Important Bills: H.R.1699 vs H.R.4432

[Joyful HoneyBee]

There are currently two pieces of legislation that have been introduced which are in direct opposition to one another. They cannot both pass, and we all share interest in which one passes, if either do at all. These bills pertain to the labeling of genetically modified organisms (GMO) used in the food industry. Many people are unaware that a large portion of the American diet is comprised of genetically modified ingredients. Some people may not care, but for those of us who do care, this is a really big deal.

Some interesting health statistics seem to coincide with the onset of GMO food products hitting our tables beginning in 1996. For example, food allergies have increased 400% in the past 20 years. Adult onset diabetes is becoming more prevalent, including among young children who used to practically never develop this disease. Crohn's Disease, colitis, irritable bowel syndrome, Celiac disease, and a whole host of other digestive problems plague more people than you'll hear about casually. People are increasingly becoming lactose intolerant and gluten intolerant. Autism is on the rise, as are learning disabilities such as ADHD and ADD. Depression and mood disorders affect a large percentage of our population. Obesity rates in this country are downright obscene. Some people argue that these problems always existed, but we've simply developed labels for them in recent years.

Really? Because I recall that 20+ years ago there were very few obese people. The kids I grew up with in the 60s and 70s were healthy for the most part, except for the three or four kids I knew of whose moms had been prescribed the 'morning sickness drug' Thalidomide, that caused serious birth defects such as cleft palate or missing limbs or both. Our kids are falling behind kids in other countries in education. If our guts are unhealthy, then the rest of our body and our mind becomes unhealthy. We can't watch an hour of television without being inundated with advertisements for this medication or that drug, all of which are touted to be the latest and greatest, "just ask your doctor about...", yet which have the quickly listed scary disclaimers pertaining to side effects that lead up to and include death.

So, what is it that has changed so much in the past couple of decades? Our food! Everything is now made with corn, GMO corn to be more precise. Corn is reconfigured into a variety of sweeteners and food additives. Most packaged 'convenience' foods contain several such sweeteners and additives as ingredients for something like, say, macaroni and cheese foodlike stuff. Other players in the GMO field include soybeans, canola, papaya, sugar beets, milk and several more. Meat and poultry producers feed GMO grains to cattle, pigs, chickens and turkeys, then pump them full of antibiotics, giving us a double whammy of unsavory additives. Next up they want to patent genetically modified salmon, which may prove to become a Frankenfish among the species that could potentially decimate salmon populations worldwide if they're ever released into the wild.

So, what is it about GMO crops for human consumption and farm animals raised on a diet of GMO grains and heavy doses of antibiotics that's so bad? See the list of health related problems previously listed in this post. Everyone seems to be vaguely aware that something is very much awry, but so many people are too busy keeping up with the Kardashians so they don't have time to investigate further.

Is this really a political issue or shouldn't I have posted this under Science & Health instead. This is a super hot potato political issue and those bills need to be investigated and commented on to every representative in congress by every American who can fog a mirror. Sadly, there appear to be some partisan lines among the sponsors of the bills. And yes, this should be under Science & Health also; maybe even under Food and Recipes, too. Perhaps I didn't dig in deep enough, but I couldn't find anything about GMO topics anywhere on this site.

There are a number of resources on the web if anyone would like to dig in further.
http://www.nongmoproject.org/learn-more/
http://www.responsibletechnology.org/10-Reasons-to-Avoid-GMOs
http://www.centerforfoodsafety.org/

Vermont recently passed legislation requiring labeling of GM foods which Vermont consumers demanded. Monsanto and the Grocery Manufacturers Association subsequently have filed a lawsuit against the state trying to force the repeal of this important legislation. If GM foods pose no threat, why not label them? Branding is, after all, the American way. Everyone wants their logo associated with their product. If a component product is inside some other product, such as processors in computers, then a label on the outside proudly proclaims the brand of processor inside. Why hide the fact GMO's are lurking in the food supply? Because people are wising up to the fact that these Frankenfoods are potentially harmful to us and many will stop buying them.

However, I'm open minded on the subject, so if anyone can provide documentation to prove that GMO's are beneficial in any way, please bring it out in the open. The only places I can find such documentation are on sites belonging to the biotech industries who are producing GMO's.

Here is an opportunity to abandon partisan ideologies for a while and simply be a concerned American citizen. Please take a few moments to review the contents of these two pieces of legislation, and, perhaps some information about genetically modified food and feed for livestock. The web is loaded with it. If the desire to make opinions known to local representatives is overwhelming, act on it, please.

