Are Genetically Modified Foods Safe?

Controversial short term studies funded by the GMO industry demonstrate safety, but independent scientists reveal that consumption of certain GMO foods, may be accountable for a wide range of toxic effects. Glyphosate is noted in particular, and is found in certain herbicides used in conjunction with GMO crop production. These potent toxins are measured in PPM, and an acceptable standard is set that determines the public's safety. A few PPM's of toxins here, and a few more over there. It     adds up! As it is, our environment has become a toxic minefield, so it doesn't make sense to have more toxins in our food. In many ways it's true 'that we are what we eat'. There are other significant concerns about genetically engineered crops, more importantly that organic crops, and pure seed strains may be compromised with the pollen from gene-altered crops, and may drive native species to extinction.

Also See: Consumer Alert! Raising Public Awareness of Modern Day Hazards

GMO Foods Hidden Danger Facts

Genetic tampering of our food supply threatens the health of consumers and the health of the environment. There is an obvious concern of the safety of GMO’s worldwide.

Not so obvious, are the mechanisms of growing a GMO crop, and the toxic considerations of the final product. For example most conventional corn and soybean crops are planted with GMO seeds that grow into a Roundup resistant crop.

Roundup is a broad spectrum herbicide that contains glyphosate, which even in minute quantities can be devastating to insects such as bees, animals, and humans. The crops mature resistant to the herbicide Roundup is used to kill weeds, however chemicals, notably glyphosate, are absorbed by the crop. Not only do we have a genetically modified crop, but a potentially toxic one as well, hopefully all within FDA standards of course.

Cancer, heart disease and over 100 autoimmune disorders are raging out-of-control and place the ‘guilt’ squarely on the shoulders of the biotech industry. Monsanto, Dupont and Dow (to name a few) have covered up the FACTS for too long. Genetically modified foods (GMO) crops are widely used in the United States, dominating millions of acres of U.S. farmland, and have also become popular in soybean and corn-growing regions of South America, but some other countries have been slower to adopt them.

Thousands of products on supermarket shelves are made with genetically modified organisms (GMOs). Companies that have fouled the planet with toxic chemicals are now manufacturing genetically modified food, which poses irreversible threats of biological pollution and a host of other risks.

Avoiding GM foods has not been made easier by the sham GMO labeling law, which allows companies to hide this information in scannable codes that very few people can actually use. Scientists now say that aggressive forms of GE corn, let loose in Oaxaca, may drive native species to extinction, causing the loss of irreplaceable cultivars.

Rats fed GMO potatoes had smaller livers, hearts, testicles and brains, damaged immune systems, and showed structural changes in their white blood cells making them more vulnerable to infection and disease compared to other rats fed non-GMO potatoes.

It got worse. Thymus and spleen damage showed up; enlarged tissues, including the pancreas and intestines; and there were cases of liver atrophy as well as significant proliferation of stomach and intestines cells that could be a sign of greater future risk of cancer. Equally alarming - this all happened after 10 days of testing, and the changes persisted after 110 days that's the human equivalent of 10 years.

The central question that dominated the minds of the ruling clique was population reduction in resource rich countries but the question was how to engineer mass culling all over the world without generating powerful backlash as it was bound to happen.

When the US oil reserves peaked in 1972 and it became a net oil importer, the situation became alarming and the agenda took the centre stage. Kissinger, one of the key strategists of Nixon, nurtured by the Rockefellers, prepared what is known as National Security Study Memo (NSSM#200), in which he elaborated his plan for population reduction. In this Memo he specifically targets thirteen countries: Bangladesh, Brazil, Colombia, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Nigeria, Pakistan, Turkey, Thailand, and The Phillipines.

The weapon to be used was food; even if there was a famine food would be used to leverage population reduction. Kissinger is on record for stating, “Control oil, you control nations; control food and you control the people.” How a small group of key people transformed the elitist philosophy, of controlling food to control people, into realistic operational possibility within a short time is the backdrop of Engdahl’s book, the central theme running from the beginning till the end with the Rockefellers and Kissinger, among others, as the key dramatis personae.

