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Genetically Engineered Food
Food for Thought: Help For Go Organic!
By June Soyka Cook
"By buying organic food products, you are voting with your dollars for a healthier, more
nutritious, and better tasting product, from a system that does minimal harm to the environment."
- Judy Morgan, Environmentalist
Have you reflected upon what you are actually eating lately?
Did you know that U.S. citizens have been eating genetically grown food in the United States since
1996? That the United States grows 75% of the world's genetically grown food? That Europe, Japan,
Russia and Australia require labeling of genetically modified foods, the United States does not?
It is estimated that over 60% of US food products may contain at least a small quantity of crops
that has been genetically engineered (GE). While the long term health and environmental issues
are still being raised and debated, concerns regarding GE foods include nutritional imbalances,
new toxins and allergens in foods, foods that suppress the immune system and increased cancer
rates. This does not even mention environmental concerns such disturbance to ecological balance,
loss of bio-diversity in crops, and creation of herbicide resistant weeds -- leading to increased
use of herbicides causing greater food and water pollution.
While the jury is still out on this hotly debated issue, our strategy is "do no harm"
and buy organic.
In her Self-Healing Expressions e-course,
Healing the Environment: Healing the Planet Starts at Home,
Environmentalist Judy Morgan discusses organic agriculture...
"Organic agriculture is free of chemical pesticides and fertilizers. Organic farmers
use plant and animal waste as natural fertilizers, a diversity of crop varieties, and
integrated pest management (which incorporates natural predators of insects that damage
plants). They use crop rotation to restore the soil and reduce pests. (Crop rotation means
planting one type of crop one year, and another the next, on the same land.)
Since different crops use different types of nutrients and replenish the soil in different
ways, crop rotation produces healthier, more fertile soil and fewer insects that specialize
in eating a particular crop. Organic farming requires a thorough understanding of all the
factors that interplay in raising crops - soil, water, weather, disease, etc.
It is very different from the "Monoculture" model of agriculture, which typically
covers a huge acreage with a single crop. This allows for efficient factory-like processing.
In addition, agribusiness relies on only a few varieties of each type of crop, again for the
sake of efficiency. For instance, only two types of peas make up 96 percent of the pea crop.
The practice of monoculture agriculture also makes U.S. crops susceptible to disease since
pests can invade more easily than in diversified farming. For example, in 1970 the Southern
Corn Leaf Blight destroyed 60 percent of the U.S. corn crop in one summer.
Genetically engineered crops, supported by major food companies, further complicate matters.
GE crops contain "built-in" crop pesticides leading to the destruction of useful
insects and soil organisms thereby gravely disturbing the ecosystem. These pesticides
produced by plants may be harmful to the health of consumers as well.
In contrast, organic farming makes it possible to raise crops that are delicious, and high
in nutritional value, in a way that maintains the quality of soil and local environment,
and does not damage human health through pesticides. By buying organic food products, you
are voting with your dollars for a healthier, more nutritious, and better tasting product,
from a system that does minimal harm to the environment."
Copyright © 2001 Judy Morgan. All rights reserved.
So how do we determine what is not genetically engineered and what is genetically engineered
on the food store shelves?
The True Food Network
www.truefoodnow.org
is a free service from Greenpeace, to connect
consumers who want to take action to end the use of genetically engineered (GE) ingredients
in our foods. The Network calls on food companies and grocery stores to stop using GE
ingredients in food. They have a
list
of both non-genetically and genetically engineered ingredients posted on their site.
The Organic Consumers Association (OCA) promotes food safety, organic farming and sustainable
agriculture practices in the U.S. and internationally. They provide consumers with factual
information we can use to make informed food choices.
See
www.organicconsumers.org
You can also write your congressperson, food producers, supermarkets, press, as well as,
spread the word among your friends and family to do the same and buy organic!
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About the Author
June Soyka Cook is the founder of Self-Healing Expressions and author of
Holistic Prayer: Healing the Mind, Body and Spirit through Prayer
- a free email course. Her site provides free and nominally priced self-paced email courses
on holistic and personal growth topics. Course topics include Romantic Resume, Grief Healing,
Pet Loss, Nutrition, Laugh Therapy, Healing the Earth, Wisdom of Thoreau, and Personal Power.
For more information, visit
www.selfhealingexpressions.com.
Copyright © 2003 June Soyka Cook. All rights reserved. For permission to publish,
please contact us.
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