What is GMO?

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• Sankofa 12 years ago

  We do not need GM food in our country.
  
  We must stop the trials and dissolve the Biosafety Committee at once!

  We do not need GM food in our country.
  
  We must stop the trials and dissolve the Biosafety Committee at once!

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• IDRIS PACAS 12 years ago

  First, the biosafety committee cannot and never ordered the testing of GMOs in Ghana. Even where from these GMOs to be tested as this writer is claiming? To test and to grow GM crops, the agents require constitutional provisi ...
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  First, the biosafety committee cannot and never ordered the testing of GMOs in Ghana. Even where from these GMOs to be tested as this writer is claiming? To test and to grow GM crops, the agents require constitutional provisions to that effect. So, Mr Writer, kindly find out whether these people by law were allowed to suggest the testing of GM crops in Ghana. Your definition of GMO also clearly indicated that you need to read further to actually know what GMOs are. If you do this, your one-sided argument would probably never be so again.

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• K Amoako 12 years ago

  Your ideology is stronger than your knowledge. Please see: Ghana begins field trials for GM cotton and rice
  ghanabusinessnews.com/2013/08/01/ghana-begins-field-trials-for-gm-cotton-and-rice/
  The Biosafety Committee may hav ...
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  Your ideology is stronger than your knowledge. Please see: Ghana begins field trials for GM cotton and rice
  ghanabusinessnews.com/2013/08/01/ghana-begins-field-trials-for-gm-cotton-and-rice/
  The Biosafety Committee may have acted outside the limits defined in Ghana's Constitution, but it has acted to permit field trials of GM crops.
  Your comments sound like you are a paid agribusiness troll. This article is quite well informed.

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• Pelicles 12 years ago

  The United States is all about MONEY and nothing else. One day as I went to see my doctor for a routine check up, I asked him this question as to why cancer is too common in a country like the United States which is so advanc ...
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  The United States is all about MONEY and nothing else. One day as I went to see my doctor for a routine check up, I asked him this question as to why cancer is too common in a country like the United States which is so advance in anything and the simple reply he gave me was THE FOOD. He told me point blank that the food in the US is the number killer of her people.
  
  If our leaders make the mistake of accepting this GMO nonsense, that will be the end of our very existence on this earth.
  
  Let's grow our food the natural way no matter how tedious it is because we know what we are consuming rather than accepting something that has some hidden components that will, in the long run, summons death on us.
  
  Let's say NO TO GENETICALLY MODIFIED ORGASMS. If we become that foolish, reckless and damn stupid by accepting this GMO nonsense, we will dig our own graves and fall into it.

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• BRAVEBOY 12 years ago

  I have given you an article from Joyfm this week. Please read it and pay particular attention to the last but one paragraph.
  He said: “Let us embrace technologies but challenge ourselves about the negative technicalities ...
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  I have given you an article from Joyfm this week. Please read it and pay particular attention to the last but one paragraph.
  He said: “Let us embrace technologies but challenge ourselves about the negative technicalities that will emerge.”
  
  
  
  
  Genetic engineering will facilitate food security in Ghana - Biochemist
  
  From: Ghana l GNA Published On: August 18, 2013, 15:24 GMT
  
  
  Dr Yaa Difie Osei, a Biochemist and Molecular Biologist, has noted that the country is positioning itself to tap deep into the benefits of modern biotechnology and genetic engineering for guaranteed food security.
  
  She said structures including institutional and legal framework, human capacity development, goodwill among practicing partners, acceptance by Ministries, Departments and Agencies and governmental assent to the Bio-Safety Act (Act 831) of 2011, are motivating.
  
  Dr Difie-Osei made the observation at a day’s sensitisation workshop for farmers, farmer-based organisations and staff of Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA) in the southern and middle-belt of the Volta Region, in Ho.
  
  It was organised by the Open Forum on Agricultural Biotechnology in Africa (OFAB) under the auspices of the African Agricultural Technology Foundation and the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and the Planning Committee of OFAB.
  
