GMO Food Products

rml_16

GMO was introduced into our food supply where I live without consumers knowing or getting to choose. Most people, when the learn about this, do not like it. Including myself. Other countries reject the products, and that is noteworthy in itself. I would like GMO products to be labeled, as I would never choose to purchase them if labeled. Hence, the whole GMO controversy is that the genetic modifications are for the sole purpose of making some corporation some extra money.

Now that is a fair point to make. I'm cynical in this regard because I think the whole process of labelling is corrupt as hell (It's 99% sugar alcohols but it's alcohol so it's still low carb!)

I think there's a big difference between "I have the right to know what has been done to the food I'm buying and should be able to choose to pay more for food handled a certain way (which is becoming more popular)" and "that food causes cancer and ALL the people making it are corrupt and don't care if they kill the whole planet".

/thread

willowdancer

As a small-scale farmer who grows most of my family's food, I have three main concerns with this whole GMO thing.

1.) I don't like that GMO food products don't have to be labeled as such; as a consumer it is nice to have the information provided to me about the what and wheres of what I am eating. I understand that there is a lot of negativity flying around about GMO's and that is probably why companies don't want that smeared on their labels; it is the anti-organic and as much as being green and organic is in right now, you can bet on something dropping in sales just because it says GMO on it.

2.) I don't know how much I trust GMOs; there aren't generational studies to show that it is completely safe. And just because something has gone through the hoops of regulations, does NOT mean that it is safe; it means they put the right amount of money into the right pot to pass whatever test. This is the panic-driven consumer in me speaking. On the other hand, I don't think there is a cave full of mad-scientists purposefully bringing about the end of the world as we know if by screwing with our corn. There is a lot of good intention behind the science, but it is still too easy for me to feel skeptical of what the media and masses are saying; I don't feel fully informed, no matter how much I research it. To play it safe I grow my own food as best as I can, raise rabbits for meat and fertilizer, and try to support my local farmers when there is something I can't grow or make myself.

3.) Again, as a small scale farmer it is very scary to know that I could be sued if my neighbor's corn, a Monsanto product, cross pollinated with mine and I went on to save seed from my corn to sell to other people at the farmer's market. (If I would even be able to save viable seed from the plants; you literally can NOT save seed from many Monsanto products; for the most part they are hybrids and the seed saved from them won't produce the same plant as the parent plant.) The money to be made in this situation for MonSanto is massive, which automatically makes them seem suspicious. It is expensive to have to buy new seed stock every year and this expense, among many others, is a big reason why it is so hard to start a small farm and be successful; without government subsidizing it is just not profitable to be a farmer. You can't make a living, pay for the land, and feed your family. However, I don't think it is MonSanto's fault. They are the direct result of today's industrial agriculture and the need for speed and efficiency.

Its so easy to point fingers and play the blame game, but it is our own responsibility to educate ourselves and make informed decisions from there instead of believing everything on the internet. I made the decision to play it safe and stick with tried and true methods of feeding myself.

76tech

And to state my own opinion on the matter:

Many TERRIBLE, TERRIBLE things have been created with the best of intentions. Research into better ways to grow and harvest food, given our rapidly expanding population, is a necessity. You might have the money to buy only grass-fed, shiatsu massaged bi-weekly, sung to by Adele Live in utero beef, but poor college kids don't (not to mention folks in far less fortunate circumstances than we are given that we have access to the internet and time to dink around on MFP). Saying we shouldn't continue making these kinds of advances because of the risk is not only incorrect, it's impractical. Pharmacology, agriculture, etc are areas of great interest for research. Not everything that comes out of that R&D is going to be perfect, but that doesn't mean we should stop trying. Advances in these areas are done for money, yes. However, without them there is absolutely no way that we would be able to support the sheer number of people that we have living in some areas. There isn't enough pasture on the planet for all the beef we need to be grass-fed. Adele would get mighty tired flying from farm to farm to sing. And don't get me started if the masseuses go on strike because too many cows were seeking out happy endings.

Give me some of that grenade-o-bladder corn to dump in the NYC subways and parks. I'll take care of the rat and pigeon problem we have and will make money hand over fist doing it.

Really, This is what you believe? Another "researcher" trying to justify their job, Blech... Ignorant. Boring.

whoah, wait a second. back up. you think all research should stop? where do you think things like chemotherapy came from?

take away all research and development. what kind of world would you have today?

Shock_Wave

Give me some of that grenade-o-bladder corn to dump in the NYC subways and parks. I'll take care of the rat and pigeon problem we have and will make money hand over fist doing it.

