GMO Food Fight on Floor of Senate
Setting the Record Straight
When it comes to debate among members of the Senate, we think of the great orators of antiquity such as Ancient Greece and Rome. These were the intellectual giants who inspired us to greatness and made possible great civilizations. Left Image: March Against Monsanto Vancouver May 2013 Courtesy of Wikimedia
However, in the matter a recent Senate debate recorded on CSPAN, I was amazed by the errors, inaccuracies, downright misleading and deceptive statements . I invite you to listen to the presentation by Senator Heidi Heitkamp, Democrat from North Dakota in support if the Debbie Stabenow, Pat Roberts GMO Labeling Bill.
Senator Heitkamp urges the members to:
“Stop denying science and accept the fact that GMO ingredients are just as healthy as any other ingredient.”
In all due respect, I have a few questions for Senator Heidi Heitkamp:
1) If GMO ingredients are so healthy, then why has Russia, Japan, China and 60 other countries banned or restricted GMO production in their countries.(16-19) Why has Europe rejected GMO food, with no GMO products on store shelves in Europe?(26)
2) If GMO food is so healthy, why did the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), the specialized cancer agency of the World Health Organization classify Glyphosate as a “probable carcinogen” on March 2015?(37) Glyphosate is Monsanto’s Round-Up Herbicide, applied in great quantities to GMO Corn and Soy. Glyphosate is also copiously applied to Non-GMO wheat fields and other crops as a pre-harvest drying agent. Left Image Sen, Heidi Heitkamp (D) official portrait courtesy of wikimedia.
3) If GMO ingredients are so healthy for us, then why did the American Academy of Environmental Medicine (AAEM) release a position paper in 2009 on Genetically Modified foods stating that “GM foods pose a serious health risk” and calling for a moratorium on GM foods? (44)
4) If GMO ingredients are so healthy, why did the US courts rule in 2004 that GMO food is a “public nuisance” ?(39-41) August 2004, Aventis settled a class-action lawsuit and paid farmers 110 million dollars for genetic contamination of farmers fields with the Aventis Starlink Corn. A separate settlement paid 9 million dollars to consumers who had heath problems from consuming the genetically modified Starlink corn. The courts considered the GMO Starlink Corn a “public nuisance”.(39-41)
Heidi Heitkamp’s remarks continued:
“It’s critically important that we set the record straight on genetically modified ingredients, and we make sure everyone in our country understands the science of what we have been doing over centuries of work in growing more resilient and better yield crops. And we wouldn’t be able to do that in America today, or across the world without genetics, without looking at applying science to the work we do in agriculture. Agricultural Innovation has saved lives. I want to remind everyone about a great American Hero, Nobel peace prize laureate, Norman Borlaug, He is thought of as the forefather of modern biotechnology. Because of his innovation, he is known as the man who saved a billion lives. His wheat breeding work created a wheat which enabled increased production and revolutionizing farming in America and across the world. As he saved countless lives, he sparked the Green Revolution. And that is why we know that biotechnlogy isn’t just good for farmers. It increases and stabilizes yields and fights against crop pests and disease.
Norman Borlaug and the Green Revolution
With due respect, I have a few questions and clarifications about the good Senator’s reference to Normal Borlaug.
Yes, it is true that Norman Borlaug is a national hero who revolutionized agriculture, and saved a billion lives from starvation with his high yield semi-dwarf wheat. For his efforts, Borlaug received the Nobel Prize and Congressional Medal. Upper Left Image: Norman Borlaug in wheat field in Mexico cover of LIFE Magazine Nov 1970, courtesy of Time/Life Magazine.
Borlaug’s Wheat is NON-GMO
However, Borlaug’s work on semi-dwarf wheat was done with existing hybridization techniques in the 1960’s, before the introduction of recombinant biotechnology in the 1980’s. Since Borlaug’s wheat is not a GMO product, using the Borlaug example to praise GMO Food is deceptive and misleading. In fact, according to the USDA, “no GM wheat is commercially grown in the United States“. In view of this error in the good Senator’s comments, one might suspect the speaker has limited understanding of her subject matter.
Glyphosate Applied to Wheat as Drying Agent
The real problem we face with our wheat is not the wheat itself which is non-GMO, it is the massive amounts of the glyphosate herbicide applied as a pre-harvest drying agent which ends up in the final food which we all eat. Glyphosate has been labeled a “probable carcinogen” by the World Health Organization (WHO).(37)
Golden RIce
Senator Heidi Heitkamp continues her remarks:
“Agricultural biotechnology is also great for consumers, not just in stabilizing or reducing prices, but it can literally save lives, like the Golden Rice can. Just last week, over 100 Nobel laureates wrote to dispute claims involving Golden Rice and to talk about how important those innovations were to saving populations from blindness and from disease.” Left image Inventor of Golden Rice, Ingo Potrykus on cover of Time Magazine July 2000.
In all due respect, I have a question about Senator Heitkamp’s remarks about Golden Rice. The good Senator’s remarks gives the impression that Golden Rice has saved populations from blindness and disease.
