An unprecedented flurry of bipartisan activity followed the July 1 implementation of Vermont’s genetically modified (GM) food labeling law. Superseding individual state laws (which would have brought chaos to the food industry), a national GMO labeling law passed both houses in just a week. The president will probably have signed it by the time you read this.
Big victory for the anti-GMO forces, right? And defeat for those of us who think GMO labeling makes as much sense as the mandatory labeling of food containing DNA. (Which 80 percent of Americans think would be a good idea, according to an Oklahoma State University study. Sigh.) But it’s not that simple.
For one thing, the phrase “genetically modified” is ambiguous. Take cheese, 90 percent of which is produced with artificial rennet, the stuff that curdles milk. It used to be extracted from the stomach lining of calves but modern rennet is now synthesized using genetic engineering. However, artificial rennet doesn’t actually contain GMOs, so should it come under the new labeling system? Similarly, should refined soy oil or beet sugar made from GMO crops but not actually containing genetically modified protein or DNA be labeled? How about “secondhand” GMOs, such as meat from livestock raised on genetically modified corn and soy? Looks like all these will be excluded but legal challenges are in the wings.
Then there’s “radiation breeding,” in which the seeds of fruits and vegetables are bombarded with X-rays to yield mutations, such as the popular Rio Red grapefruit. Such artificial mutations are excluded from the new bill, as are foods modified with the CRISPR technique, which allows individual genes to be “switched off.” (That’s how breeders created non-bruising white button mushrooms.) Isn’t that genetic modification? Nope, it’s genetic “editing” — doesn’t count. Sort of like telling fruits and plants they can play with themselves, but don’t get it on with each other.
At this point, it’s a bit of a crapshoot what’s in and what’s out. What’s worse for labeling advocates — actually, for everyone, since it looks right out of the “conspiracy theory” playbook — is that a QR or quick response code can substitute for the words “Produced with genetic engineering.” And for smaller manufacturers, just a phone number or web address does the trick.
Of course, simply stating that ingredients in a foodstuff have been created by genetic engineering, as a July 14 Vox commentary put it, “is about as informative to the consumer as whether a car part was made by robots or human workers.” Any potentially useful information (Does the use of genetic engineering for this food reduce pesticide use? Has it only been adopted for cosmetic purposes? How much of the contents have been modified? Does it affect vitamin content?) is missing.
So we’re left in a messy middle ground. If you have a smartphone and the time, you’ll be able to tell if what you’re buying contains GM ingredients — at least according to a vague definition. But there’s no context, just the (unjustified) stigma. Is it too much to hope that some good will come of all this kerfuffle? On average, each of us ingests nearly 200 pounds of GMO food every year. Maybe all this labeling will force us into realizing that, as the FDA insists, “genetically engineered foods don’t present greater safety concerns than foods developed by traditional plant breeding,” and some balance about GMOs will prevail.
Barry Evans (barryevans9@yahoo.com) is so ready to move on from the GMO controversy.
This article appears in Best of Humboldt 2016.
UPDATE: Prez signed into law July 29.
Hi Barry! GMO everything is monopoly monster madness mergers mounting…yes it is only getting way worse with GMO super weeds crisis global crisis new mega new GMO super poison
Pesticides to try and control super weeds by GMO… All the SCI-FI horror shows of wacko weird fake foods products are pumping out of GMO labs faster than you can have massive nightmares about fake foods full of poisons… New editions and renditions churning. This is not going away anytime soon.
The worst of the worst world order secret global corporate gov pacts from hell, the TPP – TRANS PACIFIC PARTNERSHIP pact from hell is hostile coup by over 666 mega multinational corporations buying our national, state, county and city legal sovereignty from WA, DC criminals politicos willing to sell USA and our planet Earth out and destroy everything for pennies on the $billions and $trillions for their owners profiteers MONSANTO and others.
Many millions of people around the world and 90% of USA citizens oppose GMOs. USA is part of 7 massive events been held, GLOBAL MARCHES AGAINST MONSANTO…and all the nations where GAFTA and NATT filthy dirty trade deals with MONSANTO corp invading INDIA taking over lands and farms and wiping out the local healthy heirloom organic crops the indigenous farmers have been successfully growing for centuries. This ever unfolding heart wrenching story of horrors of India’s farmers wiped out SOOO stolen lives. Over 300,000 farmers have committed suicides because their ability to farm traditionally has been stolen! This is just one of the horror stories from other nations! This is the GLOBAL nightmare come out of Clinton’s GAFTA NATT sick deals for HRC’s big cronies client and campaign manager MONSANTO corp owns HRC since a young bitch lawyer! MSM does not cover the GLOBAL MARCHES AGAINST MONSANTO with mega millions of people so strong and articulate and boldly courageous! USA gov is sabotaging our common will and good and driving our standards into the darkest dumpster. Traitors.