Really, This is what you believe? Another "researcher" trying to justify their job, Blech... Ignorant. Boring.

DUDE Grenade O Corn is real... ya now who's ignorant but I at least I am not boring..

BogQueen1

3.) Again, as a small scale farmer it is very scary to know that I could be sued if my neighbor's corn, a Monsanto product, cross pollinated with mine and I went on to save seed from my corn to sell to other people at the farmer's market. (If I would even be able to save viable seed from the plants; you literally can NOT save seed from many Monsanto products; for the most part they are hybrids and the seed saved from them won't produce the same plant as the parent plant.) The money to be made in this situation for MonSanto is massive, which automatically makes them seem suspicious. It is expensive to have to buy new seed stock every year and this expense, among many others, is a big reason why it is so hard to start a small farm and be successful; without government subsidizing it is just not profitable to be a farmer. You can't make a living, pay for the land, and feed your family. However, I don't think it is MonSanto's fault. They are the direct result of today's industrial agriculture and the need for speed and efficiency.

I read a book once written by Margaret Atwood, called Oryx and Crake. I realize it's fiction, but the world she described was just this. The seed companies had reached the point where they created seeds that would grow once, but the seeds that those plants produced would not grow. It's basically a genetic modification post apocalyptic world gone totally wrong. Chickie nubs and stuff. It was a decent book to read, if you are into that sort of thing.

ArroganceInStep

Really, This is what you believe? Another "researcher" trying to justify their job, Blech... Ignorant. Boring.

I remember when I first won a debate by calling someone a big stupid head. It was so satisfying, and far easier than actually making a valid point.

I am currently working on my MBA. We have to take many classes on ethics. Open the Wal Street journal sometime and you will see my compelling reason to believe that the second statement is more accurate the the first. Every corporation out there, if given a chance, will take a short cut in order to increase profits, regardless of who it hurts, who it steps on, or what the long term implications of that are. It's basic finance 101. A dollar earned today is worth more then a dollar earned 10 years from now. The basic definition of a coporation includes 'increasing value to shareholders' which has been taken to mean increasing the bottom line. It's what they do. It's the reason for their existence. Profit, pure and simple. How many companies took short cuts on waste disposal of toxic byproducts of manufacturing and poisoned our environment? How many people lost their entire retirement when Enron decided to take shortcuts with their accounting and got busted for it? The responsible corporation is a rarity. Even the darling of wall street, Apple, was revealed to have taken 'short cuts' and produces their product overseas, paying sub par wages.

How many reasons would you like me to list?

If businesses are so bad, why are you getting a masters degree in Business Administration?

It's far more complicated than you make it out to be. Businesses are made up of people. Their actions are furthered by people, be it the employee, the employer, the customer, or the investor. The actions of big business that you seem to detest so much are a reflection of us as a society. If I slack off at work and game the system, that waste has an impact. If I'm too lazy to hit the ATM for cash and go to a subway for lunch since they take credit rather than the deli on the corner, THAT has an impact. Folks are starting to care more about the actions of businesses, and to account for that companies are starting to advertise the good things that they do for the community. It's not ALL evil, though it is almost exclusively driven by profit. That's the nature of a capitalist society though.

hikeout470

There is no need for the GMO's to be produced for USA consumption, where the department of agriculture pays USA farmers to "not produce" The whole thing is crap and the Dept of agriculture is much larger than it was when it actually produced agriculture A load of doo doo. To the Researchers, I feel for you, but do not try to justify your job here. Go do something worthy. And don't go there, with the world food population either. We all KNOW it is about politics. There is plenty of food, and plenty of bad leaders out there that control the food so the they can control their people.

76tech

There is no need for the GMO's to be produced for USA consumption, where the department of agriculture pays USA farmers to "not produce" The whole thing is crap and the Dept of agriculture is much larger than it was when it actually produced agriculture A load of doo doo. To the Researchers, I feel for you, but do not try to justify your job here. Go do something worthy. And don't go there, with the world food population either. We all KNOW it is about politics. There is plenty of food, and plenty of bad leaders out there that control the food so the they can control their people.

monicalosesweight

Let's not get into this game of making outlandish claims and use apocalyptic imagery to scare people. Resident Evil is a movie, not real life. If you do not understand the science behind GMO products, that's okay. But what's not right is to spread misinformation just because you fear the unknown. Each product by Monsanto and alike, is developed as a result of years, sometimes decades, of research. As many as hundreds of people and dozens of PhD's who specialize in that field can be involved. After they have a potential product, it still has to go through endless regulatory testing to ensure safety.