There is nothing farther from the truth. Golden Rice, which is rice genetically modified to contain Beta Carotene, a vitamin A precursor, was invented and donated to the public domain by Ingo Potrykus almost 20 years ago, and has yet to undergo basic toxicology testing in animals. With lack of safety testing, Golden Rice has never been approved here in the US, or by any other government for human consumption.(46) If found safe after extensive testing, and approved for human use, would Golden Rice provide Beta Carotene to poor starving children, thus preventing vitamin A deficiency diseases? Maybe so. We may never know. A cheaper, more effective and certainly less risky approach to preventing vitamin A deficiency diseases is to hand out vitamin A capsules to the population at risk, or teach the population how to grow many of indigenous foods containing beta carotene such as mango, and sweet potato. According to Robert Greer in, We Don’t Need Golden Rice: (14)
Fruit and root crops rich in Vitamin A are plentiful in every heavily-populated bioregion in the world. Mangoes, oranges, yams, squash, papaya, watermelons, and cantaloupes are all rich in Vitamin A, and these crops typically produce yields that rival or surpass GMO rice.(14)
Senator Heitkamp remarks continue:
“And so, if we really are concerned about science, let’s start talking about science, and lets start realizing that in no place has there ever been a study that said these ingredients, GMO inputs, are bad for consumers, or in any way injure our livelihood, or our health.” …”The bottom line is this technology is safe, and we have nothing to hide.” (This is a partial transcript of her talk)
Again in all due respect to the good senator, I would offer a differing opinion on the scientific evidence for safety of GMO food The reality is that there is NO Scientific Consensus that GMO Food is Safe. (4-6)
The reason for this is unlike drugs which require placebo controlled trials showing effectiveness and safety, GMO Food was FDA approved in the US without any safety testing or labeling based on the theory of “substantial equivalence”. This GMO regulation was written by Michael Taylor, a lawyer and Monsanto V.P. who was appointed to the FDA for the sole purpose of writing GMO regulations favorable to Monsanto. For the next generation of GMO products, these rules will no doubt be changed, as safety testing will be necessary and mandatory according to David R Schubert, in his article, “The Problem with nutritionally enhanced plants in Journal Medicinal food 2008″
“Among the next generation of genetically modified (GM) plants are those that are engineered to produce elevated levels of nutritional molecules such as vitamins, omega-3 fatty acids, and amino acids. Based upon the U.S. current regulatory scheme, the plants and their products may enter our food supply without any required safety testing. The potential risks of this type of GM plant are discussed in the context of human health, and it is argued that there should be very careful safety testing of plants designed to produce biologically active molecules before they are commercially grown and consumed. This will require a mandatory, scientifically rigorous review process.”
Feed Your Gandchildren GMO Food Containing Bt toxin
As you have heard in the CSPAN video, Senator Heidi Heitkamp’s feeds her grandchildren GMO food. Perhaps she is referring to GMO Corn Flakes for breakfast. Left image Bowl of GMO Corn Flakes (Bt Corn) courtesy of wikimedia commons.
My first question to Senator Heitkamp is without a label on the corn flakes box, how can she be sure her grandhildren are getting “healthy” GMO food, rather than the non-GMO corn? My second question to Senator Heitkamp is “Have you reviewed recent toxicology studies on the Bt Corn ?” For your convenience, these are discussed below.
How Healthy is the Bt Toxin in GMO Corn Flakes?
GMO corn contains a gene from the Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) bacteria which produce insecticidal proteins named Cry toxins.(52) Although originally thought to be harmless to humans, this Cry toxin is not innocuous, and activates macrophages, (49-51) Dr Torres-Martínez says in the The International Journal of Biochemistry & Cell Biology (2016).(49) :
“Although it was originally considered innocuous for mammals, the Cry1Ac toxin is not inert and has the ability to induce mucosal and systemic immunogenicity. … These data demonstrate the capacity of the Cry1Ac toxin to induce macrophage activation via the MAPK and NF-κB pathways.”
Dr Rubio-Infante says in J Appl Toxicol. 2016 May:(51):
Although the term ‘toxic’ is not appropriate for defining the effects these (Bt) toxins have on mammals, they cannot be considered innocuous, as they have some physiological effects that may become pathological; “
Unethical Medical Experimentation or Healthy ?
Here in the US, many of us, including the good Senator, are feeding our grandchildren GMO Corn Flakes without even being aware of it. However, outside the US, this is called medical experimentation, and requires IRB (Institutional Review Board) approval. For example, a study done in China by Dr Guangwen Tang fed GMO Rice to 68 children. This GMO study was published, and then later retracted when authorities discovered that Dr Tang failed to obtain proper IRB approval. (53-55) Apparently none of the parents of these children were informed the rice had been genetically modified. In all due respect, I have another question for the good Senator:
“Why is it that here in America, we are unaware our kids are eating GMO food every day, yet in China feeding GMO food to children requires parental informed consent and IRB approval? Do the Chinese know something we don’t know? Is the marketing of GMO food in the USA a population wide unethical medical experiment?”