Organic crops at risk of Cross Pollination from GMO crops

Organic crops are being polluted with the pollen from gene-altered plants destroying the purity of organic The Wall Street Journal purchased and tested 20 products with labels that read "Non-GMO" or "GMO-Free." They found that 11 of the products had evidence of some GMOs and another 5 had even higher levels of contamination.

Virtually all of the products currently sold that are labeled Non-GMO or GMO-Free are made with organic ingredients. Since organic crops are suppose to be free from genetic engineering, you would think that organic products would be able to safely make the claim of Non-GMO or GMO-Free. Unfortunately, with over 70 million acres of genetically engineered crops planted in the United States, organic crops are being polluted with the pollen from these gene-altered plants destroying the purity of organics.

News from around the world: Year 1999

• The British Medical Association is calling for a moratorium on transgenic plantings.
• In April, the seven largest grocery chains in six European countries made a public commitment to go "GE free"--to eliminate genetically engineered ingredients from their products and stores.
• The Pope is warning of ethical implications.
• 1300 UK schools have banned these foods from their cafeterias.
• The European Union is demanding segregation and labeling of all GE imports.
• Austria is fighting to be a biotech-free zone.

Genetically Engineered Foods Destroying Your Gut Flora

The American Academy of Environmental Medicine (AAEM) urges doctors to prescribe non-GMO diets for all patients. They cite animal studies showing microbiome bacterial imbalance, organ damage, gastrointestinal and immune system disorders, accelerated aging, and infertility.

Dr. Don Huber, an agricultural scientist and expert in microbial ecology, has issued stern warnings about shockingly devastating effects of genetically engineered food crops after discovering a brand new organism in GE animal feed—an organism that has since been clearly linked to infertility and miscarriage in cattle, horses, pigs, sheep, and poultry.

Feeding GM food soaked in Monsanto’s Roundup causes liver and kidney problems, fertility issues, tumors, fatigue, paralysis, allergic reactions, and more in animal studies. Now it appears that some GMO foods may be perforating your stomach as well.

Over the years, modern medicine has become increasingly aware of the importance of gut microbes to the point that probiotics supplements have been shown, in good scientific studies, to improve treatment of various medical conditions, while also reducing side effects of needed medications, such as antibiotics. Additionally, modern medical practice now uses a procedure called fecal transplantation for individuals whose gut biota have been disrupted by a deadly bacterial species, and the treatment has saved lives.

Foods from crops grown from genetically modified seeds in which farmers also used the herbicide glyphosate disrupts intestinal microbiota, the community of numerous friendly bacteria that live in our gut, consisting of trillions of single celled organisms.

The FDA Ignored Their Scientists Warning

The Food and Drug Administration policy on genetically modified organisms (GMOs), released in 1992, falsely claims that the agency had no information showing that GM foods are substantially different. Thousands of secret memos later made public by a lawsuit reveal just the opposite. FDA scientists repeatedly warned of possible allergies, toxins, new diseases, and nutritional problems; they urged long-term safety studies. But the FDA official in charge of policy was Michael Taylor, Monsanto's former attorney, later their vice president, and now the US Food Safety Czar.

The FDA ignored their scientists, and doesn't require a single safety test. Instead, companies such as Monsanto, which have been found guilty of hiding toxic effects of their other products, get to decide if their GMOs are safe for us to eat. And the superficial studies they do conduct are widely criticized as rigged to avoid finding problems. Monsanto's former vice president, Michael Taylor, is our nation's food safety authority as Deputy Commissioner for Food at the FDA. And to think he is only one of many other former private sector biotech and pharmaceutical employees who have risen to the bureaucrat arena is a very serious matter.

Altered Genes, Twisted Truth clearly demonstrates how political and corporate considerations may trump science not only in our federal agencies, but even in the ivory towers of research science. This unhappy and, until now, largely unpublicized, saga therefore has implications far beyond agriculture or genetics. Author Steven Druker points out, with ample documentation, how for at least the past three decades, the public has been exposed to a facade of reassurance, while dissenting voices, however expert, experienced or distinguished, have been shunted aside, spurned, and even smeared.

