I have been watching this topic closely. Many extreamly wealthy multinational corporations such as Monsanto are staking their fortunes and futures on genetic engineering. The topic is an interesting conundrum. Are we willing to risk the possible negative effects to our environment in order to obtain the possible benefits?
In the intetest of fairness I would like to mention that my personal bias is AGAINST all GMO products. I studied Genetics in College so my understanding of the subject is comprehensive. The truth is that without testing the affects long term, we don't have any basis for understanding how they might impact human and environmental health. That said, I would like to open this subject up for discussion here.
According to Medline Plus, "Genetically engineered foods have had foreign genes (genes from other plants or animals) inserted into their genetic codes."
Potential risks include:
■ Modified plants or animals may have genetic changes that are unexpected and harmful.
■ Modified organisms may interbreed with natural organisms and out-compete them, leading to extinction of the original organism or to other unpredictable environmental effects.
■ Plants may be less resistant to some pests and more susceptible to others.
Potential benefits of genetically engineered food include:
■ More nutritious foodTastier foodDisease- and drought-resistant plants that require fewer environmental resources (water, fertilizer, etc.)
■ Decreased use of pesticidesIncreased supply of food with reduced cost and longer shelf life
■ Faster growing plants and animals
■ Food with more desirable traits, such as potatoes that absorb less fat when fried
■ Medicinal foods that could be used as vaccines or other medications
Join me below the fold for more information and the link to sign the petition requesting that GMO modified potatoes NOT be used to produce french fries.
According to Josh Nelson, Campaign Manager for CREDO Action:
Last month, the United States Department of Agriculture approved a new genetically modified potato created by Simplot, one of the biggest potato suppliers in the country, opening the door to a new wave of processed junk foods containing unlabeled and potentially dangerous GMO potatoes.
McDonald’s, the single-largest purchaser of potatoes in the country, has publicly refused to serve french fries sourced from these GMO potatoes. However, other major fast food chains, including Burger King, Wendy’s, and KFC, haven’t yet decided whether they will serve these so-called “frankenfries” to their customers.
Over a decade ago, due to massive customer backlash, Simplot urged its growers to stop planting a variety of GMO potatoes developed by Monsanto after McDonald’s refused to sell french fries containing GMOs. Today, however, Simplot is back, and marketing its own, new, genetically engineered potato to the masses.
While Simplot and the USDA claim this new GMO potato is safe for human consumption, the science is simply unclear. According to the Center for Food Safety, the technique used by Simplot to engineer its potato is untested and potentially unsafe for humans and the environment, saying, “USDA has inexplicably failed to undertake the legally required rigorous and overarching analysis of the GE crops’ impacts or reasonably foreseeable consequences.”
Worse, because genetically modified foods are not labeled in the United States, you could soon be eating this new GMO potato without your knowledge.
According to
Green America:
Why should we be concerned about GMOs?
★ Human Health Risks:
More and more studies point to the idea that there’s grave cause for concern about the health effects of consuming GMOs and the chemicals they are sprayed with, including food allergies, irritable bowels, organ damage, cancer
★ Environmental Risks:
Seventy-two percent of US GMO crops are engineered to tolerate a certain type of herbicide. But the weeds that these herbicides used to kill are coming back bigger and stronger, creating herbicide-resistant “superweeds” that require greater quantities of more toxic pesticides to eradicate.
★ The Risk To Farmers In Developing Countries:
Every three minutes, a farmer commits suicide in India due to rising debts, a phenomenon that has been steadily rising since the 1970s. The causes behind the farmers’ crushing debt and resultant suicides are complex. They range from unfair governmental pricing of cotton to international trade agreements which are skewed in favor of other countries. GMO seeds appear to play a major role, especially in India.
★ The Risk to Organic Farmers:
Even when a farmer isn’t growing GMO crops, contamination can easily occur. Seed mixing or pollen drift from neighboring GMO fields is always possible. While this contamination is troubling for those of us who wish to avoid GMOs, it can be an economic disaster for organic and family farmers.
The cotton farmers in India had a taste of GMO seed reality. Monsanto introduced their GMO cotton seeds, and demonstrated to the farmers the increase in yeild per acre that they could expect. The farmers, expecting a windfall from harvesting more cotton, borrowed the money to purchase the new seeds. The first year the yeild was truly high. The high availability caused cotton prices to fall. Then, the farmers discovered that because the seed was patented by Monsanto, they were not allowed to save seed from the crop to plant for the next year. The farmers were required to purchase new seed every year. Those two factors came close to eradicating any profit. Yet after several years, almost every cotton farmer was using only the Monsanto patented seed, thanks to relentless marketing.