Increasing Disease in Our Population
There has been an exponential Increase in gastroIntestinal and other diseases since introduction of GMO Food and Glyphosate. Just ask the CDC for ICD coded hospital discharge data. Nancy Swanson has provided these charts in her publications showing high correlation with glyphosate and increasing incidence of 22 diseases.(29) In all due respect, don’t you think it would be prudent to do epidemiologic studies to determine if this correlation was correct and indicated causation? Below charts are only a few of 22 diseases that all look pretty much the same, courtesy of Nancy Swanson (29) This is a public health issue, so why not allocate a few Billion dollars to various Departments of Public Health such as Yale, Harvard, Duke, Stanford, University of Chicago etc to study this issue ? Are not these people the great minds who can solve this?
Military Readiness of the Nation
Military readiness of the population is the business of Congress and the Government, and historically, the argument for military readiness has been a strong and effective one used to pass various pieces of legislation. We need vaccines for our soldiers to go overseas, so the vaccine manufacturers were made exempt from product liability litigation. After the War, having survived aerial bombardment in the Battle Over Britain, the British government decided a healthy population contributed to military readiness, and instituted a national health service, because it was in the national interest to have a healthy population that could defend the country. My question to Senators Stabenow, Roberts, and Heitkamp is: If GMO and Glyphosate ingredients in our food supply are making our population sick, doesn’t that reduce our military readiness and the ability of the population to defend the nation? Isn’t Military readiness based on the health of the population. ?
Below charts show increasing diseases (yellow bar) rising in tandem with increasing GMO and glyphosate usage (green and red lines):
Next listen to Senator Richard Blumenthal (D) from Connecticut talk about the Stabenow/Roberts GMO Labeling Bill:
Senator Richard Blumenthal Calls the Labeling Bill a “Micky Mouse Cartoon.”
Rather than place a simple easy to read GMO label on the food package, this bill mandates a more complicated “bar code” which requires the shopper to use a smart phone to read the bar code,and access the information. Is this simply a GMO Industry ploy to give the appearance of labeling, yet makes it virtually impossible for busy shoppers to actually read them? Senator Richard Blumenthal (D Conn) says this is a “cartoon version” of labeling which is an insult to Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck.
Approved by the Senate and House
This Stabenow/Roberts GMO Labeling Bill was approved by both the Senate and House, and signed into law by President Obama Friday July 29, 2016.
Genetic Contamination of the Environment:
The issue of genetic contamination of the environment was not mentioned in Senator Heidi Heitkamp’s remarks. This is a serious issue, because once Genetically Modified Organisms are released into the environment, they don’t gradually degrade and dissipate as does chemical pollution. Unlike chemical pollution, GMO pollution multiplies throughout the eco-system like releasing a genie from a bottle. You can’t get it back. This results in contamination of neighboring fields and a “public nuisance” as described above.
Patented Seeds Equals Patent Ownership of Life Itself
Another huge issue not mentioned by Senator Heitkamp is the issue of patent ownership of seeds. For centuries, farmers have collected seeds from the previous year’s harvest to plant the following year. Now, with patent ownership of GMO seeds, farmers are required to purchase new seeds each year from Monsanto or face expensive court litigation. One might raise questions about the moral and ethical implications of ownership rights over life itself, and the ability of nature to reproduce itself. In my opinion, current laws granting patent ownership of seeds and seed progeny are unconstitutional, illegal and should be overturned. Left image courtesy of Seed Freedom.
In conclusion, I am not opposed to GMO biotechnology in itself. As is true for any new technology, biotechnology can be used wisely or foolishly, for good or evil. True, biotechnology has been a boon for drug development, such as recombinant human insulin and human growth hormone made by bacteria programmed to produce the protein. True, there are examples where biotechnology has been useful for certain types of agricultural products and growing conditions.
I do take issue with the non-regulation and non-labeling of GMO Food in the US. The genetic modification of a plant creates a new drug, and is not substantially equivalent to anything. Currently, drugs have a higher level of scrutiny, safety testing and labeling than GMO Foods which hit the market place without any requirement for safety testing, nor labeling. Placing a label on the package of GMO products on the grocery shelf is a good start to correct this problem. Next we must push for mandatory safety testing of all GMO products, which must receive the same level of scrutiny as any new drug.
You have the Power to Win the GMO Food Fight !
March Against Monsanto Protest marches are one way to bring attention to the adverse health effects of GMO food. However protests are largely ignored by legislative bodies that make the laws governing GMO food.
However, there is another way to win this battle which cannot be ignored. Tremendous power rests your individual choices at the grocery store. I urge you to stop buying GMO Food at the grocery store, and instead, buy organic food, which by definition does not contain GMO ingredients. If enough of the population rejects GMO Food, then major food companies will gladly stop using GMO ingredients in their products, bringing an end to this vast failed medical experiment. If our entire population refuses to purchase food containing GMO ingredients, then the end will come to this great scandal called GMO Food, and we will all reclaim our right to health, liberty and pursuit of happiness as protected by our constitutional.
Update July 29 2016: House gives thumbs-up to GMO label law; bill goes to Obama. Agriculture Department officials will have two years to determine how to implement labeling rules. By Jim Spencer Star Tribune July 14, 2016. Bill signed into law by President Obama June 29.
