It's Not Nice to Fool Mother Nature: An Overview of Genetically Modified Foods

Most Americans believe that genetic modification of foods involves isolating the most beneficial genes of food crops and selectively breeding them into the healthiest and most nutritious foods possible. The actual truth is much different. The GM crops currently being grown in the US, (Soy, Canola, Cotton, Corn and soon Alfalfa) are created by inserting a genetically modified virus or bacterium into the seed that has been laced with a chemical herbicide or pesticide. These newly modified cells sprout roots and shoots, are planted in dirt and grow into mature plants containing the new chemical laced bacteria added to the DNA. The biotech companies that manufacture these seeds, initially claimed that this new chemical based DNA added to the plants would make them more herbicide and pesticide resistant, thereby cutting the need for spraying these chemicals in the fields to eliminate weeds and pests and would increase crop yields. But…because some of these “new” biotech companies are actually “old” chemical companies reinventing themselves as food companies, we shouldn’t be surprised that the amount of chemicals sprayed on the new genetically modified crops has increased 2-5 times, not decreased as promised. Because farmers of GM crops use exponentially more chemicals on their fields than conventional farmers they are creating super-weeds requiring even stronger, more toxic chemicals to be used. Not surprisingly, the GM crop yields are lower than conventionally grown crops, and the GM farm land is much more chemically toxic than the conventional farm land.nnIn 1992 the FDA stated that GM foods would be regulated in the same way as conventionally grown foods – this meant no independent safety testing or even labeling of GM foods was required. The FDA considers GM foods to be the same as conventionally grown foods, despite proof that they are not. In 1996, GM crops really became a viable industry in the US, thanks to the lack of government regulation or over site. Between 1997 and 1999 over 60% of all processed foods manufactured in the US added GM ingredients with no labeling requirements, despite the protests of many of the FDA’s own investigators. The Alliance for Bio-Integrity states, “FDA scientists protested the attempt to equate bioengineering with conventional breeding by protesting that the policy was ignoring the recognized potential for bioengineering to produce unexpected and unpredictable toxins, carcinogens and allergens – hazards not ordinarily involved with conventional breeding. Nonetheless, so strong was the FDA’s motivation to promote the biotech industry that it not only disregarded the warnings of its own scientists about the unique risks of gene-spliced foods, it covered them up and claimed that no such input had been received.” nnHealth and Safety issues should be the top concern of the FDA, EPA and USDA, but even now, a decade later, these agencies still remain unconcerned. This despite a growing number of studies from reputable independent researchers not connected with any of the biotech companies, identifying health and safety problems. For example, Australian researchers from the National Research Organization published a study in 2005, concluding that GM peas with pesticide laced bacteria genes inserted into the DNA cause allergic lung damage in mice. Then in October 2005, Russian researcher Dr. Irma Ermakova from the Russian Academy of Sciences showed that baby rats born to mothers exclusively fed GM soy during pregnancy died at a rate of 7 times greater in the first 3 weeks of life than rats born to mothers exclusively fed non GM soy during pregnancy. She repeated her study 3 times with the same results each time. According to Jeffrey Smith from the Institute for Responsible Technology, “Pigs fed GM corn on several Midwest farms developed false pregnancies or sterility. Cows fed GM corn in Germany died mysteriously. And twice the number of chickens died when fed GM corn compared to those fed (conventionally grown) corn. The only human feeding study ever conducted showed that the gene inserted into soybeans spontaneously transferred out of food and into the DNA of the human gut bacteria. This has several serious implications. First, it means that the bacteria inside our intestines, newly equipped with this foreign gene, may create a novel protein inside of us. If it is allergenic or toxic, it may affect us for the long term, even if we give up eating GM soy.” nnThe newest GM crop approved for US farmers is alfalfa. The new GM alfalfa seed has not been safety tested either. GM alfalfa is designed to tolerate high doses of herbicides, but, 83% of the alfalfa currently grown in the US is grown without any herbicides right now. GM alfalfa will lead to unnecessary increases in herbicide use, causing chemical pollution of the environment and of the alfalfa crop. This will not improve our alfalfa crops but will increase the profits of the biotech companies – all with the blessing of the FDA and EPA.nnThe birth of the GM food industry can be traced to the 1980 Supreme Court case, Diamond vs. Chakrabarty. In this case, the justices ruled that entire life forms could be patented for commercial profits. The justices stated that when a life form is genetically manipulated in a lab - the entire life form, not just the technical process of genetic manipulation, is the property of the scientist or company