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Originally posted by Azred:
Oh for heaven's sakes!  Don't they have anything better about which to worry? Genetically modified food is no different than food grown naturally, except for the fact that maybe it contains more protien or vitamin content than the natural food. What's wrong with that?
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Need I mention the US Federal Circuit Court case involving ConAgra and the problems with StarLink corn. Or did you not notice that in 2000-2001 80% of yellow corn was pulled from the shelves in the US? Taco Bell put signs up apologizing for the white corn shells, saying they could not obtain yellow corn. A GM-corn that was for animal feed was allowed to have a low toxicity chemical engineered into it, the EPA blindly thinking only animals would eat the corn. The EPA was stupid for two reasons: (1) cross-breeding of corn, and (2) corn-handling practices (you cannot avoid commingling corn in shipping.) Several people got very sick. Farmers brought the lawsuit against ConAgra for contaminating their crops in N.C. (cross-breeding) and thereby ruining the value. They won. GM foods have some negative health and economic impacts.
But, let's assume it is the same. I can choose to avoid sugar if I like - that's on the label. It's my right to know what's in the products I buy. But, the government doesn't even allowed GM information to be put on the label. This is simply one instance of a strong industry owning the governmental regulators.
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Bardan Says:
We're not luddites over here. We're not anti-GM for some ephemeral reason - we simply want more concrete proof of it's safety, in terms of long term studies, withjout having it pushed down our throats *now* only to find out 20 years from now that we've been adversly affected.
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The fact that some one wants to take precaution until we know for sure is their right. I argue this way of approaching things is best. But, I'm a lawyer, and we a cautious by nature. However, when you argue this stuff must be good because *they* say so, just make sure you are aware of 2 things: (1) *they* have 1 goal - to sell the stuff, and (2) you are also making this decision for your children, and they may live with the consequences of your action.
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Wellard states:
What annoys me on a personal level is being a vegetarian for the last fifteen years because of the crap they put into meat as well as the way some animals are treated, I have made do with Soya replacements. Now this last year or so I am faced with the dilemma of the Soya I eat being genetically modified. Unmodified Soya and other products are becoming harder to find and with my failing health it really is starting to become a toss of the coin weather to give in or not.
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Good'day, fellow veggie. [img]graemlins/thumbsup.gif[/img] In the US, GM soy has been around for about 8 years. The only way to avoid it is to look for an organic label that does not certify GM food as "organic." It differs from brand to brand, so research them online. My favorite fake meat brand for taste is Morningstar Farms (Kellog's fastest-growing division 4 years running), but I don't think it is GM-free. I can ask my wife about what she buys and give you better info.
Epona's point about the right to choose is well-taken. Epona's point about the damages seen in testing is well-taken. Epona's point about the big business of patenting is well-taken, too. On that point, I'll note that when Monstanto patented BT soy and BT corn they took advantage of the fact they had more expertise than the US Patent and Trade Office (USPTO). They wrote their patents so broadly that they arguably own the patent on any possible genetic modification of the corn plant or the soy plant.
[ 03-18-2003, 07:32 PM: Message edited by: Timber Loftis ]