9. GM and non-GM cannot coexist.
GM contamination of conventional and
organic food is increasing. An unapproved
GM rice that was grown for only one year
in field trials was found to have exten-
sively contaminated the U.S. rice supply
and seed stocks. In Canada, the organic
canola industry has been destroyed by
contamination from GM canola. In Spain,
a study found that GM maize “has caused
a drastic reduction in organic cultivations
of this grain and is making their coexistence
practically impossible.”
The time has come to choose between
a GM-based and a non-GM-based world
food supply.
“If some people are allowed to choose
to grow, sell and consume GM foods, soon
nobody will be able to choose food, or
a biosphere, free of GM.” Roger Levett, a
specialist in sustainable development,
writes. “It’s a one-way choice, like the introduction of rabbits or cane toads to Australia; once it’s made, it can’t be reversed.”
TIPS FOR AVOIDING GMOS
TIP 1: BUY ORGANIC
Certified organic products cannot intentionally include any GMO ingredients. Buy products labeled
“100% organic,” “organic” or “made with organic ingredients.” You can be doubly sure if the product also
has a Non-GMO Project Verified Seal.
TIP 2: LOOK FOR NON-GMO PROJECT SEALS
Products that carry the Non-GMO Project Seal are independently
verified to be in compliance with North America’s only third-party
standard for GMO avoidance, including testing of at-risk ingredients.
The Non-GMO Project is a nonprofit organization committed to providing consumers with
clearly labeled and independently verified non-GMO choices. Look for dairy products labeled
“No rBGH or rBST” or “artificial hormone-free.”
10. We can’t trust GM companies.
The big biotech firms pushing their GM
foods have a terrible history of toxic contamination and public deception. GM is
attractive to them because it gives them
patents that allow monopoly control over
the world’s food supply. They have taken
to harassing and intimidating farmers
for the “crime” of saving patented seed
or “stealing” patented genes—even if
those genes got into the farmer’s fields
through accidental contamination by wind
or insects.
Tom Wiley, a North Dakota farmer, explained the situation in a 2004 news story:
“Farmers are being sued for having GMOs
on their property that they did not buy, do
not want, will not use and cannot sell.”
TIP 3: AVOID AT-RISK INGREDIENTS
If they’re not labeled organic or verified non-GMO, avoid products
made with ingredients that might be derived from GMOs. The eight
GM food crops are corn, soybeans, canola, cottonseed, sugar beets,
Hawaiian papaya (most) and a small amount of zucchini and yellow
squash. SUGAR: If a non-organic product made in North American
lists “sugar” as an ingredient (rather than pure cane sugar), it is almost
certainly a combination of sugar from both sugar cane and GM sugar
beets. DAIRY: Dairy products may be from cows injected with GM
bovine growth hormone. Look for labels stating no rBGH, rBST or
artificial hormones.
TIP 4: DOWNLOAD OUR SHOPPING GUIDES
Use either IRT’s new Non-GMO Shopping Tips brochure or redesigned
Non-GMO Shopping Guide to help you identify and avoid GM foods.
There is an entire page in each guide to help you uncover hidden GM
ingredients on food labels that often read more like a
chemical periodic table. If you have an iPhone, you
can download IRT’s ShopNoGMO guide for free from
the i Tunes store. (The Non-GMO Shopping Guide is a
cooperative effort of The Institute for Responsible
Technology and The Non-GMO Project.)
dreasmtime.com
Contributed with permission by GM Watch:
gmwatch.org. View article resources and
author information here: pathwaystofamily
wellness.org/references.html.
