We are what we eat If we are what we eat, o boy we all are in a big trouble!

No, no I am not talking about seeing Chicken, Turkeys or Carrot Tops all around us!!! Mr/Madam toastmaster, fellow toastmasters and friends, today I am talking about genetically modified foods which is looming as one of the greatest and most intractable health, environmental and economic challenge of the 21st Century created by some greed motivated corporations. By being having the able ability to take the genetic material from one organism and insertingb it into the permanent genetic code of another, biotechnologists have engineered numerous novel creations, such as potatoes with bacteria genes, "super" pigs with human growth genes, fish with cattle growth genes, tomatoes with flounder genes and the list goes on. Already about 3,000 varieties of plants and animal products containing genes from other species have invaded our grocery stores and our kitchen pantries. It has been estimated that 70-75 percent of processed foods on supermarket shelves--from soda to soup, crackers to condiments--contain genetically engineered ingredients. Currently, up to 45 percent of U.S. corn is genetically engineered as isare 85 percent of soybeans. "They are unlabeled and untested, and we are eating them. A number of independent studies over the past decade have revealed that genetically engineered foods can pose serious risks to humans, domesticated animals, wildlife and the environment. I know Halloween is over but let us see this scary picture! A number of independent studies over the past decade have revealed that genetically engineered foods can pose serious risks to humans, domesticated animals, wildlife and the environment. Human health effects can include higher risks of toxicity, allergenicity, antibiotic resistance, immune-suppression and cancer. In tests conducted at the University of Nebraska and reported in the New England Journal of Medicine, researchers found that soybeans modified with genes from Brazil nuts produced proteins that resulted in extreme, potentially deadly allergic reactions in people sensitive to the nuts. A recent article published in Lancet Another study examined the effects of GM potatoes on the digestive tract in rats. 32, 33. This study claimed that there were appreciable differences in the intestines of rats fed GM potatoes and rats fed unmodified potatoes. Seven out of forty rats on GM tomatoes died within two weeks for unstated reasons. Sounds scray, doesnt it? Thousands of farmers protested the release of BT cotton seeds in Indian farms as it failed to give increased yields, While a large number of cattle and sheep reportedly died after eating Bt Cotton stalks and leaves. The medical profession needs at least 5-10 years of clinical trails as well as full filling many other criteria before they can launch a NEW drug to the market.GMO foods have been flowing on and off our supermarkets shelves for many years without a single trail. And what is alarming is that FDA does not require these foods to be labeled.

Now let us move from micro horror to the macro level horror picture. As for environmental impacts, the use of genetic engineering in agriculture could lead to uncontrolled biological pollution, threatening numerous microbial, plant and animal species with extinction, and the potential contamination of non-genetically engineered life forms with novel and possibly hazardous genetic material. The reason for developing these GM plants was to create crops that are drought, cold, disease and herbicide resistant to increase production while reducing agrochemical use. Even though it is partially true it is far from the whole story. GM crop plants are also being developed to produce their own pesticide. This is predicted to cause the rapid appearance of resistant insects, Justjust as some populations of mosquitoes developed resistance to the now-banned pesticide DDT, Worse still, such pesticide-producing plants have already been shown to kill some beneficial predator insects as well as pests. For example, inserting a gene from a snowdrop into a potato made the potato resistant to greenfly, but also killed the ladybirds feeding on the greenfly. Some herbicide resistant GM plants are marketed so far contain genes from bacteria which make them resistant to a broad spectrum weed killer available from the same company. When the crop is sprayed with this weed killer, every other plant in the field is killed. The result is an essentially sterile field, providing neither food nor habitat for wildlife. Environmentalists fear that this would substantially reduce the soil quality turning the fields into dust bowls. The pollen from these weed resistant GM crops can breed with the weeds producing super weeds that may be resistant to most herbicides. Last but the most alarming environment effect is that Organic crops are being polluted with the pollen from gene-altered plants destroying the purity of organic conventionally grown varieties. Once genetic material has been released into the environment it cannot be recalled. The likelihood of a major problem may, as some people suggest, be slight, but if something does go badly wrong we will be faced with the problem of clearing up a kind of pollution which is self-perpetuating. Then there isnt anyone who has the first idea of how this could be done, or how much it would cost. Though the Bio Technology companies claim that their aims is to fight hunger and food shortages in third world countries, In reality its all about control: Many new plant genetic engineering technologies and GM plants have been patented. Consumer advocates are rightly worried that patenting these new plant varieties

will raise the price of seeds and food increasing hunger and starvation in third world countries. And if this was not enough these greedy corporations have introduced a "suicide gene" into GM plants to combat possible patent infringement . These plants would be viable for only one growing season and would produce sterile seeds that do not germinate in the next season. Farmers would need to buy a fresh supply of seeds each year. Control the food chain and you have total control. itIt would be a coup that this planet could not recover from. Where is the conclusion?