posted June 22, 2010 10:40 AM         

To GMO or not to GMO?

No, it’s not a social networking site or a new dance. It stands for “genetically modified organisms” and if you’re like most Americans, you probably don't know what it means or that many of the foods you eat contain GMOs.

Food marketers are trying to change that. By the fall, as many as 200 products — including Nature’s Path, Lundberg Family Farms and Earth Balance — will hit store shelves carrying a new “Non-GMO Project” food label, certifying that an independent lab has tested and confirmed the product contains no bioengineered ingredients.

Whole Foods will roll out an in-store educational campaign backed by Web site articles and newsletters — touting non-GMO foods.

“The public is becoming more aware,” says Libba Letton, spokeswoman for the 297-store chain. “Consumers are wanting to be educated about it and wanting to make informed choices.”

While labeling of genetically modified food is common overseas, especially in Europe, it is practically unheard of in the United States, where big agricultural producers long have argued that such products are no different than traditional crops.

“There is no inkling of anything that says it’s not safe,” says Sharon Bomer, the Biotechnology Industry Association’s executive vice president for food and agriculture.

GMOs first appeared in 1995, and today bioengineered seeds are used in 81 percent of corn crops, 91 percent of soybean crops and 95 percent of sugar beet crops. Genetically modified foods are used in most processed foods and as feedstock for most cattle and chickens.

Unlike traditional crops, genetically modified seeds have been engineered — either by inserting or deleting genes — generally to produce their own insecticide or resist weed-killing herbicides.

Seed makers say bioengineered crops help farmers reduce the use of pesticides, increase crop yields and ultimately benefit the soil. An industry-backed website promotes the value of biotechnology in food, drugs and other products.

Yet consumers are showing increasing interest in GMO-free foods.

Sales of products with “GMO-free” claims on their package labels grew 11.9 percent to $787 million over the past year, according to the Nielsen Co., which tracks consumer purchases. That’s small compared to the $26.6 billion organic food industry and the $284.1 billion overall grocery store food market. Yet GMO-free is now the fastest-growing health and wellness claim touted by private store labels.

Environmental and some consumer groups argue that not enough research has been done on genetically modified crops to fully understand the long-term health and ecosystem effects. Unlike some other countries, the United States does not require any pre-market approval process for new foods before they're sold.

“There are lots of unanswered questions because there is no requirement for human safety testing,” says Michael Hansen, a senior scientist at the Consumers Union. European animal studies have shown a link between GMO food and asthma, allergy intestinal damage and other conditions. The biotechnology industry refutes those studies, however.

In fact, shoppers should be able to avoid GMOs simply by buying organic food, which by U.S. law must be produced without any bioengineered ingredients. But organic and natural food makers worry about cross-pollination of their crops through wind drift or insects as genetically modified crops have proliferated.

The organic industry’s answer: the Non-GMO Project, a third-party labeling and verification program to test and certify there has been no GM contamination.

The Upland, Calif.-based group, funded by retailers and organic and natural food producers, has created a 40-page list of best practices to avoid GMO contamination, such as labeling and keeping track of tested ingredients and cleaning processing equipment properly.

posted June 22, 2010 10:59 AM         

quote:

---

But organic and natural food makers worry about cross-pollination of their crops through wind drift or insects as genetically modified crops have proliferated.

---

posted June 24, 2010 12:55 PM         

"Food Inc." and "Eating"
are also terrific educational docs