Then there was drought several years in a row. The yeild per acre of the Monsanto patented GMO cotton plummeted. There was a spike in suicides as many of the farmers whose crops failed killed themselves as a form of radical protest. Most of the farms that were lost had been passed down in families for hundreds of years.
Even in drought conditions, some strains of non GMO cotton. continued to produce. Historically, in India, hundreds of strains of cotton had been grown. Each strain was developed by farmers to produce well in their prevailing climate. Seed was purchased by most farmers only once and that was before he planted his first crop of cotton. In reality, most farmers never paid for seed. It was given to them as a gift by family or friends. After the first crop, the farmers in India always saved their seed for the next season. Since the seed was developed locally, it was engineered by nature to perform well in that location.
Monsanto's seed was expensive, and had to be purchased every year. During any major climate fluctuation, it would not produce well. After Monsanto recruited almost every farmer in India, and filled their fields with Monsanto cotton, they declared that the program was a success. It made no difference to Monsanto that when their GMO cotton failed throughout India, farmers lost everything and women and children starved. Monsanto took the money and ran.
The Monsanto cotton seed disaster is a stark example of what can happen when bio- diversity is disrupted.
What crops are commonly genetically modified?
More and more foods and products are being genetically engineered or contain genetically engineered ingredients. Here are eight of the most common to look out for. If a product contains these ingredients and is not labeled non-GMO Verified or Organic Certified, there’s a good chance it contains GMOs:
★ Alfalfa
★ Canola
★ Corn
★ Cotton
★ Papaya
★ Soy
★ Sugar Beets
★ Zucchini
★ Yellow Summer Squash
ALSO high-risk: animal products (milk, meat, eggs, honey, etc.) because of contamination in feed.
What product ingredients commonly contain genetically engineered crops?
★ Amino Acids
★ Aspartame.
★ Ascorbic Acid
★ Sodium Ascorbate
★ Vitamin C
★ Citric Acid
★ Sodium Citrate
★ Ethanol.
★ Flavorings (“natural” and “artificial”)
★ High-Fructose Corn Syrup
★ Hydrolyzed VegetableProtein
★ Lactic Acid, Maltodextrins
★ Molasses
★ Monosodium Glutamate
★ Sucrose
★ Textured Vegetable Protein (TVP)
★ Xanthan Gum
★ Vitamins
★ Yeast Products.
How can we avoid GMOs?
There are several choices you can make when buying groceries and eating out to try and avoid GMOS.
Look for the Non-GMO Project label.Buy organic certified produce and packaged foods.Avoid high-risk ingredients.Be wary of non-GMO claims that lack certification.Avoid processed foods.Watch out for restaurants.Buy and plant your own organic seeds.
According to a December Associated Press-GfK poll, 66 percent of Americans favor requiring food manufacturers to put labels on products that contain genetically modified organisms, or foods grown from seeds engineered in labs. Only 7 percent are opposed to the idea, and 24 percent are neutral.
The federal Food and Drug Administration doesn't require labeling of genetically modified foods, saying those on the market are safe. Consumer advocates backing labeling say shoppers have a right to know what is in their food, arguing not enough is known about their effects.
The AP-GfK poll comes as several states have weighed in on the issue. Vermont became the first state to require labels for genetically modified foods last year, passing a law in May that will take effect mid-2016 if it survives legal challenges. Maine and Connecticut passed laws before Vermont, but those measures don't take effect unless neighboring states follow suit. Ballot initiatives to require labeling were narrowly defeated in California, Washington and Oregon in recent years.
Even if you don't eat at fast food chains, millions of other Americans do. Your opposition to GMO potatoes can help show Simplot and other companies that Americans don't want GMOs in our food.
Tell Burger King, Wendy’s, and KFC: Don’t serve GMO frankenfries to your customers. Click the link below to sign the petition:
More Information
◆ Eric Schlosser, Fast Food Nation, p. 282, 2001
◆ Dan Nosowitz, “McDonald’s Refuses To Buy GM Potatoes For Its Fries,” Modern Farmer, November 18, 2014
◆ Scott Kilman, “McDonald's, Other Fast-Food Chains Pull Monsanto's Bio-Engineered Potato,” Wall Street Journal, April 28, 2000
◆ “Poorly Tested Gene Silencing Technology to Enter Food Supply with Simplot Potato,” Center for Food Safety, November 7, 2014
