Mike Adams, the Health Ranger
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 Grow heirloom plants, buy organic, non-GM foods and refuse to do business with corporations that use gm foods.
Inform yourself with these online resources:
Seed Savers Exchange
The International Seed Saving Institute
Save Our Seeds
See the movie The Future of Food or buy the DVD.
Read this great article by Devvy Kidd on the future of food.
Eating organic frozen food? Buy from Amy's Kitchen, which uses no genetically modified ingredients. |
Dr. Paula Baillie-Hamilton
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 Due to the increasing reports of toxicities from gm foods, the absence of even the most basic safety studies, and the fact that they have been treated as pesticides (and therefore actually designed to kill) and not foods, I would strongly recommend that all gm foods be avoided. beginning of this century. This means that organically grown foods end up being lower in chemicals than their intensively grown counterparts. |
Brenda Watson and Leonard Smith
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 Unfortunately, there is more data showing up to suggest there could be serious negative side effects using gm foods. It's important to note that we don't have a requirement in the United States to label foods as genetically modified if they in fact have come from this technology. What's more, estimates suggest that 80 percent of the soy production in the United States is genetically modified and over half of the corn planted in the country has been genetically modified (which, by the way, contributes to the production of copious amounts of high-fructose corn syrup among other products). |
Jeffrey M. Smith
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 The StarLink affair brought to light several issues: 1) There is no secure way to segregate varieties of GM crops that look the same; 2) Even a small amount of dangerous gm foods could create a massive health and economic catastrophe; 3) Health effects from dangerous GM crops can go unidentified (if it hadn't been for a privately funded effort by Friends of the Earth and others, StarLink might still be on the market); 4) Testing procedures have not yet been designed to adequately verify that GM crops are free from allergens. |
| John Graham, spokesman for the York laboratory, said, "We believe this raises serious new questions about the safety of gm foods."93
GM soy has unique allergic response
Remarkably, no follow-up tests to the UK allergy study were conducted at the time to see if individuals reacted differently to GM and non-GM soybeans. A study published six years later, however, verified that the immune system of some individuals does react differently to the two soy types. Using a skin prick test of 49 subjects, 13 exhibited positive reactions to non-GM soybeans while 8 reacted to GMO soybeans. |
| GM foods are more dangerous for children than adults.......................................................................166
Connecting the dots: looking for patterns and causes.........................................................................................168
CC~Tf the kind of detrimental effects seen in JLanimals fed GM food were observed in a clinical setting, the use of the product would have been halted and further research instigated to determine the cause and find possible solutions. |
| However, what we find repeatedly in the case of GM food is that both governments and industry plough on ahead with the development, endorsement, and marketing [of] gm foods despite the warnings of potential ill healthfrom animalfeed-ing studies, as if nothing has happened. This is to the point where governments and industry even seem to ignore the results of their own research! There is clearly a need more than ever before for independent research into the potential ill effects of GMfood including most importantly extensive animal and human feeding trials. |
Dr. Paula Baillie-Hamilton
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| Due to the increasing reports of toxicities from gm foods, the absence of even the most basic safety studies, and the fact that they have been treated as pesticides (and therefore actually designed to kill) and not foods, I would strongly recommend that all gm foods be avoided. beginning of this century. This means that organically grown foods end up being lower in chemicals than their intensively grown counterparts. |
Jeffrey M. Smith
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| Connecting the dots: looking for patterns and causes
Part 1 began with 20 reports of adverse effects from gm foods. These included lab animals with damage to virtually every system studied, thousands of sick, sterile, or dead livestock and people around the world who traced toxic or allergic reactions to eating GM products, breathing GM pollen, or touching GM crops at harvest. Then, 45 ways in which genetic engineering may be responsible for these and other health problems were presented. |
| The body interprets something as foreign, different, and offensive, and reacts accordingly. All gm foods, by definition, have something foreign and different. Studies confirm immune responses to GM crops and several reveal probable causes.
Soybeans outfitted with a Brazil nut gene created allergic reactions in the blood of those allergic to the nuts3 (section 3.1). The cause is almost certainly the fact that the GM protein was an allergen. |
by Michael Murray, N.D. and Joseph Pizzorno, N.D.
