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Quotes about Genetically Engineered crops from the world's top natural health / natural living authors

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"On August 3, 2004, Trinity County in California became the second county in the nation to ban the production of genetically engineered crops and animals. There have been several more since then. Meanwhile, pressure from agribusiness has resulted in legislation being introduced in Congress to outlaw counties from banning GMOs. Undoubtedly the most disturbing consequences of food sprayed with pesticide have been the damage done to the natural defense mechanisms of bees. Bees are disappearing from all over the world, and we are in grave danger of losing them." - Susan E. Schenck, The Live Food Factor: The Comprehensive Guide to the Ultimate Diet for Body, Mind, Spirit & Planet (Get the book.)

"Technology, whether in the form of new plows or genetically engineered crops, may keep the system growing for a while, but the longer this works the more difficult it becomes to sustain—especially if soil erosion continues to exceed soil production. Part of the problem lies in the discrepancy between rates at which civilizations and individuals respond to stimuli. Actions that are optimal for farmers are not necessarily consisrent with their societies' interests." - David R. Montgomery, Dirt: The Erosion of Civilizations (Get the book.)

"Proponents faced a challenge, however: how do you prove a negative, that genetically engineered crops are not unsafe? In the United States, Vice President Quayle's declaration had provided an important government imprimatur: the new food crops were essentially the same as naturally evolved varieties, so no special attention to their ecological or health consequences was warranted. Europeans, however, were skeptical of a new technology that had barely been tested before being unleashed wholesale into the American food system." - Mark Schapiro, Exposed: The Toxic Chemistry of Everyday Products and What's at Stake for American Power (Get the book.) "So few studies had been done about the safety of genetically engineered crops that while no one could prove they did actual harm, no one could prove the opposite either, that they were benign. Europe was coming out of a tailspin provoked by the raging controversy over mad cow disease, which spread into European stockyards despite assurances from public officials and scientists that there was nothing to worry about." - Mark Schapiro, Exposed: The Toxic Chemistry of Everyday Products and What's at Stake for American Power (Get the book.) "Other genetically engineered crops in the United States include canola, rapeseed, tomatoes, and lettuce. In the fall of 2006, Strategic Diagnostics, Inc. heard some more good news for the company: they'd be gaining a new set of farmers interested in their testing technology. Shipments of American rice found to be contaminated with an experimental variety of a genetically engineered rice called Liberty Link had been sent to Europe and Japan, where they were not authorized for sale or consumption. Further shipments of all American long-grain rice were stopped by the national authorities." - Mark Schapiro, Exposed: The Toxic Chemistry of Everyday Products and What's at Stake for American Power (Get the book.)

"Since Bt crops have been widely grown without long-term safety studies, the results of the mouse research prompted the authors to warn that, "thorough tests of these new types of genetically engineered crops must be made to avoid the risks before marketing." Changes in the cells (details) In both the mice fed the GM potatoes and the diet containing 5/-toxin, the mitochondria (which are sensitive to toxins) exhibited an abnormal appearance with signs of degeneration. Microscopic projections on the cell surface, called short microvilli, were also disrupted. Mice fed the 2?" - Jeffrey M. Smith, Genetic Roulette: The Documented Health Risks of Genetically Engineered Foods (Get the book.)

"Who's Not Coming to Dinner When widespread cultivation of GMOs was still a dream in a laboratory, then vice president Dan Quayle declared the federal government's position about these new organisms that contained genes never before seen in a plant. genetically engineered crops were, he stated in 1992, the "significant equivalent" of other types of traditionally grown crops. That fundamental principle provides the foundation for the U.S. government's position; GMOs have faced few restrictions on cultivation ever since." - Mark Schapiro, Exposed: The Toxic Chemistry of Everyday Products and What's at Stake for American Power (Get the book.)

"A USDA study found no overall reduction in pesticide use associated with genetically engineered crops, even though increased pest resistance is touted as a major advantage of crop engineering. Whereas the promise of gteatly increased crop yields from genetic engineering has proven elusive, some fear that genetically modified genes that convey sterility could cross to nonproprietary crops, with catastrophic results. Given the significant real and potential drawbacks of bioengineering and agrochemistry, alternative approaches deserve a closer look." - David R. Montgomery, Dirt: The Erosion of Civilizations (Get the book.)