Today the Emperor’s clothes have surely been strewn about the landscape where genetically engineered foods are concerned, and those who doubt this need only follow the carefully documented steps in Altered Genes, Twisted Truth to comprehend the accuracy of this title.

May 2009 - Germany Bans Genetically Modified Corn

Germany has now become the sixth country in the European Union to take a stand against GM corn -- a wise move that unfortunately the United States has yet to do.Whereas close to 9,000 acres slated to be planted with MON 810 corn in Germany will now be GM-free (assuming the ban stands up in court if necessary), the acres to be planted with GM corn in the U.S. is in the tens of millions.German Agriculture Minister Ilse Aigner announced she was banning not only the cultivation of GM corn but also the sale of its seeds, saying she had “legitimate reasons to believe that MON 810 posed a danger to the environment."

Related: Monsanto's GMO Corn Linked To Organ Failure, Study Reveals

Genetically Modified Corn Spreading to Protected Wild Corn

Wayward genes from genetically modified corn that is widely grown in Canada and the United States are spreading in remote mountainous regions of Mexico. Up to 70% of wild Mexican maize now carries transgenes that could only have come from genetically engineered crops. The transgenes, which scientists borrow from viruses and bacteria, have been engineered into GM crops. The spread of altered genes in the birthplace of domesticated corn is particularly worrisome when one considers some of the crops being engineered in the lab with anti-spermicidal properties, which might have disastrous consequences if it ever spread to food crops. We were not supposed to see these moving around in the environment.

In September, 2001, scientists discovered genetically engineered (GE) corn at 15 locations in the state of Oaxaca, deep in southern Mexico, a country that has outlawed the commercial use of all genetically engineered crops. No one knows how it got there.

In the US, genetically engineered corn has been grown commercially since 1996 and 26 percent of all US corn acreage is now genetically engineered. The remote region of Oaxaca where the illegal GE corn was discovered is considered the heartland of corn diversity in the world. Scientists had hoped to keep Oaxaca's rich diversity of corn uncontaminated by GE strains because Oaxaca retains the wealth of genetic varieties developed during 5500 years of indigenous corn cultivation.

Scientists now say that aggressive forms of GE corn, let loose in Oaxaca, may drive native species to extinction, causing the loss of irreplaceable cultivars. It is unclear whether the GE corn was carried deep into Mexico by birds, or was intentionally spread there by corporations or governments promoting GE crops. Genetic drift of GE crops to non-GE fields has, in fact, been well documented and even the GE corporations and their regulators in government acknowledge that it is a serious problem. Now, however, Monsanto, a leading supplier of GE seeds, has cleverly turned the tables on the alleged victims of genetic pollution by suing them for stealing Monsanto's patented genes.

The purpose of patenting seeds is to prevent seed saving -- the ancient indigenous practice of keeping seeds from this year's crop to grow next year's crop. Farmers who purchase GE seeds sign contracts requiring -- under penalty of law -- that they not save seed from one crop to the next. Thus farmers who employ GE seeds must purchase new seed year after year, making them dependent upon whatever transnational corporation owns the patent. Farmers who can't afford to buy seed each year will simply not be allowed to grow a crop. In free-market societies, such displaced farmers are free to move to a city where they are free to be unemployed.

Terminator genes prevent a crop from reproducing itself

Today's GE crops can't guarantee that farmers won't save seeds. Corporations intent on preventing seed-saving must hire agents to travel from farm to farm, reporting any unlicensed crops. Such monitoring is expensive.To avoid the need for monitoring, and to gain 100 percent control over farmers, the GE corporations have developed a new technology -- terminator genes. Terminator genes prevent a crop from reproducing itself unless certain "protector" chemicals are applied to the crop.

Any farmer using terminator seeds must buy the "protector" chemicals each year. As terminator technology spreads around the world, it will end indigenous agriculture, and much biodiversity as well. An estimated 1.4 billion indigenous people currently grow their own crops for subsistence, worldwide. In many instances, their land is being eyed for corporate "development" and GE crop technology offers a legal way to separate indigenous people from their land.