Update Oct 31 2016, , Doubts About the Promised Bounty of Genetically Modified Crops by By DANNY HAKIM New York Times OCT. 29, 2016
“genetic modification in the United States and Canada has not accelerated increases in crop yields or led to an overall reduction in the use of chemical pesticides.”
Twenty years ago, Europe largely rejected genetic modification at the same time the United States and Canada were embracing it. Comparing results on the two continents, shows how the technology has fallen short.
Articles with related interest:
Zika Virus or Glyphosate Causing Microcephaly in Brazil ?
Dont Ask For HIV Test, Ask For Glyphosate Test
Genetically Modified Food, GMO the Great Scandal
Jeffrey Dach MD
7450 Griffin Road Suite 180/190
Davie, Florida 33314
954-792-4663
Links and References:
Heidi Heitkamp north dakota senator gmo label
1) Senator Heidi Heitkamp Speaks In Favor Of S. 764
Coalition For Safe Affordable Food
2) http://thehill.com/regulation/legislation/286720-gmo-labeling-bill-advances-in-senate
The Hill – GMO labeling bill advances in the Senate over Dem objections
3) Senator Blumenthal (Conn) Speaks Out Against Anti-GMO Labeling Measure
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No scientific concensus on safety of GMOS
4) http://www.ensser.org/increasing-public-information/no-scientific-consensus-on-gmo-safety/
10/21/13 Statement: No scientific consensus on GMO safety
European Network of SCientists for Social and Environmental Resposibility
“Decisions on the future of our food and agriculture should not be based on misleading and misrepresentative claims that a “scientific consensus” exists on GMO safety. ”
NO Scientific Consensus
5) No scientific consensus on GMO safety. by Angelika Hilbeck, et al. “No scientific consensus on GMO safety.” Environmental Sciences Europe 27.1 (2015): 1.
Rigorous studies investigating the safety of GM crops and foods would normally involve, inter alia, animal feeding studies in which one group of animals is fed GM food and another group is fed an equivalent non-GM diet. Independent studies of this type are rare, but when such studies have been performed, some have revealed toxic effects or signs of toxicity in the GM-fed animals [2,8,11-13]. The concerns raised by these studies have not been followed up by targeted research that could confirm or refute the initial findings.
It is often claimed that ‘trillions of GM meals’ have been eaten in the US with no ill effects. However, no epidemiological studies in human populations have been carried out to establish whether there are any health effects associated with GM food consumption.
6) Illusory Consensus GMO Health Assessment Science Technology Human Values Sheldon Krimsky 2015
Krimsky, Sheldon. “An illusory consensus behind GMO health assessment.” Science, Technology & Human Values (2015): 0162243915598381.
I found twenty-six animal feeding studies that have shown adverse effects or animal health uncertainties.
This point was made by the 300 scientists who signed a joint statement that was published in Environmental Sciences Europe. The statement ‘‘does not assert that GMOs are unsafe or safe. Rather the statement concludes that the scarcity and contradictory nature of the scientific evidence published to date prevents conclusive claims of safety, or lack of safety, of GMOs’’ (Hilbeck et al. 2015, 1). David Schubert, professor at the Salk Institute, summarized the state of affairs of the GMO controversy as follows: ‘‘To me, the only reasonable solution is to require that all GM plant products be tested for long-term toxicity and carcinogenicity before being brought to market’’
(2002, 969).
I have argued that the putative consensus about the inherent safety of transgenic crops is premature.
pro gm rebuttal to Krimsky
7) https://foodscienceinstitute.com/2015/08/27/krimskys-illusory-consensus-is-itself-illusory/ Krimsky’s ‘Illusory Consensus’ is itself illusory
8) https://www.bostonglobe.com/lifestyle/health-wellness/2014/08/17/with-sheldon-krimsky/oR1rIk3yspnUcJvHKtrrbM/story.html
Q&A with Sheldon Krimsky By Karen Weintraub Boston Globe Correspondent August 18, 2014
Hybrid crops are in the same species. In genetically engineered crops, you’re taking a gene from a completely distant species, and putting it in a plant genome.
Professor Sheldon Krimsky, editor and author of The GMO Deception: What You Need to Know About the Food, Corporations, and Government Agencies Putting Our Families and Our Environment at Risk.
The deception in this statement is that it mistakenly assumes that genetic engineering of plants is a precise technology for transplanting genes. The fact is that the insertion of foreign DNA is an imprecise and uncontrolled process. One of the common mistakes made by the pro-GMO advocates is that they treat the plant genome like a Lego construction where the insertion or deletion of a gene does not affect the other genes. They argue that adding new genes just adds new properties to the organism. This understanding of genetics was long ago proven obsolete in human biology where scientists have come to understand that most characteristics are influenced by complex interactions among multiple genes and the environment acting together.
The FDA’s approach to risk assessment of GMO crops is based on the concept of “substantial equivalence.” While the concept has never been well-defined, it is based on the idea that when a few components of the GMO crop such as certain nutrients and amino acids are similar in content to its non- GMO counterpart, the GMO crop is declared “substantially equivalent.”
