Demand for GMO Labeling Despite California’s narrow defeat of Proposition 37, which would have required statewide labeling of products con- taining GMOs, advocates at the Environmental Working Group and the Just Label It campaign are pushing the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for nationwide GMO labeling. Responding to consumer demand, Whole Foods Market recently announced that it will require GMO label- ing in all of its U.S. and Canadian stores by 2018. Filmmaker Jeremy Seifert’s powerful new documentary,
GMO OMG, should give the movement a major push, as well. The 2013 film explores the danger in corporate patenting of seeds and the unknown health and environmental risks of engi- neered food. Seifert says, “I have a responsibility to my children to hand on to them a world that is not poisoned irreparably.” As for the promise that GMOs are required to “feed the world,” he believes it’s a lie, noting that it’s better to “feed the world well.”
Seed Freedom and Food Choice Roger Doiron, founder and director of Kitchen Gardeners International, headquartered in Scarborough, Maine, celebrates Food Independence Day each July Fourth. Doiron believes that growing, harvesting, cooking and preserving food is both liberating and rewarding, and patriotic. More than 25,000 individuals from 100 countries belong to his nonprofit network that focuses on re-localizing the world’s food supply. Food freedom starts with seeds.
Get Your Non-GMOs Here
Reading labels is always a good practice. We can also rely on trusted sources to help us sort out suspect products from the natural whole foods that we know are good for us. Here’s a short list of websites and associated apps to help make food shopping a bit easier.
n
CenterForFoodSafety.org;
Tinyurl.com/getCenter ForFoodSafetyapp
n
Fooducate.com;
Tinyurl.com/getFooducateGMOapp
n
NonGMOProject.org;
Tinyurl.com/getNonGMO Projectapp
n
NonGMOShoppingGuide.com;
Tinyurl.com/get ShopNoGMOapp
n Also take action at
Buycott.com:
Tinyurl.com/get BuycottGMOapp
Saving and trading heirloom, non-hybrid, non-GMO seeds is becoming as easy as checking out a library book. Several libraries across the country are serving as seed banks, where patrons check out seeds, grow crops, save seeds and then donate some back to their local library. Liana Hoodes, director of the National Organic Coali- tion, in Pine Bush, New York, is a fan of her local Hudson Valley Seed Library. The library adheres to Indian Physicist Vandana Shiva’s Declaration of Seed Freedom and makes sure all seed sources are not related to, owned by or affiliated with biotech or pharmaceutical corporations. In addition to preserving heirloom and open-pollinated varieties, each seed packet is designed by a local artist.
Finicky about Fish Grilled fish makes a lean, heart-healthy, low-calorie summer meal. Some fish, however, may contain chemicals that pose health risks, especially for preg- nant or nursing women and children. For example, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), nearly all fish and shellfish contain traces of mercury, which is toxic to a baby’s develop- ing nervous system. Both the EPA and local state health departments post consumption advisories that recommend limiting or avoiding certain species of fish caught in specific locations. For several decades, Captain Anne Mosness, a wild
salmon fisherwoman, operated commercial fishing boats in Washington waters and from Copper River to Bristol Bay, Alas- ka. She worries about the threat of pollution from industrial aquaculture, plus the effects of genetically engineered salmon on wild fish populations, coastal economies and ecosystems. Mosness explains that AquAdvantage Salmon, a product of
AquaBounty Technologies, was created “by inserting a growth hormone gene from Pacific Chinook and a promoter gene from an eel-like fish called ocean pout into Atlantic salmon.” She questions the FDA approval process and failure to address unan- swered questions about the risks of introducing “novel” animals into the food supply, as well as related food allergies and greater use of antibiotics in weaker fish populations. “The salmon farm- ing industry already uses more antibiotics per weight than any other animal production,” comments Mosness. The FDA’s official public comment period on GMO salmon closed in April, but consumers can still voice concerns to their legislators while demanding and applauding national GMO labeling. GMO fish may be on our dinner plates by the end of the year, but with labels, consumers gain the freedom to make informed choices. Consumers can also ask retailers not to sell GMO fish. Trader Joe’s, Aldi and Whole Foods have all committed to not selling GMO seafood.
natural awakenings July 2013 33
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