QUESTION AND ANSWERS

Studies show that more than 90% of Americans support mandatory labeling of genetically engineered (GE) foods.

What are your thoughts on genetically engineered food? Are you comfortable feeding food that has been genetically modified to your kids? Do you think it should be labeled?

• Faye Adamsyes writes, “GM food is synthetic, gross and not nutritious. Label it please.”
• Robin Morgan Huntley writes, “I don’t have kids, but if/when I do, I will definitely avoid it – I try not to feed it to myself, either. I know little about the science behind it (unfortunately), but common sense tells me that real food is better for you. Why mess with something that already works so well?!
• Jennifer Lee Wildermuth writes, “We do our best to not feed it, but because we’re just learning everything that has been GM’d it should be labeled. It would save us a lot of time researching what is safe.”
• Heather Fletcher writes, “It should definitely be labeled! I avoid it at all costs. Bodies know how to digest real food, not food altered in a lab. Pollen from GMO foods can infect natural crops, effects the soil, water, meat that is fed it. I wonder if this is partially the reason for an increase in food allergies. Get rid of GMO-mother nature is perfect lets not mess with it!  Avoid non-organic corn & soy ad those are 2 big crops that are genetically modified.”
• Kara Kitchen writes, “In truth, most of our foods have been modified at some point to bring out the best traits (taste, hardiness, etc..) going all the way back to Mendel and his pea gene experiments! Point being it is so hard to avoid… Grocery shopping has become a research project with conflicting data, poor funding, and high costs (to our pockets and our lives!). I know I spend much more time at the store now from reading almost every label in my cart!”
• Carrie Cranston writes, “GMO. Fancy name for lab facilitated rapid selective breeding. No, don’t fear them. It took hundreds of years to get ears of corn with more than 20 Kernels. I’m glad to have eggs with higher Omega-3’s now instead of in another 100 years when selective breeding would have been able to bring it to fruition. GMO brought us insulin too. Ask any diabetic how they feel about that. Plus is had brought us and crops that are pest and disease resistant, reducing the use of pesticides and other crop treatments.”
• Lilly Jeffs Lombard writes, “Wow, Carrie, what faith you place in profit-driven biotechnology and a government that is supposed to ensure food safety but that is massively controlled by agribusiness giants like Monsanto.”
• Leah Nero Carrasquillo writes, “A lot of the pesticides and chemicals that GMO products are created to withstand are not so benign: How Chemicals Affect Us.
• Jess Kuttner writes, “I want to find out more about GMO food. I am highly suspicious and think it definitely should be labeled.”

[Photo credit: (ccl) Tomer Arazy]