The gap between what is being proposed by independent scientists and what is actually being done in hazard assessment of GMO crops is gargantuan. Nowhere is it greater than in the United States where the food safety requirements for GMO crops are similar to the chemical food additives designated as “generally regarded as safe” (or GRAS). In both cases the evaluation of health effects largely has been left to the manufacturers.
9) Book by Steven Druker : Altered Genes, Twisted Truth: How the Venture to Genetically Engineer Our Food Has Subverted Science, Corrupted Government, and Systematically Deceived the Public 1st Edition by (Author)
10) Book by Sheldon Krimsky, The GMO Deception: What You Need to Know About the Food, Corporations, and Government Agencies Putting Our Families and Our Environment at Risk.
11) full free pdf
Schubert, David R. “The problem with nutritionally enhanced plants.” Journal of medicinal food 11.4 (2008): 601-605. Problem with nutritionally enhanced plants Journal Medicinal food David Schubert 2008
ABSTRACT Among the next generation of genetically modified (GM) plants are those that are engineered to produce elevated levels of nutritional molecules such as vitamins, omega-3 fatty acids, and amino acids. Based upon the U.S. current regulatory scheme, the plants and their products may enter our food supply without any required safety testing. The potential risks of this type of GM plant are discussed in the context of human health, and it is argued that there should be very careful safety testing of plants designed to produce biologically active molecules before they are commercially grown and consumed. This will require a mandatory, scientifically rigorous review process.
12) Ghostbusters, GMOs and the Feigned Expertise of Nobel Laureates by Devon G. Peña July 5, 2016
13) William F Engdahl : Seeds of Destruction – The GMO Hidden Agenda
14) We Don’t Need Golden Rice by Robert Greer Guest Authors / July 17, 2015 in The League
Fruit and root crops rich in Vitamin A are plentiful in every heavily-populated bioregion in the world. Mangoes, oranges, yams, squash, papaya, watermelons, and cantaloupes are all rich in Vitamin A, and these crops typically produce yields that rival or surpass GMO rice. Virtually every significant farming culture has had hundreds of years of experience with at least one of these crops.
the IRRI explained in 2014 that GMO golden rice had failed its field trials, hadn’t yet been safety tested, and wouldn’t be available for several years. Promoters of GMO golden rice seem to want an impoverished food model to continue by ensuring that all people will have to eat is rice, in this case an untested-for-long-term-safety GMO rice. Increasingly people lack access to land on which to grow crops to feed themselves. This is a political and economic problem that will not be solved by offering GM crops.
15) Monsanto ‘Biotechnology Book for Kids’ Caught Brainwashing Children
Anthony Gucciardi Posted on March 22, 2012
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GMO FOOD Rejected or Banned in 60 Countries
16) Keith Good: China’s Rejection of GMO Corn May Have Cost U.S. Ag $2.9B By Mike Christensen April 17, 2014
17) The Japanese reject American/Monsanto GMO wheat by turning to Russian wheat Posted on May 6, 2016 by Bd-1 In Tokyo
Japan has rejected GMO-raised crops as a food source and that includes American produced wheat while America is alleged to be facing a crisis in exporting crops. Is it any wonder since more and more governments, including the Russian and Japanese governments, are becoming acutely aware the threat imposed by GMO crops? …. Russia has now declared that it would become the world’s largest producer on non-GMO foods and that is encouraging.
18) CNBC – Govt decides to ban GMO food production in Russia: Deputy PM Wednesday, 23 Sep 2015
A senior Russian government member told reporters the cabinet decided that any food production in the country will completely exclude any genetically-modified organisms or parts thereof.
“As far as genetically-modified organisms are concerned, we have made decision not to use any GMO in food productions,” Deputy PM Arkady Dvorkovich said at an international conference on biotechnology in the Russian city of Kirov.
19) Russian president signs law banning GMO production July 05, 2016 TASS News. MOSCOW, July 5. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed the law banning genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and production in Russia, excluding examinations and scientific researches. The law was passed by the State Duma (lower house of parliament) on June 24 and approved by the Federation Council (upper house) on June 29, 2016.
The law bans imports of GMOs aimed for releasing to the environment and GMO products to the territory of the Russian Federation. The document obliges importers of GMO products to a compulsory public registration.
20) GMO Facts Frequently Asked Questions NON GMO Project
Most developed nations do not consider GMOs to be safe. In more than 60 countries around the world, including Australia, Japan, and all of the countries in the European Union, there are significant restrictions or outright bans on the production and sale of GMOs.
Senator stastes GMO Food Labeling is a “Wrecking Ball”
21) https://www.congress.gov/congressional-record/2016/3/16/senate-section/article/s1516-1
What we face today is a handful of States that have chosen to enact
labeling requirements on information that has nothing to do with
health, safety, or nutrition.
Those labeling laws will ultimately impact consumers who will suffer from higher priced food. It will cost $1,050 per year for an average family of four.
The amendment before us today stops this wrecking ball before any more damage can be done.
