Important GE Study Released

It's been all over the news . . .  the first peer-reviewed, long-term study of the effects of consuming genetically engineered corn was recently released. Rats that were fed genetically engineered "Roundup Ready" corn developed massive mammary tumors, liver and kidney disease, and premature death. Of course, some geneticists are criticizing the study and calling it "flawed," but at the very least this should spur on further independent studies and prove the need for labeling of GE foods . . . if only to be able to track any possible ill effects.

If you live in California, it is so important that you vote YES on Proposition 37 to mandate labeling of GE foods. It could set a precedent that other states will follow. In the meantime, to make sure you don't consume GE products, buy organic.

Dangers of Monsanto's Bt corn

According to the Organic Consumers Organization, if you're eating the typical American diet, you are most likely consuming a large amount of genetically-modified foods . . . primarily through consumption of animals that were fed GMO crops. In fact, Monsanto's insecticide-producing bacterial DNA survives human digestion and is now found in the blood of more than 80% of North American women - and their fetuses! The health risks of exposure to the GMO Bt genes is unknown, but Monsanto's own study of rats fed Bt crops showed liver and kidney damage.

Monsanto's genetically modifed corn has been engineered to produces Bt insecticide in every cell of the plant. Monsanto alleged that farmers could plant Bt crops and not have to spray them with pesticides, but corn rootworms are now developing resistance. Scientists warn of massive yield loss and surging corn costs if the EPA doesn't act quickly to drastically reduce Bt crops' acreage and force Monsanto to make non-GMO varieties of its high-yielding hybrid corn available to farmers. In fact, France just placed a temporary ban on Monsanto's MON810 corn because of environmental concerns. Check out the full article here.

Let the EPA know they should ban crops that are genetically engineered to produce pesticides.

For more information about the dangers of eating genetically modified foods, check out this Dr. Oz video.

Also, to help get mandatory labeling of genetically engineered products on the ballot in California, click here.

10 Scary Reasons to Avoid GMOs (or at least require labeling)

This is from the Organic Consumers Organization newsletter--10 Scary Reasons to Avoid GMOs (based on this article):

#1 Monsanto's Bt-toxin, in its Bt-producing GMO corn and cotton (used in food in the form of cottonseed oil), was found by Canadian doctors in the blood of 93% of pregnant women and 80% of the umbilical blood of their babies.

#2 The authors of the Canadian study conclude that the women and their babies were exposed to Monsanto's GMO Bt-toxin through a "normal" non-organic Canadian diet, including non-organic (so-called "natural" and "conventional") meat, egg, and dairy products from animals fed Bt corn.

#3 Monsanto's GMO "Bt" corn and cotton plants are engineered to produce a insecticide in every cell of the plant that kills insects by breaking open their stomachs.

#4 Mice fed Monsanto's Bt corn had elevated levels of immune system substances that are also higher in humans who suffer from rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, osteoporosis, multiple sclerosis, cancer, allergies, Lou Gehrig's disease, autoimmune disease, and colitis.

#5 Young mice in the same study had elevated T-cells, which are increased in people with asthma, and in children with food allergies, juvenile arthritis, and connective tissue diseases.

#6 Monsanto's GMO Bt-toxin has properties of known allergens - it actually fails the World Health Organization's allergen screening tests.

#7 Monsanto's GMO Bt-toxin has been found to bind with the small intestines in mice and with intestinal tissue in rhesus monkeys.

#8 In addition to its GMO "Bt" crops which are engineered to produce insecticide, Monsanto also produces GMO "RoundUp Ready" crops, engineered with a bacterial DNA that allows it to survive otherwise deadly doses of its herbicide RoundUp.

#9 In the only human feeding study ever published on GMOs, Monsanto's GMO "RoundUp Ready" soybeans were found to transfer Monsanto's "RoundUp Ready" DNA to the bacteria living inside human intestines.

#10 According to Jeffrey Smith of the Institute for Responsible Technology, the transfer of Monsanto's GMO Bt DNA to human digestive bacteria could create a "living pesticide factory" that could be responsible for the "increase in gastrointestinal problems, autoimmune diseases, food allergies, and childhood learning disorders - since 1996 when Bt crops came on the market."

If you are concerned, there are ways to take action here.

NEW True Food Shoppers' Guide

Here's a helpful guide I found that you might like: The True Food Shoppers' Guide to Avoiding GMOs--just updated for 2011. Go HERE to download a free PDF and there are also instructions to getting it as an APP for your iPhone or Android.

Here's a small excerpt:

GRAINS, BEANS & PASTA

Other than corn, no GM grains are sold on the market. Look for 100-percent wheat pasta, couscous, rice, quinoa, oats, barley, sorghum, and dried beans (except soybeans).