Related: GMO Myths and Truths Report

November 11, 2009 Monsanto Withdraws High Lysine GM Maize from Europe

In June 2002 the European Union banned imports of Canadian honey because Canadian producers cannot guarantee their honey is free of pollen from GM plants not yet approved by the EU. "This action by the EU has driven down domestic honey prices in Canada and cost the industry a market that has on average earned more than $5.3-million over the past decade," Peter Phillips, an agricultural economist, and his colleagues at the University of Saskatchewan say in a paper that is part of the journal's special report on GM plants and trees.

CONGRESS BLINDFOLDS CONSUMERS- REMOVING RIGHT TO KNOW WHAT'S IN YOUR FOOD

Senate Poised to Pass Bill Taking Away Your Right to Know What's in Your Food

On March 8, 2006, despite massive public opposition, including 50,000 calls and letters from supporters of the Organic Consumers Association, the House of Representatives passed the controversial "national food uniformity" labeling law, which would eliminate over 200 state food safety labeling laws. The law basically takes away local government and states' power to require food safety labels such as those required in California and other states on foods or beverages that are likely to cause cancer, birth defects, allergic reactions, or mercury poisoning. The bill would also prevent local municipalities and states from passing laws requiring that genetically engineered foods and ingredients be labeled. Under the bill, hundreds of state laws and regulations would be eliminated, including those relating to the safety of milk, fish, and shellfish. In order to become law, the bill will now have to go to the Senate for a vote. Because of the enormous public backlash against the bill, Washington analysts believe the bill will have great difficulty passing in the Senate. Organic Consumers Association and other public interest organizations have vowed to go "all out" to stop this anti-democratic, anti-consumer bill in the Senate.

Could there really be lies and Deception?

"My journey down the rabbit hole began with the following thought: “What if nothing is as it seems, and everything I have been told is a lie.” This thought kept rolling around in my head until I was compelled to act. I started dissecting every scrap of information I heard on the news, and went to the Internet to do my research.

What I found was that I had indeed been lied to, and was going to continue to be lied to by the mainstream media because it is bought and paid for by large multi-national corporations who do not want us to know the truth behind genetically modified terminator seeds, or anything else of importance. We are mere consumers. The heads of these multi-national corporations, whose only goal is to make money, are bleeding Americans dry.

We the people are expendable. Until we realize that, we will continue to act as if nothing is wrong until we get flushed down the toilet. Our country is being sold piece by piece to the highest bidder by a few powerful elites who have turned our economic system into an all-out grab for money and power, man the torpedoes, full steam ahead! A declaration of war on the American people has been declared, and we are in for the fight of our lives."

Ecological Risks of Engineered Crops

What will it mean to have a steady stream of animal and microbial genes entering the gene pools of plants in wild ecosystems? Private companies and the federal government are pouring significant resources into biotechnology, and the major application of genetic engineering to agriculture is transgenic crops. This carefully reasoned science and policy assessment shows that the commercialization and release of transgenic crops on millions of acres of farmland can pose serious -- and costly -- environmental risks.

Could Monsanto Be Responsible for One Indian Farmer's Death Every Thirty Minutes?

Over the past decade, millions of Indian farmers have been promised radically increased harvests and income if they switch from their traditional age tested farming methods to genetically modified (GM) Bt cotton seeds. So, they borrow money to buy GM seeds, which need certain pesticides, which requires more money. And when rain fall is sparse, the GM crops fare far worse than traditional crops – a fact that these farmers oftentimes don't learn until it's too late and they're standing there with failed crops, spiraling debts, and no income. Monsanto has been ruthless in their drive to use India as a testing ground for genetically modified crops, and it gives us a very clear picture of what could be in store for the rest of the world's small farmers if they're allowed to continue.

Making matters worse, these GM seeds also contain “suicide genes” that render the seeds from this year's crop useless. They simply won't grow, so you cannot save them to plant for your next season's harvest – a traditional farming method that's been used since the dawn of farming itself. This means farmers are forced to buy the patented seeds and fertilizer again and again, every year. But that's not all. BT resistant pests and Roundup tolerant superweeds are on the rise, rendering the two major GM crop traits useless as well. The evolution of BT resistant bollworms worldwide have now been confirmed and documented. The end result is that farmers are left with all of the downsides and none of the intended benefits.

