Country


Crossroads Matt


Reese assistant editor


Last month on www.ocj.com, we posted


the Doc Sanders column from the mid- January issue that covered Doc’s experi- ences with less-than-healthy “milk” in China. In the column, Doc praised the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the high level of safety and quality of food in our country. In response to Doc’s article on the


Internet, we got a question from a con- cerned non-farm reader about an article she had just read that painted a very differ-


ent picture. She was concerned about the safety of eating foods with genetically modified ingredients approved by the U.S. Food and Dug Administration. I was curi- ous, so I read the article (which is available at articles.mercola.com/sites/ articles/archive/2012/01/10/genetically- modified-food-reduce-fertility.aspx?e_ cid=20120110_DNL_art_1). The article was a classic effort to drum


up mass panic about food- and technolo- gy-related issues with little regard to


accuracy. It featured genetically modified mosquitoes, disturbing health conse- quences from consuming genetically modified foods and a deep suspicion of mainstream science with all the makings of a campy horror film. The author, Dr. Mercola, even sounds like a name straight from science fiction. If you’re involved in agriculture,


chances are someone has asked you about an article, book or movie presenting simi- lar “facts.” How have you responded to these types of questions? Here is my response to the question about Dr. Mercola’s article: I have found that, with articles like this,


you can take one of two approaches. Some people think the world is out to get them through big government/corporate con- spiracies. With this in mind, the thought of GM mosquitoes taking over the ecosystem is quite plausible. The other approach is to look at the


actual facts and sources to determine the reality of what the article is saying and what the source has to gain. In the case of this particular article, the statements about the lack of safety of genetically modified crops (GM) are not true. GM crops simply take one more scien-


tific step than traditional plant breeding efforts that have gone on since the dawn of agriculture. Examples include Bt corns that resist the corn borer and rootworm that can devastate corn. Bt corn hybrids have eliminated the need for countless gallons of pesticide. Another example is a new variety of soybean that eliminates trans fats in cooking oil to make products healthier and more nutritious for consumers. The FDA, along with food safety


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experts from land grant universities and researchers around the world, have researched the food safety of GM crops more than any in the history of mankind. To date, no credible scientific evidence has been found to refute the safety of these crops, which (along with their incredible benefits) is why they are so prevalent. Would the FDA, after doing all of this research, knowingly poison the consumers of the United States? Dr. Mercola thinks so, but Dr. Mercola also is seeking donations for his cause, and nothing generates dollars like a massive big-government scandal to poison Americans. I have done research into similar claims


like those of Dr. Mercola and have found that, while there is usually a nugget of truth in such statements, the facts are usu- ally of secondary importance to the pri- mary goal of raising funds. Articles such as this, and movies like Food, Inc., are designed to make people think, but, more importantly, to make money. They rely on people believing that, if somebody said it, it must be factual. You can spend a month researching the


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accuracy and the sources of all of the claims in this article, but Dr. Mercola knows you won’t do that. In the end, it boils down to whether you think the FDA and big business are out to get you or if you think maybe the good Doctor is trying to pad his wallet. So, read the article and think what you will, but the big green “Donate” button at the end scares me quite a bit more than a few GM mosquitoes. The Reese family will keep eating GM crops for their benefits to human health, the environ- ment and society.


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