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| First of all, there is little scientific data on the long-term safety of gm foods. It may turn out that gm foods cause unexpected health consequences that will not be apparent for years. Second, genes from genetically modified plants have already been shown to be capable of escaping into the environment and contaminating natural crops. And third, manipulating genetic material changes the expression of proteins and antigens in foods, a situation that could lead to allergic reactions. |
Andreas Moritz
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 The report notes that only ten studies of gm foods have been conducted so far. Among those, the ones that were completely independent of funding or input from companies with GM affiliations found evidence of harmful effects in the gut lining of humans.
Overall, organic foods have been found to be more nutritious than conventionally grown foods. In one study comparing the vitamin and mineral content of organic foods vs. non-organic foods, the organics showed higher levels in all 21 of the examined nutrients. |
by Michael Murray, N.D. and Joseph Pizzorno, N.D.
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| So proponents of gm foods argue that without its use there will not be enough food to meet the demands of future populations. This argument has some validity, but current techniques are not capable of expanding production that significantly, and the reality is that the primary reason for gm foods is to generate profits for large corporations seeking greater revenues.
Proponents also argue that the development of crops with enhanced resistance to weeds, pests, or diseases will lead to a reduction in the use of pesticide chemicals. |
Mike Adams, the Health Ranger
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 What they don't tell you is that these gm foods contain pesticides and their use encourages the massive dumping of herbicides on croplands by farmers. Those synthetic chemicals wash right off the farms and into the aquatic ecosystems (rivers, wetlands, oceans) where they are creating "dead zones" that can't even support aquatic life.
It's all being done for the sake of the almighty dollar. Corporations (and the governments they control) are sacrificing the very future of human civilization in order to boost next quarter's profits. |
Samuel S. Epstein, M.D.
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 First, a grass roots campaign and/or government ruling requiring the labeling of imported GM dairy products; the labeling of such gm foods is now under consideration by the EC. Second, representation to the European Parliament and European Council by the Austrian government to ban imports of GM dairy products from the U.S. and other Third World Countries on human health grounds on the basis of the well-recognized "Precautionary Principle."
GM milk, produced by injecting cows with the hormone rBST, is qualitatively and quantitatively different from natural milk. |
by Michael Murray, N.D. and Joseph Pizzorno, N.D.
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| Another concern is that some gm foods, such as GM corn, are being manipulated to resist synthetic pesticides. As a result, more of the pesticide is being used and humans' exposure to toxic pesticides is actually increasing while insects develop resistance to the pesticides' toxic effects. Finally, we also respect the strong sentiment that genetic engineering is morally wrong as it implicates an attempt to modify nature beyond natural laws. |
| It may turn out that gm foods cause unexpected health consequences that will not be apparent for years. Second, genes from genetically modified plants have already been shown to be capable of escaping into the environment and contaminating natural crops. And third, manipulating genetic material changes the expression of proteins and antigens in foods, a situation that could lead to allergic reactions. |
| This argument has some validity, but current techniques are not capable of expanding production that significantly, and the reality is that the primary reason for gm foods is to generate profits for large corporations seeking greater revenues.
Proponents also argue that the development of crops with enhanced resistance to weeds, pests, or diseases will lead to a reduction in the use of pesticide chemicals. The reality is that farmers who grow GM crops actually use more herbicide, not less. |
Kaayla T. Daniel, PhD, CCN
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 At the moment, no allergy tests are carried out before gm foods are marketed and that also needs to be looked at."87-88
People allergic to GM soybeans may not even be allergic to soy. The culprit can be foreign proteins introduced into the soybean. People allergic to Brazil nuts but not to soy have shown allergies to GM soybeans in which Brazil nut proteins were inserted to increase the level of methionine and improve the overall amino acid profile of soy. |
by Michael Murray, N.D. and Joseph Pizzorno, N.D.
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| For example, one of the first gm foods was a tomato, the FlavrSavr tomato developed by Calgene. When natural tomatoes ripen, a gene is triggered to produce a chemical that makes the fruit go soft and eventually rot. With this gene modified, the FlavrSavr tomato has a longer shelf life and firmer fruit.