  Dr Difie-Osei announced that the Crop Research Institute and Savanna Agricultural Research Institute of CSIR have begun studies into nitrogen efficient rice and Bt cotton.
  
  She said similar projects are being undertaken in Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Kenya and South Africa.
  
  Dr Difie-Osei said the targets set in the Millennium Development Goals including eradicating extreme hunger, poverty and disease, reducing child mortality and improving maternal health could be a mirage when biotechnology does not champion these dreams.
  
  She said genetic engineering could be a potential high-risk area like all other technologies, but the ability to tap into its positive sides under strict security regimes to provide the needs of humanity surmounts all skepticisms.
  
  Dr Margaret Ottah Atikpo, Chairperson of OFAB said genetic modified technology is the way-forward in the face of dwindling arable land sizes.
  
  She said the benefits of the technology include improved stock, higher yields, reduced farm costs, drought-resistant seeds, higher profits and nutritional properties and almost negligible post-harvest losses and increased shelf-life.
  
  Mr John Tsrakasu, Regional Director of MOFA urged experts to be open-minded about the intricacies of the technology and avoid being defensive.
  
  He said: “Let us embrace technologies but challenge ourselves about the negative technicalities that will emerge.”
  
  Togbe Afede XIV, Agbogbomefia of Asogli State in a speech read on his behalf, said science and technology is the vehicle of development in the 21st Century and appealed to scientists to partner chiefs to coin matching words for scientific terminologies for easy understanding.

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• Pelicles 12 years ago

  Science and technology is the way to go but we must be very careful. The multinational companies will not stop to throw whatever they have at us knowing too well we are not up to dig deep to ascertain the fact about whatever ...
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  Science and technology is the way to go but we must be very careful. The multinational companies will not stop to throw whatever they have at us knowing too well we are not up to dig deep to ascertain the fact about whatever product they are giving us.
  
  When the HIV virus came to the fore, we were told that it originated in Africa through our monkeys which was a bold face liar. Initially, some of us accepted but finally, the truth came out that it was a manmade disease done to eliminate some people from this planet.
  
  GMO is very bad because its side effects will outweigh it benefits.

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• BRAVEBOY 12 years ago

  We have always practiced agro-technology, it is just this time the science is very flawed and has serious consequences.
  There are others suggesting Agronomic and remember, Africa and indeed Ghana has half the world arable l ...
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  We have always practiced agro-technology, it is just this time the science is very flawed and has serious consequences.
  There are others suggesting Agronomic and remember, Africa and indeed Ghana has half the world arable lands,but because of bad economics, such as massive investment of land in cash crop production and land disputes, we do not get the best out of the land for ourselves. We have to go the safe option and not allow ourselves to be used as guinea pigs.
  Japan has a very large population per square,but it is Africa that needs to reduce her population because we are judged in the west to be a worst of space on our own continent.

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• Kojo T 12 years ago

  Gregor Mendel the father of hereditary performed these experiments some time ago. GMO is we know it today has become too radical.We can still produce disease resistant strains without the GMO method and have higher yields thr ...
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  Gregor Mendel the father of hereditary performed these experiments some time ago. GMO is we know it today has become too radical.We can still produce disease resistant strains without the GMO method and have higher yields through natural selection methods. true food is the main cause but we indeveloping countries accept anything. Do you remember the thalidomide episode in the 60s when kids were born with no limbs . Our medication is also suspect. We need more research that we are doing now

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• BRAVEBOY 12 years ago

  Very true.

  Very true.

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• BRAVEBOY 12 years ago

  The number of people who have read your article shows why I always say Ghanaians are not proactive and thus the problem.
  
  Our leaders sell us for peanuts because we are not watchful.
  A law has been pasted quietly and no ...
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  The number of people who have read your article shows why I always say Ghanaians are not proactive and thus the problem.
  
  Our leaders sell us for peanuts because we are not watchful.
  A law has been pasted quietly and no one knows it. It means you can not destroy a GMO plantation without getting jailed.
  
