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BIOTECHNOLOGY IS REDESIGNING FOODS,
IS IT SAFE?
By ChristieLyn Diller
Some consumers are worried about the biologically engineered foods that have been sitting on grocery store shelves since the mid-1990s.
Skeptics are questioning the safety and ethical implications of these genetically modified foods.
Biotech foods are created by inserting a random gene into the existing gene pool of a given food, which will then make the crop resistant to pests, disease, or herbicides. The Food and Drug Administration identifies the most commonly affected foods on the market as: cantaloupe, papaya, potatoes, radicchio, tomatoes, squash, corn, canola, flax, soybeans, and sugar beets.
As of now, the FDA finds no legal reason to label and identify the multitude of biotech foods we already consume, despite demand from consumers and critics.
The reasoning for not labeling is that the FDA, which primarily looks for possible allergens in the new foods, deems the foods completely safe for human consumption. The nutritional value of biotech foods is identical as traditionally grown crops, and the FDA is only required to label if the foods contain an allergen.Marist College junior and environmental activist Megan Smith is among one of the critics of genetically modified foods.
“This is the first generation where biotech foods are being used. In hindsight, we really don’t know the long-term effects that are going to take place. I think the FDA should probably take this into consideration,” Smith said.Concerns over genetically modified foods were enhanced by a 1999 Cornell University study that concluded that biotech corn might be harming the Monarch butterflies that populated the crop area. The FDA has since said that study was bogus, but skeptics still take note.
Contamination of crops not specifically designed for these biological modifications are often affected as pollen drifts from biotech crops to non-biotech crops, thus infecting all crops.
Moira Dwyer, a Marist College junior and avid vegan is also concerned.“The FDA may regulate the allergy content of these foods, saying it is safe, but the public is still the test subjects for these new foods. It is highly unethical to not make aware the community which is consuming the products,” Dwyer said.
Debates over the labeling, or lack of labeling of United States biotech foods has sparked a debate between the US and Europe, where there is a stronger push for labeling.
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