[SassyLady]

So where have you been hanging out for the last two years, Honeybee?

[Joyful HoneyBee]

So where have you been hanging out for the last two years, Honeybee?

I've spent a good bit of time on the road with Emmett, working; and, some time at home working the garden. Last summer my son was deployed so my daughter in law and granddaughter lived with us here and I was quite busy spoiling a precious baby. :D

[jimnyc]

I've spent a good bit of time on the road with Emmett

Great to see you, and tell Emmett I said hello too. Would be great to see you guys around if you can convince him to pop in every now and again! :)

[jafar00]

In the OP, GMOs are blamed for many ailments in our society. That's not entirely true. It's the over consumption of processed carbohydrates and starches and not enough fat diet that has been pushed since 1976 as the only healthy way to eat. Diabetes and Obesity are the end result of decades of the low fat diet being pushed on an unsuspecting public. More regulation of sugar additives to every processed food product is needed in particular the nastiest of nasties, High Fructose Corn Syrup.

The food pyramid needs to be turned on it's head if we are to combat Heart Disease, Alzheimers, Diabetes, Obesity etc...

This is what a healthy food pyramid should actually look like! Less carbs and more healthy fats and proteins!

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-eXL-1YJjlNA/UDMFBUtgx0I/AAAAAAAAG-M/vTEH2mUiVME/s640/new-food-pyramid.jpg

[Joyful HoneyBee]

I agree they've got the food pyramid all messed up, but regardless of how you stack it, there's no room in our bellies for GMO's. I don't want to consume food that is going to attack my DNA and RNA. I don't want to eat food that creates its own insecticide that cannot be washed off. Genetic modification of food crops has only increased agricultural dependency on pesticides by creating resistant pests and diseases on crops. People farmed the same way for thousands of years without these Frankenseeds. Other countries are smart enough to ban them. We don't need them and they aren't going to save agriculture in this country or anywhere else in the world.

Thousands of farmers in India have committed suicide since the introduction of GM seeds. Their plight is multi-fold and many see death as the only way out.
http://www.globalresearch.ca/the-seeds-of-suicide-how-monsanto-destroys-farming/5329947

As for the claim that they are going to feed the world, most of the GM corn produced isn't even intended for food, but rather for ethanol. GM Soybeans are used predominately as feed for livestock. Our problem's with feeding the world won't be solved by growing more grain, they'll be solved by enabling others to grow their own food locally, without enormous quantities of pesticides and herbicides.
http://gmo-awareness.com/2013/12/12/are-gmos-feeding-the-world-7-facts-about-hunger-and-poverty/

The GM feed and the arbitrary used of antibiotics on livestock and poultry creates unhealthy animals, so when we buy meat and poultry we are ingesting a barrage of antibiotics and consuming largely diseased food. If a cow can't walk due to illness, they'll load it out to the slaughterhouse with a forklift. Cows are grazing creatures, and feeding them grain doesn't make them healthier. Packing them into feedlots only produces substandard food in the long run. Factory farms are disgusting places that stink up the environment for miles around them. Driving past them on the interstate out west provides a glimpse of how horrid they really are.


http://youtu.be/uDu_yUM8sMo

Farming should be a sustainable practice. Our food supply shouldn't be a scary roll of the dice where we have to wonder if it is laced with e coli, salmonella, unpredictable genetic mutations, allergens, toxins or any combination of these things and more. Farmers shouldn't have to mortgage the futures of their families in order to produce crops that have been patented by a biotech corporation with no soul. Our complacency implies acceptance, so as usual, the spoils go to the unscrupulous and the rest are trampled underfoot.

[Kathianne]

Many groups are against GMOs for the simple reason they hate Mansato, its a global target like Walmart is by the left in US.

More research needs to be done, no doubt on that. Dismissing it though? Not so fast.

A big part of GMO research has been making plants resistant to insects and diseases that attack them, thus reducing the need for pesticides.

Then there's the whole issue of feeding the starving:

http://www.news24.com/Green/News/Golden-rice-modified-to-save-millions-20140708

[Joyful HoneyBee]

It's true that many people hate Monsanto and wish to target them, but Monsanto has set themselves up for the hatred. They brought us Agent Orange, DDT, and PCB's, saying they were all safe, proving repeatedly their inability to be trustworthy . They've infiltrated the very governmental institutions that are supposed to be the watchdogs over food safety, i.e., the FDA and the USDA. They file arbitrary lawsuits against farmers who don't wish to grow their crops, but whose fields become contaminated with GM plants; and, Monsanto wins those lawsuits. They foster the ever increasing hatred by being bullies and harassers. Independent researchers are blocked from conducting unbiased studies, because if their findings are opposed to the will of the biotech giant those researchers are ridiculed, dismissed and often lose their grants and their jobs. And, when people want labels on the food they intend to feed their families, Monsanto and the Grocery Manufacturers Association gang up to sue to have state legislated requirements to have them overturned http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/06/12/vermont-gmo-idUSL2N0OT20620140612. They aren't the only biotech company aiming to impose their will on the populace, but certainly they're the most visible.