  Please try and sent your article to JoyFM or citifmonline, Radioxyznews that is how it gets the attention.

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• CY 12 years ago

  What Law?

  What Law?

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• BRAVEBOY 12 years ago

  Do I have to check everything for you?

  Do I have to check everything for you?

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• BRAVEBOY 12 years ago

  ''Ghana has Legislative Instrument which came into force in May 2008 allowing research into GM crops. The Biosafety Act, 2011 (Act 831) empowers Ghana to allow the application of biotechnology in food crop production involvin ...
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  ''Ghana has Legislative Instrument which came into force in May 2008 allowing research into GM crops. The Biosafety Act, 2011 (Act 831) empowers Ghana to allow the application of biotechnology in food crop production involving GMOs to enter into food production. It ensures an adequate level of production in the field of safe development transfer, handling and use of GMOs that are pharmaceuticals for human use, and which are the subject of any other enactment. It also establishes a transparent and predictable process to review and make decisions on specified GMOs that were pharmaceutical for human use''

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• BRAVEBOY 12 years ago

  corrections... 'Let's' and not 'lets' in the heading and 'passed' instead of 'pasted' in the main comment.

  corrections... 'Let's' and not 'lets' in the heading and 'passed' instead of 'pasted' in the main comment.

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• King David 12 years ago

  Thank you, FSG. You're doing great for mother Ghana. Sadly, not many will read this article, though we all need the info.
  
  I think radio & TV education will help very much. Also, the policy makers need this education.
  
  W ...
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  Thank you, FSG. You're doing great for mother Ghana. Sadly, not many will read this article, though we all need the info.
  
  I think radio & TV education will help very much. Also, the policy makers need this education.
  
  We have our own problems here in Gh and cannot add the long-term effects of GM to them.

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• King David 12 years ago

  Dr Yaa, you were misleading all Gh in yesterday's article(1). This article by FSG is the truth. GM is not good. The long-term effects are to bad.
  
  Tell me, only me, Dr. Yaa, how mu¢h did they give you? Your secret is safe ...
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  Dr Yaa, you were misleading all Gh in yesterday's article(1). This article by FSG is the truth. GM is not good. The long-term effects are to bad.
  
  Tell me, only me, Dr. Yaa, how mu¢h did they give you? Your secret is safe with me.
  
  (1) ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/artikel.php?ID=282991&comment=0#com

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• BRAVEBOY 12 years ago

  There's a big war going on in the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) because the proponents of GMO have so much cash from their foreign counterparts who can not get to use their parent lands for the researc ...
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  There's a big war going on in the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) because the proponents of GMO have so much cash from their foreign counterparts who can not get to use their parent lands for the research and growth and have turned to Africa and Ghana to use us as guinea pigs. But our leaders......?

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• Kojo Billy Duncan 12 years ago

  This has always been the strategy of the multinational companies. Induce the intelligentsia with funds and get them to do your bidding. These people will throw patriotism to the dogs. They never realize that their paymasters ...
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  This has always been the strategy of the multinational companies. Induce the intelligentsia with funds and get them to do your bidding. These people will throw patriotism to the dogs. They never realize that their paymasters look at them disdainfully.

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• Ian Falcon Bentley 12 years ago

  Excellent article.
  
  Don't let the apologists fool you ... most of them are rewarded by vested interests for taking their stance.
  
  Good people, GMO's are NOT about feeding the hungry and the poor. They ARE all about huge ...
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  Excellent article.
  
  Don't let the apologists fool you ... most of them are rewarded by vested interests for taking their stance.
  
  Good people, GMO's are NOT about feeding the hungry and the poor. They ARE all about huge multinational corporations taking control of Africa's arable land, eradicating bio-diversity and reducing the continent's subsistence farmers to serfdom.
  
  Research what happened in India ... and be afraid, VERY AFRAID.
  
  Reject this my friends.

