking to do things their own way, and probably even part science. As I mentioned, there IS science that suggests GMOs are not a wise move for our environment... and who knows... maybe they've chosen to believe the scary-pseudo-science that so many believe when it comes to GMOs.

The United States FDA disagrees with those other countries. I tend to trust the FDA. They usually get it right (which is why their mistakes are such big news). They're not infallible. No human organization is. But... eh... they do alright. You have noticed that there are a lot of medicines legal in France and Germany and other places that aren't legal here, right? It's because the FDA is pretty strict about what it approves.