Don't Fear Your Food: GMOs Are Not Evil

I was at a bridal shower recently, sitting at a table with three other women, visiting over our refreshments.  To my left was my friend, who grew up in town, but married a farmer this past summer.  Across the table was my friend's mom, and to my right was another lady from church.  Somehow, we began talking about how so many farmers had been harvesting late into the winter this year, because high moisture levels and too many rainy days had kept farmers out of the fields in the fall.  My friend's mom was wondering if someone might discover that crops left to be harvested in the winter actually have some secret benefit that would make them rather valuable.  Her musings went on until this came out of her mouth: "I don't know, maybe the melting snow and all the rain would just wash the GMOs right out of the grain!"  I just barely managed to keep myself from crumpling onto the table in defeat.  Talking isn't my favourite activity, and I certainly had not showed up at that bridal shower prepared to give a lecture on the benefits of GMOs.  Besides, how am I supposed to refute the myth that GMOs are evil when people don't even understand what a GMO is?

A few weeks after the shower, my mom picked up some gluten-free snacks for me since she knew I was having a guest stay at my place that required a gluten-free diet.  She did well, but I now have certified non-GMO stuff in my cupboards, and we had a conversation about the difference between non-GMO and gluten-free, which highlighted to me the fact that many people just don't know what all these fancy new labels mean.

Well, I'm going to try to give my readers a brief look into the world of GMOs today.  I won't go into deep detail, so please check out the "Further Reading" section if you want to know more.  And if you are wondering how to find reliable information regarding GMOs, check out my blog post, "How to Get Accurate Information."

What is a GMO?

GMO stands for "genetically modified organism."  But what does that mean?!

Genetically modified organisms are organisms (living things) that have been modified (changed) from their original form at the genetic level.  In crops, this is achieved through a certain breeding process called transgenesis, or genetic engineering.

Transgenesis occurs when crop breeders take a trait that is found in another plant, and insert the genes associated with that trait into the crop plant they are wanting to modify.  Crop breeders may also "turn off" genes associated with certain characteristics.  Transgenesis is the modification of specific genes to give the plant traits that naturally occur in other organisms.  The changes are predictable and controlled to affect just that one trait in the plant.

So, are scientists just extracting genes from one organism and injecting them into another one?  No.  The plant breeders find the gene for the desired trait in the plant that has the trait, make a copy of that gene, and use it in the plant they are wanting to modify.

Are GMOs Harmful to Human Health?

No.  Scientific studies have proven the following:

• there is no evidence that GMO foods cause
• new allergies
• gluten intolerance
• cancer
• autism
• poisonings
• any other diseases or conditions
• creating or modifying crops through the use of biotechnology is no more risky than doing so through the use of conventional crop breeding techniques
• there is no difference in the nutrition or composition of GM crops, compared to non-GM crops and there is no difference in our ability to digest them

All GMOs that are approved to be sold for food consumption undergo extensive testing to ensure that they are safe.  Some of the tests include tests for allergenicity, digestibility, and toxicity.

What are the Benefits of Using GMO Technology?

Rather than going into great detail that may bore you, I will simply list a number of the benefits of growing GMO crops.  You can check out the details in the "Further Reading" section at the end of this post.

The use of genetically modified crops

• improves soil health
• reduces food waste and loss
• improves air quality when coupled with sustainable farming practices
• helps preserve water
• increases crop yields, which allows us to use less land to grow the crops
• decreases insecticide use

What GMO Crops are Commercially Available?

The following chart tells you which commercially available crops are GMOs and what the modifications achieve:

Keep in mind that not all apples, potatoes, etc. are GMO.  Only some are.

How Long Have People Been Genetically Modifying Crops?

Farmers have been genetically modifying crops for thousands of years, ever since people began to domesticate crops via selective breeding.  However, only crops that have been improved using transgenesis are considered "GMO".

Are There Any GM Animals?

Yes.  Scientists have been working on modifying the genetics of certain animals.  A while ago, there were Enviropigs, which could digest plant phosphorus more efficiently than other pigs.  They were never in the food chain.

Health Canada recently approved as safe for consumption genetically engineered AquAdvantage salmon, which grow twice as fast as conventional Atlantic salmon.

I know this has been a very shallow look into the deeply complex world of GMOs.  Be sure to check out the "Further Reading" section for more information.

Further Reading

GMO Answers - I just discovered this website.  It is dedicated to answering everyone's questions about GMOs.  How awesome is that?!  Especially helpful is the educational resources page.

"The Farmer's Daughter" - This is a blog from a woman in the United States.  She completes the most thorough research I have ever seen in the blogging world before writing her blog posts.  I consider this blogger reliable.

"Uptown Farms" - This is a blog from another woman in the United States.  She and her husband raise GMO corn (and also sheep - to clarify, the sheep are not genetically modified).  She isn't as big on research, but I love to read about her honest "this is how we do it" approach to informing her readers.

"The GMO Labeling Battle" - This is an article by National Geographic outlining how different members of the food industry are responding to calls for mandatory labeling regarding GMO ingredients.  National Geographic isn't my favourite source for well-balanced information, but this particular article is pretty good for looking at how consumers impact the food industry.

Globe and Mail article regarding Health Canada's decision to approve AquAdvantage salmon.