22) GMO Wars: The Global Battlefield The case against GMOs has strengthened steadily over the last few years, even as the industry has expanded all over the world. By Walden Bello, October 28, 2013
in Thailand for instance, one of the world’s leading producers of rice, those who grow rice – and would potentially grow Golden Rice – do so for the sole purpose of selling it. They do indeed consume part of their annual harvest – but the species they grow are determined by market demand. Not only is there no demand for genetically modified rice species, nor will there ever be, Golden Rice contaminating the thousands of varieties of native, organic rice species Asia’s rice farmers do depend on for their livelihood would be an immeasurable catastrophe.
23) What is the status of the Golden Rice project coordinated by IRRI?
Golden Rice will only be made available broadly to farmers and consumers if it is successfully developed into rice varieties suitable for Asia, approved by national regulators, and shown to improve vitamin A status in community conditions.
24) Buiatti, M., P. Christou, and G. Pastore. “The application of GMOs in agriculture and in food production for a better nutrition: two different scientific points of view.” Genes & nutrition 8.3 (2012): 255.
25) Fitzpatrick, Teresa B., et al. “Vitamin deficiencies in humans: can plant science help?.” The Plant Cell 24.2 (2012): 395-414.
26) Lucht, Jan M. “Public acceptance of plant biotechnology and GM crops.” Viruses 7.8 (2015): 4254-4281.
Almost no GM food products are found on European grocery shelves,
Europeans, where labeled GM foods have been kept off the market.
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27) Anthony Samsel blasts GMO-Technology and the one gene one enzyme hyphotheses Tonu.org
28) Samsel A, Seneff S. Glyphosate, pathways to modern diseases II: Celiac sprue and gluten intolerance. Glyphosate pathways to modern diseases Celiac Gluten Two Seneff 2013
29) Swanson, Nancy L., et al. “Genetically engineered crops, glyphosate and the deterioration of health in the United States of America.” Journal of Organic Systems 9.2 (2014): 6-37. Genetically engineered crops glyphosate deterioration health United States Swanson J Organic Systems 2014
30) The Possible Link between Autism and Glyphosate Acting as Glycine Mimetic – A Review of Evidence from the Literature with Analysis
Beecham JE and Stephanie Seneff Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge MA 02139, USA
31) Is there a link between autism and glyphosate-formulated herbicides?
James E. Beecham1 and Stephanie Seneff MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA.
34) Glyphosate Roundup Human Placental Cells Aromatase Seralini Richard 2005 Env Health Persp
35) Glyphosate herbicides toxic endocrine disruptors human cell Gasnier Toxicology 2009
36) Human contamination by glyphosate Friends of the Earth Europe 2013
37) IARC_Monograph_20_March_2015_Volume_112_Herbicide_Glyphosate_Cancer_Carcinogen_Dr_Oz
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Golden Rice
38) Potentially Dangerous GMO ‘Golden Rice’ Fed to Children Without Warning by Elizabeth Renter Posted on October 20, 2013
Starlink Corn Public Nuisance
August 2004, Aventis settled a class-action lawsuit and paid farmers 110 million dollars for genetic contamination of farmers fields with the Aventis Starlink Corn. A separate settlement paid 9 million dollars to consumers who had heath problems from consuming the genetically modified Starlink corn. The courts considered the GMO Starlink Corn a “public nuisance”, and this ruling was enough to cause Aventis to abandon its next GMO product, the Liberty Link™ Soybean. A similar class action suit was settled for LibertyLink rice.
39) Posted 8/23/2004 StarLink corn settlement also to include interest By Kevin O’Hanlon, Associated Press LINCOLN, Neb.
40) Engineering Legal Risk Management Into Agricultural Biotechnology Thomas P Redick 2004 Engineering Legal Risk Management Into Agricultural Biotechnology Thomas P Redick 2004
41) February 25, 2015 Schlessinger, L., and A. B. Endres. “The Missing Link: Farmers’ Class Action Against Syngenta May Answer Legal Questions Left After the StarLink and LibertyLink Litigation.” farmdoc daily (5):35, Department of Agricultural and Consumer Economics, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, February 25, 2015.
Professor Don Huber
42) Scientist says flawed science of GMOs jeopardizing future generations
By Ken Roseboro Published: March 1, 2012
Don Huber, emeritus professor of plant pathologiy at Purdue University, gave a two-and-a-half hour indictment of glyphosate herbicide and genetically modified crops at the Acres USA conference in December.
Mae Wan Ho and The Institute of Science In Society
43) BANISHING GLYPHOSATE .pdf – The Institute of Science In Society BANISHING GLYPHOSATE The Institute of Science In Society Mae Wan Ho
44) The American Academy Of Environmental Medicine Calls For Immediate Moratorium On Genetically Modified Foods Press Advisory – May 19, 2009
Wichita, KS – The American Academy of Environmental Medicine (AAEM) today released its position paper on Genetically Modified foods stating that “GM foods pose a serious health risk” and calling for a moratorium on GM foods. Citing several animal studies, the AAEM concludes “there is more than a casual association between GM foods and adverse health effects” and that “GM foods pose a serious health risk in the areas of toxicology, allergy and immune function, reproductive health, and metabolic, physiologic and genetic health.”