We are getting screwed while RUSSIA bans all GMO and Russian AG is heirloom certified organic
With happy pollinators of all kinds. 70 nations either outright BAN GMOS or require GMO full disclosures on labels. 70 nations OUTSIDE the USA.
Much evidence for 20 years that over 90% of us USA citizens demand TRUTH on labels, every ingredient. What do we get? Nothing. We have demanded full disclosures of BIG CHEM poison PETRO fertilizers, fungicides, herbicides, pesticides. The vast majority of USA citizens are on record for TOTAL BANS on EVERYTHING GMO. We want to be honest articulate adults DAMM it and claim the best standards in the world, not the worst which is what WA, DC 90% whores for the 1% poison PETRO corporations BIG AG BIZ committing crimes against humanity, the rights of heirloom organic nature and all living things.
This GMO issue just keeps on expanding with USA big gov who DO NOT CARE!
We do not get to vote. the deep secret global gov, by, for and of the corporations. We really must engage with our leaders globally and in USA for in depth full circle community awareness of this war on our health and safety that has polluted our planet egregiously so that killer Roundup ingredient, glyphosate is everywhere and part of climate crisis and it all rolls down into our sick oceans.
Good comparison is our fake corrupt democracy for decades bursting broken big time reality TV casino circus crimes on steroids, fixed, rigged, tampered, manipulated, illegal, immoral, most obscenely overpriced ripoff poison 2016 presidential frauds elections in human history… What we got is the two most untrustworthy unpopular candidates ever. Like Julian Assange said who he would choose, said something went viral, “the choice is between cholera and syphilis. No choice!”
Please expand way beyond MSM gov news! Many wonderful USA alternative true news reporting, movies, books, foundations, forensic testing for purity and potentcy,
1. Health Ranger Mike Adams and http://www.naturalnews.com… Check out all the articles and searches, GMO madness.
2. http://www.drmercola.com
3. ELIZABETH KUCINICH Foundation in WA, DC is the core of truth and light regards horrors of GMOs. Many leaders connected in our movement do explain this very evil complicated issue.
And is major source of information regards Regenerative AG transition of crops and pasture lands to Heirloom Certified Organic… The Problems AND the solutions! We are the walkers and talkers in the NEW EARTH uniting to transform our collective consciousness from empire based to earth based. Stop watching MSM and computer games and Help bring this foundation’s light into our Humboldt community now!
4. Get the documentary movie “CONSUMED” award winning…
This is a conflict between real and fake.
Please make this a BIG cover story soon! I am glad our county was able to say no on a ballot to GMO, but we should be very wary about the corporations scamming to make GMO marijuana
working away in their mad scientist labs on all kinds of ways… Will GMO marijuana be way bigger than real heirloom marijuana?… Like GMO Salmon is on steroids. There are no doubt all kinds of weird seeds strains invading Humboldt with thousands upon thousands of illegal super grows by big greed heads for recreational MJ without any of our Medicinal Marijuana local heirloom organic strict standards. We are AG and we are being invaded. MONSANTO wants to own every seed strain on earth and they buy up every good old heirloom organic seeds companies they can buy for decades. They take all the seeds and put them in their vaults and hide them so GMO patented corporate owned seeds/plants that cannot reproduce fertile seeds..
And that brings us to the wild subject of real and fake seeds in our human dilemma. OY VAY my garden home is under SEIGE!
Well, I have left my comments at length. But your NCJ posting of comments system… After I posted… Your system posted my comments with a bright yellow frame border line… And a tag sign on top said, “Hold for 5 minutes to edit or delete”.
What’s up? I posted some very vital important sources for community edification about big global crisis with GMO everything!
I hope my comments content is NOT deleted!
Does your comments posting system ONLY allow a maximum of so many characters?
It did not state any limits before or after my pressing POST.
I will send this my 2nd comments post and seen what happens.
Barry, now we know Glyphosate is being applied to the Lanphere Dunes,
seems that it is worth a mention, as in what the hell is going on with
HSU and why the sheer cowardice in reporting?