PROFESSOR CANNED FOR RELEASING PAPER ON GE CONTAMINATION

A well-respected and popular professor at the University of California in Berkeley has been fired after publishing a scientific paper regarding the uncontrolled contamination of irreplaceable native Mexican corn varieties by genetically engineered corn. Dr. Ignacio Chapela, whose corn contamination article was published in the science journal "Nature," was denied his tenure due to pressure from the biotech company Monsanto on the University (the UC Berkeley tenure review panel had actually voted almost unanimously to approve his tenure). Professor Chapela has been told to have his office cleaned out by December 31.

Biotech corporations like Monsanto and Novartis are pursuing these technologies to boost sales of their patented crops and related products, despite the threats posed by these risky genetic experiments. Consumers will buy the products because they have no choice: by opposing warning labels, these companies are eliminating the consumer's ability to make informed purchasing decisions. Families concerned about their health and environment are increasingly turning to organic food as a safer alternative and supporting ecological farming.

Biotechnology and the Corporate Takeover of Your Food

"In only 150 pages, "Against the Grain" debunks many of the myths surrounding biotechnology and the genetic engineering that is revolutionizing US (and world) agriculture.One of the myths which "Against the Grain" debunks is the claim that genetically engineered crops are aimed at feeding the hungry of the world. As "Against the Grain" quite lucidly points out, if genetically engineered crops were aimed at feeding the hungry of the world then companies like Monsanto would develop seeds with certain characteristics such as: the ability to grow in substandard soils; the ability for plants to produce more protein, with increased per-acre yield, without increasing the need for expensive machinery, chemicals, fertilizer or water; they would aim to favor small farms over large farms; seeds would be cheap and freely available without restrictive licensing; they would be for crops that feed people, not animals.

None of the genetically engineered crops now available have any of these characteristics. In fact new genetically engineered seeds require high-quality soils, huge investment in machinery and an increased use of chemicals.As "Against the Grain" so adeptly illustrates, the genetic engineering revolution has nothing to do with feeding the world's hungry but everything to do with enriching a privileged few.

"There is no need for GM (genetically modified) crops; no one wants them, not famine-stricken African nations, and very possibly, not even the biotech corporations themselves, judging from the spectacular cutbacks and spin-outs of agricultural biotechnology and major retreats from funding academic research over the past year." Dr. Mae Wan-Ho, Institute for Science and Society www.i-is.org.uk 1/14/03

Protect the Future of Our Food Supply and Organic Food

Demand regulation of genetically engineered crops to protect the future of our food supply. Genetically engineered crops are pervasive polluters. The National Academy of Sciences reported that GE crops cannot be contained with current regulation and that the spread of GE genes causes environmental harm. The Union of Concerned Scientists Found widespread contamination of crops with GE genes. This is unacceptable and dangerous. . There must be regulations in place to ensure that all GE crops are appropriately monitored.

Hidden Dangers in Kids' Meals

An interview with Jeffrey M. Smith, footage of scientists, and a look at the miraculous improvement in student behavior that accompanied a change in diet at a Wisconsin school. Also included is a lecture by Smith on "The Health Dangers of Genetically Engineered Foods and Their Cover-up." --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Jeffrey M. Smith is the director of the Institute for Responsible Technology and is one of the world's leading advocates against GM foods. His book Seeds of Deception is rated the number one book on the subject and has had a substantial influence on public perception and even legislation. Smith has reached tens of millions of people through hundreds of media interviews. He produced the video Hidden Dangers in Kids' Meals, and also writes a popular monthly syndicated column. He is on the Genetic Engineering Committee of the Sierra Club, was the former vice president of marketing for a GMO detection laboratory, and ran for U.S. Congress in his home state of Iowa to raise public awareness of the health and environmental dangers of GM foods.

Genetically Altered Food: Buyer Beware

Why are we so uninformed while European consumers are up in arms and their governments are taking swift action against the uncontrolled introduction of genetically modified foods?

Mention genetically altered foods to most Americans, and you will get a blank stare. A genetically cloned sheep has stolen the headlines. Yet with each passing day, we are filling our grocery carts with these foods in ever-increasing percentages without our knowledge or consent.

