Today, even conventional seeds are
laden with GMOs, so that farmers who
want to plant conventional crops are
Also Watch Out For…
unintentionally growing GMOs. GMO
contamination also has caused serious
legal problems for farmers and had an FOOd IrrAdIAtIOn
impact on U.S. farm exports.
The persistent problems of hunger
and poverty in countries around the
world are caused by political and eco-
nomic inequalities. It will take politi- R
otten meat, toxic tomatoes and and essential fatty acids occurs in
now what, irradiated spinach? irradiated foods, and there may
cal action, not a techno-fix, to remedy Irradiation is used by the food be formation of dangerous chemi-
these problems. Farmers need support, industry to kill harmful pathogens cals such as benzene. The process
but not in the form of patented products like E. coli, increase shelf life, kill also creates additional hazardous
like GMOs. insects and stop spoilage. Today, waste, and environmental and
International studies show that ground meat, spices, fresh fruit worker safety problems.
farmers want easy-to-use tools, locally and vegetables may be irradiated.
bred and adapted seed, clean water The process is considered safe and Because the existing food
and healthy soil. The technology that effective by government regula- safety inspection system is already
is needed would produce healthy food tors. Currently, irradiated foods are weak, layering on another com-
while protecting the environment and labeled, except for food sold in plex technology might not result
providing a means for farmers to support institutions and restaurants. in better protection. The Center
themselves and their communities. For- for Food Safety notes that using
tunately, that technology already exists. But now, the Food and Drug irradiation does nothing to stop the
It’s called organic farming. Administration is considering practices in the field and factories
The good news is that consum- allowing food treated with irra- that contaminate food. Worse, its
ers can avoid GMOs by choosing diation to be renamed and sold use may result in less incentive to
organic foods. By law, certified organic without labels. clean up the widespread unsani-
products are not allowed to contain tary conditions that are the primary
GMOs. Making this choice also sup- Consumer groups question the cause of food contamination.
ports sustainable farming and ensures safety of food irradiation. Natural
the nutritional quality of food, free of food markets like Whole Foods For related information visit:
synthetic chemicals. have decided not to sell it. Crit- FoodAndWaterWatch.org/food/
We can support local farmers by ics say that irradiation can affect foodirradiation and OrganicCon-
buying more fresh food from them. We the nutritional value of food by sumers.org/irrad/alternatives.cfm;
also can grow food ourselves. Even destroying antioxidents, or that it search ‘supermarkets’ at Citizen.
keeping a pot of herbs or salad greens could deform bacteria instead of org, for a list of groceries that carry
near a sunny window is a delicious killing it off. Some loss of vitamins irradiated foods.
reminder that our food comes from
nature, not corporate farm factories.
Growing and sharing food builds
community relationships and recon-
nects us to the land. All that is needed
to create an economy of abundance are
many small acts of generosity. It’s what
nature does for us, every day.
Claire hope Cummings is a lawyer,
journalist, and expert on agriculture and
genetic engineering. She has farmed in
California and Vietnam, was an attorney
with the U.S. Department of Agriculture
for four years, and is the author of the
primary source for this article, Uncer-
tain Peril: Genetic Engineering and the
Future of Seeds (Beacon Press, 2008.)
November 2008 39
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