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• Fafa Mensah 12 years ago

  Please let us ensure that as many people as possible read this article. This must get to the media

  Please let us ensure that as many people as possible read this article. This must get to the media

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• wiafe 12 years ago

  Afede is a fraud for tacitly approvin GMOs.

  Afede is a fraud for tacitly approvin GMOs.

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• CONCERN GHANA 12 years ago

  GMO EFFECTS IN INDIA
  Genetically engineered crops and food products pose a threat to your health, resistance to disease, soil, and the global food supply. The biotech industry is riddled with corruption as companies clamor t ...
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  GMO EFFECTS IN INDIA
  Genetically engineered crops and food products pose a threat to your health, resistance to disease, soil, and the global food supply. The biotech industry is riddled with corruption as companies clamor to sink their claws into the marketplace first, to get their seeds into farmers' fields ahead of the rest.
  This pervasive corporate rush to profit at any cost places all of humanity at risk, as the industry barrels ahead without even questioning the consequences of their technology. Industry leaders have failed to slow down long enough to even ponder the long-term consequences of irreversibly manipulating the DNA of your food. And what independent researchers are finding in this regard is truly disturbing and is probably just the tip of the iceberg in this genetics experiment of unprecedented scale.
  When you see the term "biotech industry," you might automatically think of Monsanto, the world's Big Dog when it comes to GE seed. Monsanto has shown it will stop at nothing to bully its way across the globe, leaving a trail of planetary devastation in its wake.
  Monsanto's unsavory behavior even resulted in Forbes Magazine's retraction of naming Monsanto "Company of the Year" in 2009, admitting they were "wrong on Monsanto... really wrong," citing not only the problems with resistant superweeds but also investigations of antitrust issues and a potential flop in an expensive new variety of GE corn seed. But these high-tech seed wars have now gone global, extending well beyond our Western borders, and there is no better illustration than the latest scandal in India.
  GE Scientists in India Found Guilty of Fraud and Cover Up
  A group of scientists from the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) and the University of Agricultural Sciences (UAS) have been found guilty of infecting and subsequently hiding the fact that indigenously created Bt cotton contained a Monsanto gene1. The variety, called BNBt, was supposed to be a cheaper alternative to the other Indian Bt cotton hybrids. Shortly after its release in 2009, its sales were suspended, and then hearings commenced.
  It's now been determined that the Indian scientists intentionally contaminated the GE cotton seed, because "accidental contamination cannot explain what happened." ICAR condemned the scientists' actions as "unethical, unscientific, and irresponsible." It appears these shenanigans occurred in order to somehow speed up the seed's release into India's Bt cotton marketplace.2
  The hearing's outcome falls on the heels of a major decision in October 2012 by a committee, appointed by India's Supreme Court, to end all GE field trials until certain conditions have been met. The Committee also recommended a 10-year moratorium on field trials of all Bt food crops and a moratorium on field trials of herbicide-tolerant crops until an independent assessment has performed.
  Perhaps India has finally had enough. Over the past 16 years, more than a quarter of a million Indian farmers have committed suicide after being convinced to plant Monsanto's genetically engineered seeds (especially Bt cotton), then having their crops fail, leaving them in financial ruin. Could this be a harbinger of times to come in the United States?
  Latest Study Shows Roundup Creates Botulism Breeding Ground in Poultry
  A new German study3 by the Institute of Bacteriology and Mycology examined the effects of glyphosate, the active agent in Monsanto's herbicide Roundup, on the gut microbes of poultry. Some birds are heavily exposed to glyphosate when fed genetically engineered feed. The study's findings are quite alarming. Researchers found that highly pathogenic bacteria resisted glyphosate, whereas beneficial bacteria likely succumbed to it.
  What does this mean for you and me?