"Examples of such comprise genetically engineered crops resistant to pests and pathogens, including nematodes, insects, viruses, and fungi; products with extended shelf life; seeds with improved amino acid or oil composition, increased starch content, and improved flavors; and crops tolerant to environmentally friendly herbicides.5 In fact, genetically engineered soybean, corn, and cotton are increasingly produced in the United States. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), 63 percent of U.S." - Amarjit S. Basra, Handbook of Medicinal Plants (Get the book.)

"By 2001, genetically engineered crops were growing on at least 109 million acres throughout the world, a 25-fold expansion just since 1996. Although 80% of the acres were in North America, Argentina, and China, 10 other countries also had substantial plantings and more than 40 countries permitted field trials of one crop or another, most intended for animal feed.7 Despite the recent decline in planting of genetically engineered corn that occurred as a result of European opposition (discussed in chapter 8), some segments of the industry are doing very well." - Marion Nestle, Safe Food: Bacteria, Biotechnology, and Bioterrorism (Get the book.)

"Some studies have found a reduction in IQ of up to ten points in the generation of children brought up on these "green revolution" foods. genetically engineered crops - because they are so strongly tied to a monoculture approach, chemical fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides - will probably cause an increase in all of the health and mental health problems associated with the "green revolution," and possibly on a grander and more serious scale, because the gene pool will have been disrupted." - Gabriel Cousens, M.D., Spiritual Nutrition: Six Foundations for Spiritual Life and the Awakening of Kundalini (Get the book.)

"Raising Risk: Field Testing of genetically engineered crops in the US," Canadian J of Health and Nutrition, June 2001. www.pirg.org/ge/. 43 Cropchoice News, www.mercola/200l/may/23/gm_crops.htm. 44 www.mercola.com/2002/sep/4/gmo_corn.htm. 45 Statement by Stephen Johnson, EPA Deputy Assistant Administrator for Pesticides regarding Starlink corn. Note to correspondents October 12, 2000. 46a www.thecampaign.org. 46b www.keepnatural.org/." - Doris J. Rapp, M.D., Our Toxic World: A Wake Up Call (Get the book.)

"Environmental Benefits As evidence for the benefits produced by genetically engineered crops, the industry notes how quickly growers have adopted them. In theory, the crops should help growers. At the time farmers first began to plant transgenic crops, they were using more than 80 million pounds of conventional pesticides (a term that includes both insecticides and herbicides)." - Marion Nestle, Safe Food: Bacteria, Biotechnology, and Bioterrorism (Get the book.) "This advertisement, which much resembles those for the cigarette-selling Marlboro Man, is clearly meant to suggest that genetically engineered crops will save family farms. As with all issues related to food biotechnology, its benefit to farmers is subject to debate. Also like the other issues, this one is complicated and lacks a firm research base on which to resolve outstanding questions. By 2001, most observers agreed that transgenic cotton required less use of pesticides than conventional cotton, but only in certain areas." - Marion Nestle, Safe Food: Bacteria, Biotechnology, and Bioterrorism (Get the book.) "Over time, the USDA has modified its regulations to make it easier for companies to plant genetically engineered crops without having to obtain permits.2 In contrast, the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) requires the EPA to "register" transgenic foods as plant-pesticides (or, as they are now called, plant-incorporated protectants). If a crop is bioengineered to contain the toxin from Bacillus thuringiensis {Bt), for example, the EPA considers it to contain a pesticide and regulates the plant as it would any pesticidal chemical." - Marion Nestle, Safe Food: Bacteria, Biotechnology, and Bioterrorism (Get the book.)

"By the end of this year, the organic food industry will be worth US $ 25 billion, while annual genetically engineered crops are pegged at US $ 4.5 billion world-wide. Data published in BioDemocracy News (www.organicconsumersw.org) show that by 2020 most food sold in Europe and North America will be organic. The keynote address was given by Dr. Thomas Cowan of the Weston Price Foundation from New Hampshire in the US. Weston Price is the father of modern nutritional medicine." - Helke Ferrie, Dispatches From the War Zone of Environmental Health (Get the book.)

"Contrary to fraudulent public relations marketing, genetically engineered crops are less productive per acre than organic crops. Note: The information presented in this chapter is a condensed version of Chapter 4 in Rainbow Green Live-Food Cuisine by Gabriel Cousens, M.D. Chapter 31 A Conscious Approach to an Evolutionary Diet Purpose of Diet To design a diet for ourselves requires a clarity of purpose." - Gabriel Cousens, M.D., Spiritual Nutrition: Six Foundations for Spiritual Life and the Awakening of Kundalini (Get the book.)

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