The way I see it, they are doing the world a service. Just because you have three grocery stores with thousands of different products on shelves so conveniently packaged for you to buy all within walking distance, doesn't mean everyone else does, nor that you will continue to have that luxury. Planet Earth is experiencing a population explosion. There simply is not enough land and resources to feed everyone - not so far into the future.

The best way to guarantee mankind a future without famine is to work diligently to make agriculture more productive. Better harvest, higher crop turnover, etc... Go do some real research and find out how much improvement people in less fortunate geographies have benefited from the fruits of GMO development. Think about this the next time you put an apple down at the grocery store because it's not pretty enough.

I say we deal with the population issue instead. I too am concerned, and I really don't like GMO products. The reality is that I don't want to be the test case (and hate the fact that we've been the test case already) for a product that isn't natural. We see all sorts of oddities occurring (such as the bee die offs) and whose to say there isn't a connection. If our planet can't handle the population issues, it's time we address it. Sooner or later, it will have to come up - be it through sex education.

I've read various articles and from what I saw, Monsanto didn't exactly do anything nice for the Indian farmers whose crops failed. I have a real issue with any form of a science that creates a monopoly and makes it so that only they have the power to grow something as critical as food. That's the main reason I dislike it. It's like taking away freedoms which are inherent in our civilization. I prefer the original type of farming - take the best and most durable and breed it into the actual farming product.

What's next? At Walmart will I only be able to buy Monsanto seed and will I be required to pay the 'tithe' to them? That's a problem. A real, big problem. Personally, I plan on boycotting as many products as I can find that are GMO and I buy my corn ONLY from companies that refuse to carry it. I also write to businesses and indicate this is my choice.

If you disagree, that's ok; but, for some of us...it's the ideology behind how they are treating people that upsets us. It's not got the genetic modification. I've read horror stories and some of them on news sites from OTHER countries not just those random fanatical websites, actual news agencies, and when I see farmers faced with total destruction or the greed of genetic seed raising and the products not doing what they were told they would do...that's showing it's a failure.

rml_16

I think it's kind of funny to call a researcher ignorant. Kind of an oxymoron, wouldn't you say? I mean, your entire job is to learn things!

NewLIFEstyle4ME

“If you put a label on genetically engineered food you might as well put a skull and crossbones on it.” – Norman Braksick, president of Asgrow Seed Co., a subsidiary of Monsanto, quoted in the Kansas City Star, March 7, 1994

“Monsanto should not have to vouchsafe the safety of biotech food. Our interest is in selling as much of it as possible. Assuring its safety is the FDA’s job.” – Phil Angell, Monsanto’s director of corporate communications, quoted in the New York Times, October 25, 1998

“Do not be so open-minded that your brains fall out.”
― G.K. Chesterton

“There is nothing more deceptive than an obvious fact.”― Arthur Conan Doyle

“The truest way to be deceived is to think oneself more knowing than others.”― François de La Rochefoucauld

“Deception sneaks in through the window of pride.”― Evinda Lepins

“Teddy said it was a hat, So I put it on. Now dad is saying, "where the heck's the toilet plunger gone?”
― Shel Silverstein

"Man's mind is so formed that it is far more susceptible to falsehood than to truth." Erasmus, Desiderius

"We are never deceived; we deceive ourselves."· Goethe, Johann Wolfgang Von

“I am suspicious of all the things that the average people believes.”
― H.L. Mencken

"You can fool some of the people all the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you cannot fool all of the people all the time." · Lincoln, Abraham

76tech

I think it's kind of funny to call a researcher ignorant. Kind of an oxymoron, wouldn't you say? I mean, your entire job is to learn things!

no. a researcher is only there to learn what "they" want you to know.

oh no. i hear a helicopter. no one can help me now, i've said too much...

BogQueen1

Really, This is what you believe? Another "researcher" trying to justify their job, Blech... Ignorant. Boring.

I remember when I first won a debate by calling someone a big stupid head. It was so satisfying, and far easier than actually making a valid point.

I am currently working on my MBA. We have to take many classes on ethics. Open the Wal Street journal sometime and you will see my compelling reason to believe that the second statement is more accurate the the first. Every corporation out there, if given a chance, will take a short cut in order to increase profits, regardless of who it hurts, who it steps on, or what the long term implications of that are. It's basic finance 101. A dollar earned today is worth more then a dollar earned 10 years from now. The basic definition of a coporation includes 'increasing value to shareholders' which has been taken to mean increasing the bottom line. It's what they do. It's the reason for their existence. Profit, pure and simple. How many companies took short cuts on waste disposal of toxic byproducts of manufacturing and poisoned our environment? How many people lost their entire retirement when Enron decided to take shortcuts with their accounting and got busted for it? The responsible corporation is a rarity. Even the darling of wall street, Apple, was revealed to have taken 'short cuts' and produces their product overseas, paying sub par wages.

