Genetically modified (GM) foods are foods derived from genetically modified orga

nisms. Genetically modified organisms have had specific changes introduced into
their DNA by genetic engineering techniques. These techniques are much more prec
ise than mutagenesis (mutation breeding) where an organism is exposed to radiati
on or chemicals to create a non-specific but stable change. Other techniques by
which humans modify food organisms include selective breeding (plant breeding an
d animal breeding), and somaclonal variation.
GM foods were first put on the market in the early 1990s. Typically, genetically
modified foods are transgenic plant products: soybean, corn, canola, and cotton
seed oil. Animal products have also been developed, although as of July 2010 no
ne are currently on the market.[1] In 2006 a pig was controversially[2][3] engin
eered to produce omega-3 fatty acids through the expression of a roundworm gene.
[4] Researchers have also developed a genetically-modified breed of pigs that ar
e able to absorb plant phosphorus more efficiently, and as a consequence the pho
sphorus content of their manure is reduced by as much as 60%.[5]
advantages of GM foods
The world population has topped 6 billion people and is predicted to double in t
he next 50 years. Ensuring an adequate food supply for this booming population i
s going to be a major challenge in the years to come. GM foods promise to meet t
his need in a number of ways:
• Pest resistance Crop losses from insect pests can be staggering, resulting in d
evastating financial loss for farmers and starvation in developing countries. Fa
rmers typically use many tons of chemical pesticides annually. Consumers do not
wish to eat food that has been treated with pesticides because of potential heal
th hazards, and run-off of agricultural wastes from excessive use of pesticides
and fertilizers can poison the water supply and cause harm to the environment. G
rowing GM foods such as B.t. corn can help eliminate the application of chemical
pesticides and reduce the cost of bringing a crop to market4, 5.
• Herbicide tolerance For some crops, it is not cost-effective to remove weeds by
physical means such as tilling, so farmers will often spray large quantities of
different herbicides (weed-killer) to destroy weeds, a time-consuming and expen
sive process, that requires care so that the herbicide doesn't harm the crop pla
nt or the environment. Crop plants genetically-engineered to be resistant to one
very powerful herbicide could help prevent environmental damage by reducing the
amount of herbicides needed. For example, Monsanto has created a strain of soyb
eans genetically modified to be not affected by their herbicide product Roundup ®6
. A farmer grows these soybeans which then only require one application of weed-
killer instead of multiple applications, reducing production cost and limiting t
he dangers of agricultural waste run-off7.
• Disease resistance There are many viruses, fungi and bacteria that cause plant
diseases. Plant biologists are working to create plants with genetically-enginee
red resistance to these diseases8, 9.
• Cold tolerance Unexpected frost can destroy sensitive seedlings. An antifreeze
gene from cold water fish has been introduced into plants such as tobacco and po
tato. With this antifreeze gene, these plants are able to tolerate cold temperat
ures that normally would kill unmodified seedlings10. (Note: I have not been abl
e to find any journal articles or patents that involve fish antifreeze proteins
in strawberries, although I have seen such reports in newspapers. I can only con
clude that nothing on this application has yet been published or patented.)
• Drought tolerance/salinity tolerance As the world population grows and more lan
d is utilized for housing instead of food production, farmers will need to grow
crops in locations previously unsuited for plant cultivation. Creating plants th
at can withstand long periods of drought or high salt content in soil and ground
water will help people to grow crops in formerly inhospitable places11, 12.
• Nutrition Malnutrition is common in third world countries where impoverished pe
oples rely on a single crop such as rice for the main staple of their diet. Howe
ver, rice does not contain adequate amounts of all necessary nutrients to preven
t malnutrition. If rice could be genetically engineered to contain additional vi
tamins and minerals, nutrient deficiencies could be alleviated. For example, bli
ndness due to vitamin A deficiency is a common problem in third world countries.
 Researchers at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Institute for Plant Sc
iences have created a strain of "golden" rice containing an unusually high conte
nt of beta-carotene (vitamin A)13. Since this rice was funded by the Rockefeller
Foundation14, a non-profit organization, the Institute hopes to offer the golde
n rice seed free to any third world country that requests it. Plans were underwa
y to develop a golden rice that also has increased iron content. However, the gr
ant that funded the creation of these two rice strains was not renewed, perhaps
because of the vigorous anti-GM food protesting in Europe, and so this nutrition
ally-enhanced rice may not come to market at all15.