“Multiple animal studies have shown that GM foods cause damage to various organ systems in the body. With this mounting evidence, it is imperative to have a moratorium on GM foods for the safety of our patients’ and the public’s health,” said Dr. Amy Dean, PR chair and Board Member of AAEM.
45) GMO Myths and Truths Jill Carnahan, MD
Golden Rice
46) full free pdf GMO Myths and Truths John Fagan Michael Antoniou Claire Robinson Earth Open Source 2014 GMO Myths and Truths An evidence-based examination of the claims made for the safety and efficacy of genetically modified crops and foods 2014
John Fagan, PhD Michael Antoniou, PhD Claire Robinson, MPhil
2nd edition, Version 2.0 Earth Open Source
2nd Floor, 145–157 St John Street
London EC1V 4PY, Great Britain
www.earthopensource.org
The much-hyped GM golden rice, which is claimed to be able to alleviate vitamin A deficiency in developing countries, is still not ready for the market and at the time of writing had not yet undergone toxicological testing.
At the time of writing (2014), golden rice had not been subjected to basic toxicological testing in animals – testing that is required by the European regulatory system for all GMOs before they can be authorized for human consumption.10 Nevertheless this GM rice was fed to human subjects (adults11 and children12) in experiments conducted by researchers from Tufts University, Boston, MA.
The feeding of GM golden rice to human subjects, especially young children, in the absence of prior animal toxicological testing was condemned by international scientists as a breach of medical ethics and the Nuremberg Code, which was established after World War II to prevent a repeat of inhumane Nazi experiments on people.13
Inexpensive and effective methods of combating vitamin A deficiency have long been available. The World Health Organization’s (WHO) long-standing project to combat vitamin A deficiency uses supplements where necessary, but centres on education and development programmes. These programmes encourage mothers to breastfeed and teach people how to grow carrots and leafy vegetables in home gardens – two inexpensive, effective, and widely available solutions.
Beta-carotene is one of the commonest molecules in nature, being found in abundance in green leafy plants and fruits. There is no need to engineer beta-carotene into rice.
The WHO says its programme has “averted an estimated 1.25 million deaths since 1998 in 40 countries.”15 According to WHO malnutrition expert Francesco Branca, these approaches are, for now, more promising approaches to combating vitamin A deficiency than golden rice.6
Vitamin A supplementation enjoys broad support. A review published in the British Medical Journal assessed 43 studies involving 200,000 children and found deaths were cut by 24% if children were given the vitamin. The researchers estimated that giving vitamin A supplements to children under the age of five in developing countries could save 600,000 lives a year. They concluded, “Vitamin A supplements are highly effective and cheap to produce and administer.”16,17
47) GMO OMG Film director and concerned father Jeremy Seifert is in search of answers. How do GMOs affect our children, the health of our planet, and our freedom of choice? And perhaps the ultimate question, which Seifert tests himself: is it even possible to reject the food system currently in place, or have we lost something we can’t gain back? These and other questions take Seifert on a journey from his family’s table to Haiti, Paris, Norway, and the lobby of agra-giant Monsanto, from which he is unceremoniously ejected. Along the way we gain insight into a question that is of growing concern to citizens the world over: what’s on your plate?
48) Bipartisan GMO Labeling Bill Passes in Senate, Opinions Divided Within Organic Community July 11, 2016 by Emily Monaco Organic Authority.
The bipartisan GMO labeling bill developed by Senators Pat Roberts and Debbie Stabenow passed in the Senate last week. Now that the GMO labeling bill has passed in the Senate, it must be reconciled with the House’s bill before a final version is signed by the White House.
Bt Toxin in Corn
49) Torres-Martínez, Marilu, et al. “Cry1Ac toxin induces macrophage activation via ERK1/2, JNK and p38 mitogen-activated protein kinases.” The International Journal of Biochemistry & Cell Biology (2016).
The Cry1Ac toxin from Bacillus thuringiensis is used commercially as a bio-insecticide and is expressed in transgenic plants that are used for human and animal consumption. Although it was originally considered innocuous for mammals, the Cry1Ac toxin is not inert and has the ability to induce mucosal and systemic immunogenicity. Herein, we examined whether the Cry1Ac toxin promotes macrophage activation and explored the signalling pathways that may mediate this effect. Treatment of primary and RAW264.7 macrophages with the Cry1Ac toxin resulted in upregulation of the costimulatory molecules CD80, CD86 and ICOS-L and enhanced production of nitric oxide, the chemokine MCP-1 and the proinflammatory cytokines TNF-α and IL-6. Remarkably, the Cry1Ac toxin induced phosphorylation of the mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) ERK1/2, JNK and p38 and promoted nuclear translocation of nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) p50 and p65. p38 and ERK1/2 MAPKs were involved in this effect, as indicated by the Cry1Ac-induced upregulation of CD80 and IL-6 and TNF-α abrogation by the p38 MAPK inhibitor SB203580.