How many reasons would you like me to list?

If businesses are so bad, why are you getting a masters degree in Business Administration?

It's far more complicated than you make it out to be. Businesses are made up of people. Their actions are furthered by people, be it the employee, the employer, the customer, or the investor. The actions of big business that you seem to detest so much are a reflection of us as a society. If I slack off at work and game the system, that waste has an impact. If I'm too lazy to hit the ATM for cash and go to a subway for lunch since they take credit rather than the deli on the corner, THAT has an impact. Folks are starting to care more about the actions of businesses, and to account for that companies are starting to advertise the good things that they do for the community. It's not ALL evil, though it is almost exclusively driven by profit. That's the nature of a capitalist society though.

Perhaps some of us would like to believe we can change things from the inside at that businesses need to have an influx of rational minded, ethical people. We even discussed in class one time that there's a calculated risk between doing something illegal and making a profit versus the costs you will incur should you get caught. I didn't say I agreed with everything I was learning, and that is taken heavily out of context, so please do not think I attend a school that is encouraging unethical behavior, because they aren't, we went on to discuss the social implications of such actions, to show that regardless of the bottom dollar the costs on society are too high. Discussions on corporate responsibility and things like that. But in simple numbers game? Sometimes a desperate CEO can make a poor decision to boost the stock price.

hikeout470

There is no need for the GMO's to be produced for USA consumption, where the department of agriculture pays USA farmers to "not produce" The whole thing is crap and the Dept of agriculture is much larger than it was when it actually produced agriculture A load of doo doo. To the Researchers, I feel for you, but do not try to justify your job here. Go do something worthy. And don't go there, with the world food population either. We all KNOW it is about politics. There is plenty of food, and plenty of bad leaders out there that control the food so the they can control their people.

probably the most important mistake people make is the over importance of your position. whatever that may be.

hikeout470

I think it's kind of funny to call a researcher ignorant. Kind of an oxymoron, wouldn't you say? I mean, your entire job is to learn things!

no. a researcher is only there to learn what "they" want you to know.

oh no. i hear a helicopter. no one can help me now, i've said too much...

Well said

rml_16

I think it's kind of funny to call a researcher ignorant. Kind of an oxymoron, wouldn't you say? I mean, your entire job is to learn things!

no. a researcher is only there to learn what "they" want you to know.

oh no. i hear a helicopter. no one can help me now, i've said too much...

I'm so srry, Ben. I wish I could have saved you.

76tech

I think it's kind of funny to call a researcher ignorant. Kind of an oxymoron, wouldn't you say? I mean, your entire job is to learn things!

no. a researcher is only there to learn what "they" want you to know.

oh no. i hear a helicopter. no one can help me now, i've said too much...

I'm so srry, Ben. I wish I could have saved you.

The money's hidden in the mattress. Tell everyone I love them. It was all worth it...

hikeout470

To whomever called me a stupid head, why don't you go perform "research" on your own family and leave mine alone.

Koldnomore

I try to ensure that pretty much everything I eat is organic/gmo-free....but I don't feel the need to go around convincing the world that my way is best, nor do I feel like I need to justify why I eat this way to anyone.

Arguing about organics and GMOs have replaced arguing about politics and religion. You're not going to convince someone to change their position...so stop trying, maybe?

If people want to walk into a science lab and down a whole beaker full of some genetically modified, super concentrated, stomach busting corn juice (or whatever it is you're talking about)...who cares?

That's it for me.

Considering GMO crops are actually illegal to grow in many countries including most of the EU and France where they are also investigating placing a ban on GMO imports I will take the 3rd party not tied financially to Monsanto research over the stuff that comes from the US - sorry but the US economy is too tied to big corporations to be trusted..

http://www.france24.com/en/20120919-france-orders-probe-after-rat-study-links-gm-corn-cancer

Don't people wonder why most of Europe has banned GMO, let me guess they are ALL crazy? I think not.

rml_16

To whomever called me a stupid head, why don't you go perform "research" on your own family and leave mine alone.

*sigh*

No one called YOU a stupid head. He was commenting on you basically calling 76 a stupid head with your "ignorant" comment.