In Europe, shiploads of these products have been halted at borders. Supermarket chains and food producers have banned these products from their shelves or promised consumers that they will label these foods conspicuously. In fact, several nations are enacting stringent labeling requirements. Learn what is at the core of the fear about these new foods...

HEALTH-JAPAN: No Genetically-Altered Food Please

A growing number of Japanese consumers are up in arms against the imports of genetically modified food products, which are not subject to labeling despite their easy availability here.

Despite assurances from the government, consumers' groups say these products could be hazardous to health and carry serious environmental implications.

''The Japanese are being used as guinea pigs by rich countries and their corporations in the experiment of expanding genetically modified food,'' says Setsuko Yasuda of the Consumer Union of Japan. ''But the message from us is: Stop.''

GeneWatch

The Council for Responsible Genetics (CRG), founded in 1983, is a national free organization of scientists, public health advocates and others which monitors the development of new genetic technologies and advocates for their responsible use. CRG works in the area of human genetics and commercial biotechnology and the environment. CRG programs foster informed public debate about the social, ethical and environmental implications of these genetic technologies through educational materials, position papers, model legislation, and a bi-monthly publication GeneWatch.

Genetic foods may pose risk to human health

Genetically-engineered foods can cause potentially lethal reactions, according to a scientific report announced early this spring. The study confirmed for the first time that transferring genes to modify foods posed a risk to human health.

In tests conducted at the University of Nebraska and reported in the New England Journal of Medicine, researchers found that soybeans modified with genes from Brazil nuts produced proteins that resulted in extreme, potentially deadly allergic reactions in people sensitive to the nuts.

A British researcher questions safety of genetically altered food. British research released on Monday says genetically modified potatoes can damage the immune systems of rats and calls into question the safety of the new food technology.

Royal Viewpoint on GM crops

The Prince of Wales (AKA Prince Charles) Views on Genetically modified (GM) Crop
Excerpts from Prince Charles' web site

"I personally have no wish to eat anything produced by genetic modification, nor do I knowingly offer this sort of produce to my family or guests."

"Once genetic material has been released into the environment it cannot be recalled. The likelihood of a major problem may, as some people suggest, be slight, but if something does go badly wrong we will be faced with the problem of clearing up a kind of pollution which is self-perpetuating. I am not convinced that anyone has the first idea of how this could be done, or indeed who would have to pay."

"We are told that GM crops will require less use of agro-chemicals. Even if this is true, it is certainly not the whole story. What it fails to take into account is the total ecological and social impact of the farming system. For example, most of the GM plants marketed so far contain genes from bacteria which make them resistant to a broad spectrum weedkiller available from the same manufacturer. When the crop is sprayed with this weedkiller, every other plant in the field is killed. The result is an essentially sterile field, providing neither food nor habitat for wildlife. These GM crop plants are capable of interbreeding with their wild relatives, creating new weeds with built-in resistance to the weedkiller, and of contaminating other crops. Modified genes from a crop of GM rape were found to have spread into a conventional crop more than a mile away. The result is that both conventional and organic crops are under threat, and the threat is one-way."

"GM crop plants are also being developed to produce their own pesticide. This is predicted to cause the rapid appearance of resistant insects. Worse still, such pesticide-producing plants have already been shown to kill some beneficial predator insects as well as pests. To give just two examples, inserting a gene from a snowdrop into a potato made the potato resistant to greenfly, but also killed the ladybirds feeding on the greenfly. And lacewings, a natural predator of the corn borer and food for farmland birds, died when fed on pest insects raised on GM maize."

"We are also told that GM techniques will help to 'feed the world'. This is a fundamental concern to all of us. But will the companies controlling these techniques ever be able to achieve what they would regard as a sufficient return from selling their products to the world's poorest people? Nor do I believe that the basic problem is always so simple. Where the problem is lack of food, rather than lack of money to buy food, there may be better ways of achieving the same ends. Recent research has shown, for example, that yields from some traditional farming systems can be doubled, and even trebled, through techniques that conserve natural resources while making the best use of labor and management skills."