A genetically modified organism (GMO) is an organism whose genetic material has been altered using genetic engineering techniques. Organisms that have been genetically modified include micro-organisms such as bacteria and yeast, insects, plants, fish, and mammals. More: en.wikipedia.org.

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100
2 votes
Jun 12, 2015

I am a person who cares about what I put in my body. I read labels, I research what goes into my body and I do my best to eat wholesome, clean and nutritious food. If large food companies/producers want a piece of my food budget they will have to label, and label accurately - otherwise the hundreds of dollars I have to spend on food will continue to go to my local co-op and farmer's markets. Labeling is good for everyone, it will reinstate a level of trust between food companies and consumers that is currently lacking.

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-1
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1 vote,
Jun 12, 2015

Fantastic statement. Do you feel that the invisible hand will take care of this, or is a federal law required?

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100
1 vote,
Jun 12, 2015

So far the "invisible hand" of the market is failing us. If the market was responsive to consumer desires we would not have seen an all out battle in California and Washington to stop labeling. Obviously the industry is protecting itself and its current business model - it in not shifting to accommodate consumer wishes. On the other hand, using federal law to demand fair labeling practices sounds good, but may also be a toothless enterprise considering the extent of regulatory capture, and the ability of lobbyist to gut any real legislation that might demand corporate accountability.

I don't have an answer regarding exact policy choices....but I heavily boycott companies and products who are disrespectful to consumers.

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100
1 vote
Jun 12, 2015

Personally, I think that food & drugs should have as much info available as possible. I think an FDA run system like this would be great.

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100
User voted Yes.
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1 vote,
Dec 30, 2015

"Personally, I think that food & drugs should have as much info available as possible."

I couldn't agree more with this statement. If people truly wish to educate themselves on what they consume, the information should be freely available and completely transparent.

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100
1 vote
Oct 10, 2015

I wish their was a "Yes, but...." choice.

I think labeling processed foods is a modern necessity. I look at labels.

I think labeling organic produce is good, as far as it goes.

Both give the consumer the ability to make a choice.

The issue as to whether GMO foods are harmful is another political and emotional football. Based on the scientific evidence I have read, I am not convinced that any of the GMOs in our food supply are harmful. I don't necessarily think corporations are evil. Many more people would be starving around the world today if scientists had not developed hybrid crops that could endure weather changes, pests, and disease.

Still, with the fact that GMOs are a recent change in the food supply and that some corporations have been "less than forthcoming" when it comes to reporting dangerous health effects, I think it is reasonable to require such products to be labeled so the consumer has a choice. I cannot see the price being prohibitive.

I'll eat them for now, so those of you who won't can thank me for being a guinea pig.

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67
User voted No.
3 votes
Jun 12, 2015

Can you show me any crop that isn't GMO? Everything you eat that we currently far has been modified. Corn, wild corn is about the size of your thumb, wild potatoes about the size of a half dollars, same with any crop we eat. Man has modified the plant to suit our needs. How we modified the plant might have changed, but the plants undergo a lot of testing and there are "natural" plants that we currently eat that if presented for testing would not be approved for consumption. So label away because everything would need a label.

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50
2 votes
Jun 12, 2015

If for no other reason than people have shown allergies to GMO foods.

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100
User voted No.
main reply
1 vote,
Jun 12, 2015

What allergies to GMO foods? Where's the study? Data on food allergies was not consistently collected prior to 1997, so it’s unknown how common they were before then. So all we can say is that allergies seem to be on the rise, that may be because we are too clean. If you do look at studies first born children have more allergies than other children in the same family. That maybe because first born are more "protected" than other children. So they don't get exposed to as much dirt, germs etc as other other children.

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0
0 votes
Jun 12, 2015

I think if it is edible, or it is something you can make into something edible (seeds for instance) yes.

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0
0 votes
Jun 12, 2015

No most don't know anything about it so labeling it means nothing to the general public I mean just look at the political process have the population has no clue even who is VP

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