To GMO or not to GMO;  An interesting blog entry by Jodi Rich.    http://www.naturalproductsmarketplace.com/blogs/shelflife/2011/06/to-gmo-or-not-to-gmo.aspx



Three approved GMO's linked to Organ Damage  This article goes back to January 2010 but I'd thought it is worth a visit if you haven't seen any reports on the GMO research.


Celebrate a Safer Life with new GMO law     Wow!  This is awesome!  Mandated separate shelving for GMO's in grocery stores.  Too bad it's not happening here.

The Grocery List: 6 GMO foods you want to avoid

This is a good one if you are new to GMO land.  Although there are better articles out there on the "Avoid This GMO Food" subject, this is a great place to start.  I don't know if I'm just becoming more aware or if people in general are becoming more aware of GMO's, but I hardly ever see articles like this popping up.  I did, however, just recently tweak my Google Alerts to be less selective in what it alerts me to regarding GMO's.....so it's entirely possible that these smaller articles are just showing up on my screen now whereas before they weren't included in my alert results.

Suffice it to say, I'm glad to see anything in the news that encourages the general public to increase their awareness of GMO's in their foods.  Given that scientific research is starting to show some serious problems with long term consumption of GMO foods (I'll include some of those articles in another post), it's important for each of us to make a decision on whether or not we want to consume these foods.

Anything with non-organic Canola (like oil), Corn, Soy (think soy lecithin, soy oil, soy milk, soy yogurt, you name it), Sugar made from sugar beets (I wouldn't trust any label that just shows 'sugar' as the ingredient.  I want to see 'evaporated cane sugar' on that label instead.  They haven't GMO'd sugar cane....yet.).  Some zucchini is GMO'd but I don't know much about how prevelant it is.  Alfalfa has just recently been allowed  a GMO status which could greatly impact the organic industry because of the amount of alfalfa used by any animal, especially cows, and there is no way to prevent GMO pollen or seed drift.  I recently heard that there are GMO grapes out there but I don't know where.  I haven't been able to find much on that.  Oh, and Dairy.  How could I forget?  The growth hormone r-BST (aka r-BGH) given to non-organic cows, is a GMO product.  Avoid that!

Anyway, here is the link.  Anything with non-organic dairy, corn, soy, canola, sugar on the label is suspect as a GMO product.  Unless it is organic, you can bet it is GMO based.

http://www.organicsoul.com/the-grocery-list-6-gmo-foods-you-want-to-avoid/

What do you know about Organic Standards and who regulates them?

http://organicconsumers.org/sos.cfm  
Safeguard Organic Standards  
If you are not familiar with what it takes to protect organic food and crop standards, this is a rudimentary look at the basic areas in which organic food is threatened.  Organic standards may be set in place but they can easily be corrupted by corporate and political interests looking for a quicker buck.


http://www.treehugger.com/files/2011/06/charges-of-corruption-taint-organic-trade-association.php
OTA Has Spies           Apparently, the Organic Trade Associationi (OTA), which is the regulatory organization tasked with maintaining organic standards here in the U.S., has been infiltrated by the likes of GMO corporate interests and corporate lust for the almighty dollar.  How surprising!  (Sorry, but I'm SO biased.)

Food Conspiracy between Government and Chemical Company (Surprised?)

To keep yourself updated on the subject of GMO policy and activity in this country and abroad, set Google Alerts  ( http://google.com/alerts) to search for and alert you of any news relating to either 'Monsanto' or 'GMO'.

Google Alerts


Check out these articles that surfaced in the past week:

1)   Commentary on how our government continues to hire people who used to work with Monsanto and other chemical companies to establish and oversee our policies on GMO.  Hmmm....conflict of interest here?  Anyone in the policy making department going to be interested in what WE have to say about it?
http://www.times-standard.com/guest_opinion/ci_18258653

2)   Now, for a feel-good moment about GMO activism.  Shouldn't we send this guy money or something to cover his attorney fees?! 

http://www.slowfoodusa.org/index.php/slow_food/blog_post/organic_farmers_v_monsanto/