Do We Need Genetic Engineering?
The argument for genetic engineering of food is that while the world population continues to expand, the area of land available for food production is finite. If the world's population increases, food production must be increased. |
Peter Pringle
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 This means restoring the confidence of the grocery shopper by labeling gm foods. It means giving the public an opportunity to listen to reasoned arguments, no matter how complex the issue. With cloning and X-factoring and matrixing all part of public lore, most ordinary people already have some grasp of genes and genomes. So far, the public debate has been beneath them. Part of the blame rests with the companies who tried to sneak their products onto the market without telling people about them. |
| The environmentalists still noted that the society had not concluded that gm foods were safe. But scientists can't do that. "Although we have no evidence of harmful effects from genetic modification, this of course does not mean that harmful effects can be categorically ruled out," concluded the Royal Society. The absence of evidence is not evidence either of the risk or the safety of a new food. |
| If they could convince consumers that gm foods were unsafe—for humans as well as the environment—they might persuade European governments to adopt the precautionary principle that required more research. They might even stop the technology. After a series of food scares, European consumers were vulnerable; they began to listen to voices previously regarded as fringe. The most important staging for antibiotech arguments was Britain. |
| By the summer of 1998, a poll showed that most British consumers wanted all products containing gm foods to be labeled. Supermarkets responded by racing to buy organic products. The American GM sales armies could not have done a worse job of selling GM to a wary public. One British frozen-food-chain manager recalled being told, "You are a backward European who doesn't like change. You should accept this is right for your customers."19 Monsanto's public relations people even warned the antibiotech movement that Britons would have the new soy "whether they like it or not. |
| One of the key issues in the safety of gm foods was whether the human digestive tract could absorb the new protein made by inserting the alien gene. The FDA tests did not distinguish between the digestive capacity of healthy adults and that of the very young, the elderly, or those unable to produce the right amount of stomach acid. Rowett scientists also objected to the "accepted" American practice of testing proteins from the new gene.
For example, when Monsanto had applied to the U.S. |
Jeffrey M. Smith
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 Asked if he would eat gm foods himself, he said, "If I had the choice I would certainly not eat it till I see at least comparable experimental evidence which we are producing for our genetically modified potatoes. I actually believe that this technology can be made to work for us. And if genetically modified food will be shown to be safe then we have really done a great service to all our fellow citizens. And I very strongly believe in this, and that's one of the main reasons why I demand to tighten up the rules, tighten up the standards. |
| Pusztai knew that his results strongly suggested that the gm foods already approved and being eaten by hundreds of millions of people every day might be creating similar health problems in people, especially in children.
Pusztai was in a terrible bind. He knew that if his potatoes had been subjected to the same superficial studies and approval process that the GM tomatoes, soy, and corn had, they too would have flown through the ACNFP approval process without a hitch. They would have ended up on supermarket shelves and in frying pans worldwide. |
| Professor James was one of twelve scientists who comprised the Advisory Committee on Novel Foods and Processes (ACNFP), which was responsible for evaluating gm foods for sale in Britain. James was in charge of the nutritional analysis.
Pusztai looked at the stack of papers. There were about six or seven folders, each representing a different request for approval—nearly 700 pages in all. Pusztai knew that James and the other eleven ACNFP members would never actually read these documents themselves. They were extremely busy men. |
| While many of the stories in this book reveal government and corporate maneuvering worthy of an adventure novel, the impact of gm foods is personal. Most people in North America eat them at every meal. These chapters not only dismantle the U.S. position that the foods are safe, they inform you of the steps you can take to protect yourself and your family.
Chapter 1
A Lesson from Overseas
When Susan answered the door, she was starded to see several reporters standing in front of her. |
| Bush was convinced that gm foods held the key to greater yields, expanded U.S. exports, and a better world. His rhetoric was not new. It had been passed down from president to president, and delivered to the American people through regular news reports and industry advertisements.
The message was part of a master plan that had been crafted by corporations determined to control the world's food supply. This was made clear at a biotech industry conference in January 1999, where a representative from Arthur Anderson Consulting Group explained how his company had helped Monsanto create that plan. |
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