Dear Nutritionist, I have not read much on GMOs. Basically I don’t understand how it’s different than what farmers have always done and why it gets so many people upset. I mean, why is it such a big deal when it helps us have better crops? Can you elaborate on this a bit? — Phil
Dear Phil,
The issue with GMO foods is a contentious one for many. I count myself among those who have serious concerns about them. Let me explain why.
What are GMOs?
First, let’s discuss what GMO means. These organisms (most plants but now some animals also) have been modified in a lab to contain the genes from other organisms — bacteria, animals, plants, viruses. Historically, gardeners and farmers or agricultural companies utilized traditional cross breeding methods to create plants or animals that had the greatest disease resistance or best yield or best breed standards with the fewest perceived weaknesses. This could mean a plant that wasn’t typically winter hardy could be crossed with one that was to create a new perennial, for example.
It’s believed that cross breeding has been going on as long as humans have been invested in agriculture. But it could take a long time to create the desired product, often years of breeding in the desired characteristics and breeding out the bad.
With GMOs, that wait time is bypassed. A new product can be created in very little time in a lab with some tweaking. So many argue that GMOs are beneficial.
What is the safety data?
However, there are a lot of issues that come along with this benefit. Foremost, the biggest concern of many in nutrition circles is that we do not have long-term data on the safety of consuming GMO foods. There have been no long-term feeding studies. It is entirely experimental and it’s completely unknown if the human body detects the genetic makeup of foods and is altered by it after repeated exposure. We just don’t know.
Why are GMOs created?
Still, some consumers believe this is an acceptable risk, given the many benefits of GMO foods — like increased yield and better nutritional traits. But that is a misrepresentation of what GMO foods offer. Many people are surprised to realize that to date, these promises haven’t been realized.
“Despite biotech industry promises, there is no evidence that any of the GMOs currently on the market offer increased yield, drought tolerance, enhanced nutrition, or any other consumer benefit.” nongmoproject.org
What have they been bred for, then? They are bred specifically to withstand the application of poisonous herbicides and/ or to produce insect repellent qualities. This allows big agricultural companies that practise monocropping and other unnatural cropping practices to protect their crops from the weed killer they use that would otherwise kill their plants, too.
The most famous of these weed killers, glyphosate, has been the subject of hundreds of lawsuits in recent years. Farmers were told it was safe, but many developed cancers. It has been found guilty and ordered to pay millions in damages. The suits began following the release of large scale studies that suggest glyphosate can increase cancer risk by up to 41 per cent in people who are regularly exposed to it.
Guess what the primary ingredient in your typical variety weed / lawn spray is? Yup. You guessed it. Glyphosate.
Why are they banned in many countries?
So if GMO products are not demonstrated to have longer shelf life, better yield, better nutrition, or better breeding qualities and they only protect plants from herbicides that we know pose a very real threat to human and animal health, it can be argued not to be in the public interest. This is why GMO foods have been banned from many countries, including France, Germany, Austria, Greece, Hungary, the Netherlands, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Bulgaria, Poland, Denmark, Malta, Slovenia, Italy, and Croatia. And in 64 countries it’s mandatory that GMO foods be labelled to ensure the public can make an informed decision.
What about Canada?
In Canada we do not yet have these protections. Consumers do not know which products contain GMO crops, which have been approved for sale in Canada since 1995. In fact, we are one of the 5th biggest producers of GMO foods in the world. “In Quebec alone, there are more GMO plants seeded than in 177 countries worldwide combined,” as reported by Food Security Canada. Corn and soy account for the greatest portion of these crops.
If this is of concern to you, you can read more and become involved here, here or here.
The impact on farmers
Even with labelling, there are other concerns that GMO crops present. Because they are created in a lab, the seeds are patented and privately owned. However, pollinators cross pollinate plants -— that is, until glyphosate and chemical herbicides kill their colonies. The cross pollination of plants infects surrounding non-GMO and organic crops with the genes of the altered species (gene-flow), meaning farmers are unable to save seeds or protect their organic crops from contamination.
This has created a situation where the large GMO companies can come in and confiscate a farmer’s seed and sue them to protect their patents. This is how many small farmers have gone under in the decade. The impact on small and sustainable or organic farmers has been devastating. For more information on this you can go here or here.
Many consumers don’t realize that the death of small and sustainable farmers creates a monopoly of the food supply. Monopolies are never good for consumers in a free market economic model.
Other concerns: biodiversity and super weeds
I haven’t even gone into the increase in super weeds and super pests or the impact on plant biodiversity because of the introduction of GMOs to our agriculture. The rocks thrown in this pond have very large ripples we have only begun to realize.
Which crops are GMO?
So GMO foods are a concern for small, organic, and sustainable farmers, for nutrition specialists, for food protection agencies, for animal / insect protection agencies, and for environmentalists. And because we don’t have mandatory labelling of GMO foods in Canada we can only guess which food products at the store contain them. But we do know these GMO crops are allowed in Canada:
- Corn
- Soy
- Cotton
- Canola
- Alfalfa
- Sugar beets
- Papaya
- Squash
- Arctic apples
- Innate potato
- Aquabounty salmon
How to avoid GMOs
If you decide you want to avoid GMOs in Canada, you must purchase food from crops that don’t contain them or ones that are certified to be organic and non-GMO. These products are specifically labelled as such. Until we have mandatory labelling, there is no other way to be certain your food does not contain them.
I know it’s a contentious issue, but it’s good to know the facts, so thank you for the question, Phil. As always, if readers have their own health questions, I welcome them! Just send me an email at [email protected]. And if you’re looking for more specific health information check out my website and sign up for my free newsletter at askthenutritionist.ca. Upcoming events are posted in the newsletter, including my upcoming 30 day Stop the Sugar and Crash Course Keto challenges. You can reach out if you want your name on those lists.
Namaste!
Nonie Nutritionista