that modified it. This decision is fraught with potential dangers because patenting life forms is not like patenting a machine or a manufacturing process. All life forms unpredictably mutate and adapt and evolve over time. Since mutation of these new patented life forms is inevitable, and will occur with or with out the approval or knowledge of their “owners” - this decision opened a Pandora’s Box filled with unseen disasters. While life forms have been “transformed” by these recombinant DNA processes in laboratories, life forms have never been “created” in laboratories. Patenting of the whole life form has opened the door to a growing and unprecedented control of the world’s food supply by a few monopolistic, multi-national chemical companies, disguising themselves as food companies who are determined to inject chemical laced bacteria or viruses into our food while being single-mindedly accountable only to their bankers and their bottom lines. nnThe “ownership” of life forms (i.e. in this case seeds) allowed by the patents, guarantees ownership for all future generations grown from the seeds. This has allowed the biotech companies to lease their GM seeds for one growing season instead of selling them, as has been done throughout history with conventional or organic seeds. This new marketing approach by the biotech companies has caused a global shift in the dynamic of farming. Applying “Patent Law” to farming instead of the historically used “Plant Breeder Rights Laws”, which are more open and relaxed and do not allow ownership of seed progeny for eternity, has changed farming in dangerous ways. For example, the process of saving seeds from one planting season to another, which has been done by farmers throughout time, is now illegal with the patented GM seeds. Farmers caught saving GM seeds that were not planted or did not germinate when they were planted, that has not paid the GM seed company for a second growing season (even though these seeds didn’t grow in the first season) have been successfully prosecuted by the biotech companies. Even more disturbing is that farmers who choose not to grow GM crops but have had their fields contaminated by the drifting pollen of GM plants from neighboring fields have also been successfully prosecuted by the Biotech companies. Currently, non GM farmers are expected to pay for the contamination damage from the pollen of neighboring GM farms illegally trespassing onto their fields and ruining their crops. Non-GM farmers also must pay for expensive genetic testing if they want to insure that GM contamination of their crops has not occurred. However, if contamination has occurred, and they publicize the results they risk being sued by the biotech companies who will try to force them to pay for the unwanted presence of the GM DNA in their plants, even though the GM DNA presence will destroy their business. This impossible situation for non-GM farmers is being ignored by all levels of government. nnThe US, currently the world’s leader in GM food production, has demanded the World Trade Organization (WTO) force our GM foods into the unreceptive European Union. Amazingly, the WTO has complied, finding that the EU has illegally banned GM crops from their markets and must now allow them in. This bullying tactic by the US biotech companies could soon backfire on us because other countries including China and Argentina are progressing quickly in GM food technology and may soon ask the WTO to force their untested GM crops onto the US market. This eventuality is not even being considered by the US government and it shows no signs concern about this inevitable danger to our food supply, even in our post 911 world. nnNo other issue is more important than protection of our food supply. Yet, recent Pew polling data shows that only 42% of Americans are even aware of GM foods, and 59% are not aware that GM foods are currently being sold in the US, even though more than 105 million acres of GM crops are being grown in the US each year. nWe are traveling down a road leading to the genetic destruction of life, and massive chemical contamination of the environment and most of us aren’t even aware of it. nnKeeping GM foods out of our kitchens requires a grass roots involvement by every concerned American. Several good GM informational websites are: www.SeedsofDeception.com for information about keeping GM foods out of school cafeterias, and the latest information on GM foods. Also the Organic Consumer’s website is good: www.OrganicConsumers.org. Finally, The Alliance for Bio Integrity has another informative site at www.biointegrity.org. Please, contact all of your elected representatives both Democrat and Republican – as you can see from the time lines presented in this article on GM foods, both sides of the political isle have allowed GM foods on the market without the knowledge or consent of the American public. We need to get the FDA, EPA and USDA to establish standards for GM foods- i.e. formal independent safety studies for humans and animals and formal safety studies for the environment. Also, we need to establish buffer zones of several hundred miles between GM and non-GM fields, to avoid contamination of non-GM and organic crops. Once human DNA is damaged by the unintended consequences of GM foods, it cannot ever be fixed. Future generations will be damaged, and suffer the consequences for as long as there are human beings on Earth. nnCopyright 2006 Cynthia Drasler, MBA.nn