Let's Talk GMOs

I wouldn't be doing this blog justice if I didn't discuss the specifics of GMOs--the dangers and health concerns, consequences felt by our farmers, and the potential future repercussions we might be facing if we don't change things. I have listed some quick facts, mostly gathered from OrganicConsumers.org: 

1: You have been eating GMOs since 1996, when GMOs were first introduced in processed foods.


2: GMOs involve the insertion of genes into the DNA of things like corn, soybean, cotton seed, and tomatoes. These genes can come from bacteria and viruses, which is new to the human food supply. 


3: GMOs are not safe; studies on rats have linked GMOs to tumors in rats, and are thought to be related to allergenic and toxic reactions in livestock animals. 


You might be wondering why the FDA isn't protecting us if GMOs are actually bad for us, and unfortunately a lot of it seems to be politically driven. The position of the FDA on GMOs is skewed because a lot of support for political appointees comes from companies like Monsanto that obviously want to push the transparency of GMOs. Even FDA scientists have warned about the foggy consequences of GMOs and urge studies to be performed. Now, these biotech companies are in charge of polluting a majority of our food supply with GMOs because no one is regulating it! 


OrganicConsumers.org lists a couple of the reasons why these biotech companies are making GMOs:

1: These GMOs are being created in order to make the plants affected resistant to the company's herbicides. Soy, corn, cotton, and canola, the 4 biggest genetically modified crops, are engineered so that they won't die under otherwise fatal herbicide levels. According to OrganicConsumers.org, 68% of genetically modified crops are herbicide tolerant. 

2: The second "trait" of GMOs are their inherent pesticides. OrganicConsumers.org cites that 19% of genetically modified crops produce their own pesticide, while 13% produce a pesticide that is resistant to herbicides. 

One thing you might've taken from the video I posted from a previous post is that we seem to be the only country without this "right to know." Other countries have stuck their noses in the air and said "hell no" to the United State's effort to spread the usage of GMOs. In fact, when GMO soy was introduced in the UK, allergies to soy jumped 50%! When the concern hit its peak in Europe about GMOs in 1999, it only took one week to abandon the use of GMOs in major food manufacturers. ONE WEEK!

You should check out this neat interactive activity I found is on PBS.com where you can engineer your own GMO crops!