INDEPENDENCE FROM...GMOs

- Ashley Mason, Contributing Writer, Environmental Conservationist and Food Activist

It is safe to assume that humans have been fighting for independence since our very birth as a species.  Not only did we (and do we) fight each other for territory, we have also had to adapt to changing surroundings, and seek out sources of food for survival. 

What is not safe, however, are the genetic games that big agribusiness business is playing with our food today!  Although the many advances that we have made over the centuries (including better ways to grow organically) have liberated us from such struggles as seeking out food in the wild, we must now seek our independence from a new and more deceptive type of danger – genetically modified organisms (GMOs), or, genetically engineered foods (GE Foods). 

    

It is deceptive because the monster biotech companies would have us believe that genetic engineering is little more than selective breeding.  Wrong!  Selective breeding = Mendel, who gardened at his monastery and picked only the best plants to replant / cross-pollinate, thereby helping evolution along a little bit.  Genetic engineering on the other hand, disregards evolution all together and basically just smashes genes from one organism into the DNA of another which it could never, uh, “get together with” in nature.  For example, until it was pulled off the market because people were having allergic reactions, some agribiz companies were injecting a fish gene into strawberries to make them look red, even if they were not ripe yet.  Not only did this trick people into getting poor nutrition, but it also played with people’s lives by not labeling it.  

 

As I used to remind people during my volunteer work for the “Stop Shaw’s” campaign (with Genetic Engineering Action Network (GEAN), Greenpeace, and the True Food Network), genetically engineered foods are “unlabelled, untested, and unwanted.”  According to a similar organization, The Non-GMO Project, freedom from genetically modified organisms is one of the top three reasons why consumers purchase organic and natural foods.  Additionally, as the line blurs between what is considered conventional agriculture and what is considered genetic engineering, it is becoming increasingly necessary to have some sort of labeling system in place. 

Although this project is in the development stages, well known and very successful organic food companies such as Whole Foods and United Natural Foods, Inc. (UNFI) are already on board.  Michael Funk, president and CEO of UNFI, expressed his frustration in an interview that he found himself being unable to appropriately answer potential buyers’ questions, because there was such a huge challenge in being able to decipher what foods contained GMOs, and which do not. 

All in all, the gigantic, global, biotech corporations profit, while food consumers unknowingly put themselves at risk – of unknown allergies, untested health effects, and unforeseen damage to the environment.  Organic growers and sellers must now struggle to retain the authenticity of their products.

Not only that, but the biotechnology companies have also taken to patenting genes (how does that even work!  Playing God much…?) and then suing any farmers (e.g. the famous case of Monsanto vs. Schmeiser) who inadvertently get GMO contamination into their crops (natural cross-pollination from wind, animals, etc.).  And, since the Federal Government has continuously refused to label food products that do contain GMOs, it is up to us to take action to voluntarily label those which do not, in order to take the first step in achieving our independence from them.  No GMOs!

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