• Pharmaceuticals Medicines and vaccines often are costly to produce and sometime
s require special storage conditions not readily available in third world countr
ies. Researchers are working to develop edible vaccines in tomatoes and potatoes
16, 17. These vaccines will be much easier to ship, store and administer than tr
aditional injectable vaccines.
• Phytoremediation Not all GM plants are grown as crops. Soil and groundwater pol
lution continues to be a problem in all parts of the world. Plants such as popla
r trees have been genetically engineered to clean up heavy metal pollution from
contaminated soil18.
About the 50 Harmful Effects of GM Foods
This article does more than dispute the industry and certain government official
s' claims that genetically-modified (GM) foods are the equivalent of ordinary fo
ods not requiring labeling. It offers an informative list of the vast number of
alarm signals, at least fifty hazards, problems, and dangers. also interspersed
are deeper philosophical discussion of how the "good science" of biotechnology c
an turn against us as a thano-technology, grounded in a worldview that most seri
ously needs to be revisied.
When pesticides were first introduced, they also were heralded as absolutely saf
e and as a miracle cure for farmers. Only decades later the technology revealed
its truer lethal implications. Here the potentially lethal implications are much
broader.
The following list of harms is also divided into several easily referred-to sect
ions, namely on health, environment, farming practices, economic/political/socia
l implications, and issues of freedom of choice. There is a concluding review of
means of inner activism - philosophical, spiritual, worldview changing. Next th
ere is a list of action-oriented, practical ideas and resources for personal, po
litical and consumer action on this vital issue. Finally, I want the reader to k
now that this article is a living document, subject to change whenever new and i
mportant information becomes available.
The reader is thus encouraged to return to this article as a resource, explore o
ther parts of our site, and otherwise keep in touch with us and the Websites we
link to. Most importantly please sign up for our newsletter so we can exchange v
ital information with you.
MARKERS USED . Genetic Roulette avoids explaining why regulatory authorities hav
e approved the markers currently used in crops. Smith avoids mentioning expert a
dvice and evidence that contradicts his assertions about antibiotic resistance,
and does not provide access to the detailed and extensive deliberations that led
to approvals of crops having antibiotic markers (Bennett and others 2004. EFSA
2004, Goldstein and others 2005, Miki , McHugh 2004, Ramessar and others 2007,
Salyers (n.d.), van den Eede and others 2004).
3. Antibiotic resistant bacteria are numerous in the gut whether or not there is
any antibiotic marker in GM food. The antibiotic resistance genes present in ge
netically modified foods are already easily found in any human intestine in a fo
rm that frequently moves around between different bacteria and can easily take u
p residence in new bacteria. Bacteria will frequently contain small chromosomes
called plasmids that commonly carry genes for antibiotic resistance. These plasm
ids can replicate by injecting copies of themselves into other bacteria without
exposing their DNA to digestive juices. Once injected into a new bacteria that t
hey can replicate independently. Plasmids are widely known to be involved in the
spread of antibiotic resistance in bacteria. Their spread is promoted by the us
e of antibiotics and it is massive overuse of antibiotics that is the main facto
r promoting the spread of diseases that cannot be treated by antibiotics (Bennet
t and others 2004, Saylers 1996, Salyers, Whitt 2005).
TOXIN LEVEL GM diets may cause liver damage
The liver processes toxins; its state can reveal toxins in the diet. Liver cells
of mice fed GM “Roundup Ready” soybeans had structural changes,3 which, according t
o molecular geneticist Michael Antoniou, PhD, “must reflect some ‘insult’ on the liver
by the GM soy.” Antoniou, who does human gene therapy research, said that althoug
h the long-term consequences of the GM soy diet are not known, it “could lead to l
iver damage and consequently general toxemia.”4 In addition, rats fed GM corn had
liver lesions and indications of toxicity;5 rabbits fed GM Roundup Ready soy sho
wed altered production of liver enzymes;6 and the livers of rats fed Roundup Rea
dy canola were 12%–16% heavier, possibly due to liver disease or inflammation
VITAMIN In contrast there is growing evidence that organic fruit and vegetables
generally contain more nutrients than non-organic food.
The Soil Association conducted a systematic review of the evidence comparing the
vitamin and mineral content of organic and conventionally grown food. It was fo
und that, on average, organic food contains higher levels of vitamin C and essen
tial minerals such as calcium, magnesium, iron and chromium. 36
An independent review of the evidence found that organic crops had significantly
higher levels of all 21 nutrients analysed compared with conventional produce i
ncluding vitamin C (27% more), magnesium (29% more), iron (21% more) and phospho
rous (14% more). Organic spinach, lettuce, cabbage and potatoes showed particula
rly high levels of minerals.