  The essential implication is that poultry fed GE corn or soy would fall victim to dysbiosis, meaning unhealthy changes in their gut flora that threaten the health of the birds, as well as anyone consuming them. The good bacteria in the poultry gut, such as Enterococcus, Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus, are killed off, allowing the pathogenic or disease causing bacteria to flourish. Varieties such as Salmonella and Clostridium are very dangerous pathogens for humans. Clostridia bacteria are some of the deadliest, with strains including C. tetani (tetanus) and C. botulinum (botulism).
  Chickens bred in CAFOs are already routinely fed antibiotics, arsenic, and even antidepressants, all of which have serious adverse health consequences. But this new study suggests CAFO chickens exposed to glyphosate may become breeding grounds for Botulism, Salmonella and other major pathogenic organisms.4
  The implications of this become even clearer when you consider the recently released findings of a decade-long feeding study that showed GE feed can cause significant changes in the digestive systems, immune systems, and major organs (including liver, kidneys, pancreas, genitals and others) of rats, mice, pigs and salmon. If it's doing all of that to animals and fish, what's it doing to you? Clearly, the conventional agribusiness food system has emerged as a major threat to your health. But it may also be contributing to an even greater problem: the destruction of the world's topsoil.
  The World is Running Out of Topsoil
  The world may be running out of usable topsoil, the layer that allows plants to grow. According to an article in Time World5, soil erosion and degradation rates suggest we have only about 60 remaining years of topsoil. Forty percent of the world's agricultural soil is now classified as either degraded or seriously degraded; the latter means that 70 percent of the topsoil is gone. Our soil is being lost at 10 to 40 times the rate it can be replenished, and our food production systems are to blame, which epitomizes the term "unsustainable." It takes decades or even centuries to regenerate significant levels of soil.
  Agriculture accounts for 70 percent of our fresh water use. When the soil is unfit, water is wasted—it washes right through the soil and past the plant's root system. We already have a global water shortage that's projected to worsen over the next 20 to 30 years, so this is the last thing we need to compound it. Soil degradation is projected to cause 30 percent loss in food production over the next 20 to 50 years—while our global food demands are expected to increase by 50 percent over this span of time.
  Many don't realize that soil is alive and has an incredible diversity of microorganisms. One handful of soil contains more microbes than the number of people who have ever lived on our planet.
  These organisms create a powerful synergy with the plants and recycle organic material, making the soil more resilient and better at holding water and nutrients, and better at nurturing plants. Microbes need carbon for food, and we're depleting our soil of this element by using chemical fertilizers, overgrazing, over-ploughing, and burning stubble in fields to accelerate crop turnover. Add to this genetically engineered crops, and our soil is dealt another deathblow.
  GE Crops Help Destroy Soil Fertility—Possibly Irreversibly
  The latest science seems to suggest genetically engineered plant cultivation may seriously disrupt soil ecology by reducing microbial diversity, which decreases soil fertility over time—possibly irreversibly.6
  As GE plants increasingly take over the major food-producing areas of the world, including the U.S., China, India, Argentina and Brazil, reduced soil fertility could lead to famine on a scale never previously seen. The mechanisms for this are just beginning to be understood, and what was recently only theory has inched closer to reality as science shines more light on the consequences of introducing genetically engineered organisms into the soil.
  The mechanism goes something like this...
  Special genetic elements (vector DNA) are present in all GE plants. This vector DNA enables unrelated microorganism species to mate, but can also be transferred to soil microorganisms. Soil fertility depends on the presence of a diverse blend of microorganisms, all serving different roles in balancing and optimizing the soil. But when unrelated species mate, the soil ecosystem loses diversity, which is proven to damage fertility.
  Until recently, the transfer of genes between GE plants and soil bacteria was only theoretical. However, this mechanism has now been demonstrated by science, and it's our soil's worst nightmare. It should be noted that this same process of gene transfer has been shown to occur in your gastrointestinal tract when you eat GE foods—turning your intestines into a virtual pesticide factory.
  Horizontal Gene Transfer Is Now Proven By Science
  The following complications underscore the seriousness of the dangers introduced by cultivation of GE crops:
  • DNA from GE plants is not readily broken down in the soil and can be taken up by soil particles and microbes. The accumulation of foreign DNA may lead to a cumulative loss of soil diversity over repeated harvests.
  • Unlike the claims of Monsanto when it first approved GM crops, Bt genes (Bacillus thuringiensis) are not broken down, for the reasons already stated, so can accumulate in soil and potentially produce Bt toxins. These toxins may build up in the soil, further damaging the organisms crucial for soil fertility. Research from the New York University7 confirms that Bt toxins are not broken down by soil microbes and do indeed accumulate in soil; the toxins maintain their ability to kill insects, potentially creating superbugs that further endanger the ecosystem.
  • GE DNA is able to merge with the DNA of other organisms to create new varieties of soil microorganisms that disrupt the ecological balance. These new organisms, if virulent enough, could spread widely via wind erosion and ground water to compromise soil fertility on a broader scale.
  • A Swiss study8 showed that adult earthworms feeding on transgenic Bt corn lost 18 percent of their initial weight, suggesting GE DNA may have long-term toxic effects on earthworms. Earthworms are major decomposers of dead and organic matter in the soil and are major contributors to the recycling of nutrients. An earlier study9 showed that both earthworms and collembolans (another small soil-dwelling invertebrate) can be adversely affected by Bt crops.
  • Its also been shown that glyphosate can be toxic to rhizobia, a nitrogen-fixing bacterium10. Nitrogen fixing bacteria are important because nitrogen is the nutrient most commonly deficient in soil.
  GE crops are adversely affecting our soil biology in numerous ways. There are differences observed in the bacteria occupying plant roots and changes in nutrient availability. Many studies show glyphosate can have toxic effects on microorganisms and can stimulate them to germinate spores and colonize root systems. Glyphosate has also been shown to immobilize manganese, an essential plant nutrient. Overall, glyphosate diminishes the health and nutritional value of the plants it's sprayed on, as well as the soil.
  The two main types of GE foods—herbicide-tolerant crops and pesticide-producing crops—are both imprecise technologies riddled with unintended consequences, including hundreds to thousands of genetic mutations that have unknown effects on human health. Glyphosate and GE crops may be leading the human race over a cliff, as Dr. Don Huber explains in the following interview.
  Download Interview Transcript
  Vote with Your Pocketbook, Every Day
  The food companies on the left of this graphic spent tens of millions of dollars in the last two labeling campaigns—in California and Washington State - to prevent you from knowing what’s in your food. You can even the score by switching to the brands on the right; all of whom stood behind the I-522 Right to Know campaign. Voting with your pocketbook, at every meal, matters. It makes a huge difference.
  I encourage you to continue educating yourself about genetically engineered foods, and to share what you’ve learned with family and friends. Remember, unless a food is certified organic, you can assume it contains GMO ingredients if it contains sugar from sugar beets, soy, or corn, or any of their derivatives.
  If you buy processed food, opt for products bearing the USDA 100% Organic label, as certified organics do not permit GMO’s. You can also print out and use the Non-GMO Shopping Guide, created by the Institute for Responsible Technology. Share it with your friends and family, and post it to your social networks. Alternatively, download their free iPhone application, available in the iTunes store. You can find it by searching for ShopNoGMO in the applications. For more in-depth information, I highly recommend reading the following two books, authored by Jeffrey Smith, the executive director of the Institute for Responsible Technology:
  • Seeds of Deception: Exposing Industry and Government Lies about the Safety of the Genetically Engineered Foods You're Eating
  • Genetic Roulette: The Documented Health Risks of Genetically Engineered Foods.
  For timely updates, join the Non-GMO Project on Facebook, or follow them on Twitter.
  Please, do your homework. Together, we have the power to stop the biotech industry from destroying our food supply, the future of our children, and the earth as a whole. All we need is about five percent of American shoppers to simply stop buying genetically engineered foods, and the food industry would have to reconsider their source of ingredients—regardless of whether the products bear an actual GMO label or not.

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