Furthermore, treatment the MEK1/2 kinase inhibitor PD98059 blocked increases in MCP-1 secretion and augmented Cry1Ac-induced ICOS-L upregulation. These data demonstrate the capacity of the Cry1Ac toxin to induce macrophage activation via the MAPK and NF-κB pathways.
50) full free pdf Glöckner, Gottfried, and G. E. Séralini. “Pathology reports on the first cows fed with Bt176 maize (1997–2002).” Scholarly Journal of Agricultural Science 6 (2016): 1-8. Pathology reports cows fed Bt176 maize Glöckner and Séralini 2016
51) J Appl Toxicol. 2016 May;36(5):630-48. doi: 10.1002/jat.3252. Epub 2015 Nov 4.
An overview of the safety and biological effects of Bacillus thuringiensis Cry toxins in mammals. Rubio-Infante N1, Moreno-Fierros L1.
Crystal proteins (Cry) produced during the growth and sporulation phases of Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) bacterium are known as delta endotoxins. These toxins are being used worldwide as bioinsecticides to control pests in agriculture, and some Cry toxins are used against mosquitoes to control vector transmission. This review summarizes the relevant information currently available regarding the biosafety and biological effects that Bt and its insecticidal Cry proteins elicit in mammals. This work was performed because of concerns regarding the possible health impact of Cry toxins on vertebrates, particularly because Bt toxins might be associated with immune-activating or allergic responses. The controversial data published to date are discussed in this review considering earlier toxicological studies of B. thuringiensis, spores, toxins and Bt crops. We discussed the experimental studies performed in humans, mice, rats and sheep as well as in diverse mammalian cell lines. Although the term ‘toxic’ is not appropriate for defining the effects these toxins have on mammals, they cannot be considered innocuous, as they have some physiological effects that may become pathological; thus, trials that are more comprehensive are necessary to determine their effects on mammals because knowledge in this field remains limited.
52) Pardo-Lopez, L., et al. “Strategies to improve the insecticidal activity of Cry toxins from Bacillus thuringiensis.” Peptides 30.3 (2009): 589-595.
53) Tang, Guangwen, et al. “β-Carotene in Golden Rice is as good as β-carotene in oil at providing vitamin A to children.” The American journal of clinical nutrition 96.3 (2012): 658-664.
54) Golden rice paper retracted after legal bid fails By Erik StokstadJul. 31, 2015 , 3:00 PM SCience Magazine
55) Retraction of Tang G, Hu Y, Yin S-a, Wang Y, Dallal GE, Grusak MA, and Russell RM. b-Carotene in Golden Rice is as good as
b-carotene in oil at providing vitamin A to children. Am J Clin Nutr 2012;96:658–64.
The article cited above, which was originally published in the September 2012 issue and prepublished on 1 August 2012, has been
retracted by the publisher for the following reasons:
1. The authors are unable to provide sufficient evidence that the study had been reviewed and approved by a local ethics committee in China in a manner fully consistent with NIH guidelines. Furthermore, the engaged institutions in China did not have US Federal Wide Assurances and had not registered their Institutional Review Board (or Ethics Review Committee).
2. The authors are unable to substantiate through documentary evidence that all parents or children involved in the study were provided with the full consent form for the study.
3. Specific eligibility issues were identified in regard to 2 subjects in the study.
This retraction was prepublished online on 29 July 2015.
56) GMO Alfalfa Licencse Declined Because of Genetic Contamination of Organic Alfalfa Farms in Canada Real Farmacy
57) The Last Roundup: how Monsanto created the fable of “the world’s safest herbicide” By Warren Bell in Opinion July 15th 2016 National Observer
58) 10 Reasons WE DON’T NEED GMO FOOD July 23, 2015 by Anne Dietrich . 10 reasons we don’t need GM foods by Claire Robinson, MPhil, Michael Antoniou, PhD, and John Fagan, PhD
59) 10 Questions About Foods by Claire Robinson, MPhil, Michael Antoniou, PhD, and John Fagan, PhD 10 Questions About Foods by Claire Robinson Michael Antoniou John Fagan 2014 Earth Open Source
2nd Floor, 145-157 St John Street, London EC1V 4PY, Great Britain
© Claire Robinson, John Fagan, and Michael Antoniou, 2014
This leaflet is based on evidence collected in GMO Myths and Truths, 2nd edition (Earth Open Source, 2014)
60) Elevated liver enzymes and abnormal liver histology free pdf
Feeding study with Bt corn MON810 ajeeb YG on rats biochemical analysis and liver histopathology Food and Nutrition Sciences 2014
Abdo, Eman Mohamed, Omar Mohamed Barbary, and Omayma El-Sayed Shaltout. “Feeding study with Bt corn (MON810: ajeeb YG) on rats: biochemical analysis and liver histopathology.” Food and Nutrition Sciences 5.02 (2014): 185.
61) Séralini, Gilles-Eric, et al. “Republished study: long-term toxicity of a Roundup herbicide and a Roundup-tolerantgenetically modified maize.” Environmental Sciences Europe 26.1 (2014): 1.
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