Non-GMO

Amy's
Annie's
Bob's Red Mill, organic line
Casbah (Hain-Celestial)
Dr. McDougall's Right Foods
Eden certified organic grains
Fantastic Foods
Field Day
Ian's Natural Foods
Kamut
Lotus Foods
Lundberg Family Farms
Organic Planet
Rising Moon
Seeds of Change (organic meals)
Sensations
Sunridge Farms
Trader Joe's store brand
Vita-Spelt pasta
Whole Foods 365

May Contain GMO Ingredients

Betty Crocker meals (General Mills)
Knorr (Unilever)
Kraft Macaroni & Cheese meals
Near East (Quaker Oats Company / Pepsico)
Pasta Roni and Rice-A-Roni meals (Quaker Oats Company/Pepsico)

GE Corn at Templeton Farmers' Market

According to the Atascadero News,the North County Farmers’ Market Association passed a new rule last November that would require any vendor selling genetically engineered produce to label the produce as such. Well, according to Jesse Arnold, a member of SLO GE-Free, he was at the Templeton Farmers' Market last Saturday (9/18/10) and genetically engineered corn was being sold--and the only label it carried was "yellow corn." (According to Arnold, the grower told him it was Monsanto BT corn.)

As a consumer, I would be very upset if I found out I'd served genetically engineered corn, which has pesticides engineered into every cell of every kernel, to my family--especially if I trusted the Farmers' Market Association to enforce their ruling.

Please contact Board Chairman Mike Broadhurst at 924-1260 or Market Manager Sandra Dimond at 748-1109 and ask them to enforce their ruling--even better, ask them to stand up against genetically-engineered produce, which is bad for our environment and bad for consumers, and keep GE products out of our farmers' markets.

New study on GM corn

A recent study published in the International Journal of Biological Sciences, showed that three GM corn varieties may have serious health effects. Monsanto corn NK 603, MON 810, and MON 863 were fed to rats for 90 days--the longest in vivo test performed with mammals for GMOs. The analysis showed that the rats suffered effects on the kidney, liver, heart, adrenal glands, spleen and haematopoietic system (I think that is blood). See the complete study here.

The scary part is that those products are approved for consumption in the US . . . genetically modified foods need to be tested BEFORE they are approved by the FDA. And these products should be banned, until further studies are done.

And the winner is . . .

MONSANTO!!!!! What did they win you ask? The Angry Mermaid Award! And I can't think of a more deserving corporation. Find out why they won.

And by the way -- the latest study on Monanto's GMO corn finds that it has adverse affects on the kidneys, liver, heart, adrenal glands, spleen and more . . .

Genetically Engineered Corn

I was incensed by a letter to the editor in the San Luis Obispo Tribune stating that the consumer gets more BT by eating organic corn than by genetically engineered BT corn. View my response.

The World According to Monsanto

I finally got to see the film The World According to Monsanto and WOW! It was very, very scary. The film shows how Monsanto, one of the world's biggest agrochemical/biotech company, has a history of lies and coverups and has caused many tragedies with its development of dangerous chemicals like Agent Orange, PCBs, and bovine growth hormones (rBGH). Now they are into genetically modified seeds and the coverups and pressure on the government to turn the other way continues. As Monsanto produces more and more GE seeds, the corporation is buying up seed companies so farmers have no choice but to buy Monsanto's GE seeds. Contrary to what Monsanto would have us believe, the seeds are not reducing chemical use nor increasing yields. Farmers are suffering and if they dare try to save seeds, they are slapped with law suits. Then there's the whole labeling of GE foods issue. Monsanto claims that their genetically modified foods are no different than the conventional versions so they don't need to go through a testing and approval process--but at the same time, they are patenting their product. How can you get a patent on something identical to nature.

There's so much more to this movie, but my mind is reeling. One thing that stands out strongly in my mind, however, is that in Mexico they can't find any native species of corn that haven't been contaminated by the GE varieties. In fact, mutant corn plants are showing up in fields that have been contaminated with GE. The GE gene is not getting into the cells, but into the plants and strange growths like multiple ears from one leaf are being found. I buy organic food but how can I be sure it hasn't been contaminated?

I highly recommend you watch this movie.

GM Corn shown to negatively affect fertility

A new Austrian study is causing quite a stir because it confirms that GM corn has a damaging effect on the reproductive health in mice. The Monsanto maize line MON863 has already been shown -- in the company's own experiments designed to mask health effects -- to damage the internal organs of animals in feeding trials.  This new evidence, from an EU government-sponsored study, shows that the standard mantra that "GM does not damage health" is shown to be a lie.  GM food and feed DOES damage health in a number of ways, as this and other reliable studies have shown over the past decade, beginning with Arpad Pusztai in 1998.

It will be really interesting to see what happens as a result of this study.

For the full article with references to the study and others, go to: http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_15588.cfm

Junk Food, GE corn and soy, and rats

This is a VERY interesting article about an experiment done by Appleton, Wisconson high school students. As well as some interesting information about animals and GE foods, written by Jeffrey M. Smith, author of "Seeds of Deception".

http://www.comanchecountychronicle.com/viewarticle.php?id=397