Research has shown that forcing genetic material from one species into another frequently creates unpredictable and erratic results. These products have been thrust into our food supply without our knowledge and consent for nearly two decades now, so we have been the research guinea pigs; and to what result? People have a myriad of health complaints that either didn't exist, or were rare, prior to the introduction of genetic engineering. The fact that food allergies has grown by 400% in the past 20 years is a very interesting statistic to ponder. Farmers are now forced to use greater concentrations of herbicides to control the super weeds that develop as a result of the overuse of glyphosate on crops engineered to be resistant to that product. BT crops are now requiring more insecticide to control the insects the crops are supposed to resist. So, the food makes its own worm killer, and the worms aren't dying from consuming it; but, what is it doing to the human digestive tract? Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Colitis, Chron's Disease and other illnesses are on the rise. Is that a coincidence? Experience tells us that nature will always find a way around our interference. The weeds we see growing through cracks in asphalt are indicative of that. Working with nature, instead of trying to force nature to change might be a better solution. But, if these biotech giants are allowed unbridled control over the food supply, then all of nature is at potential risk of becoming unnatural.

[Gaffer]

I rank GMO with global warming and 911 truthers. Anything the govt does about it will be costly and wrong and will cause lots of damage and misery for at least 20 years.

[Kathianne]

At least someone admits their position is based upon dislike/hatred of a company. The companies involved with Agent Orange production were 9, Mansato affiliate being one. The major one being Dow, not Mansato. Irregardless, the companies were charged with making a defoliant that would assist the troops. They did. In the long run more lives were likely saved, on the US side, than lost by subsequent cancers caused.

The vets problems with health was from the VA, not the chemical companies.

DDT was known to be a carcinogen at certain levels of use. Once again, blame the governments for using in frequencies and quantities beyond that.

Anyone who thinks pesticides haven't a place in agriculture are likely to be the same geniuses that argue against immunizations. More people have died from the non-use of DDT from malaria, in areas where medicines and health professionals are not readily available.

The arguments against research into alternative was to grow food are being made by science-phobes and those with a political agenda.

[Tyr-Ziu Saxnot]

In the OP, GMOs are blamed for many ailments in our society. That's not entirely true. It's the over consumption of processed carbohydrates and starches and not enough fat diet that has been pushed since 1976 as the only healthy way to eat. Diabetes and Obesity are the end result of decades of the low fat diet being pushed on an unsuspecting public. More regulation of sugar additives to every processed food product is needed in particular the nastiest of nasties, High Fructose Corn Syrup.

The food pyramid needs to be turned on it's head if we are to combat Heart Disease, Alzheimers, Diabetes, Obesity etc...

This is what a healthy food pyramid should actually look like! Less carbs and more healthy fats and proteins!

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-eXL-1YJjlNA/UDMFBUtgx0I/AAAAAAAAG-M/vTEH2mUiVME/s640/new-food-pyramid.jpg

I can think of nothing that is so prevalent and yet so great a danger and
terrible as is this monster= High Fructose Corn Syrup!!!!
A hearty agreement with you Jafar!
Surely a miracle!! --Tyr

[Joyful HoneyBee]

I rank GMO with global warming and 911 truthers. Anything the govt does about it will be costly and wrong and will cause lots of damage and misery for at least 20 years.

Gaffer, you're certainly entitled to that opinion, but on the other hand, aren't people entitled to know what they're buying in the grocery store?


At least someone admits their position is based upon dislike/hatred of a company. The companies involved with Agent Orange production were 9, Mansato affiliate being one. The major one being Dow, not Mansato. Irregardless, the companies were charged with making a defoliant that would assist the troops. They did. In the long run more lives were likely saved, on the US side, than lost by subsequent cancers caused.

The vets problems with health was from the VA, not the chemical companies.

DDT was known to be a carcinogen at certain levels of use. Once again, blame the governments for using in frequencies and quantities beyond that.

Anyone who thinks pesticides haven't a place in agriculture are likely to be the same geniuses that argue against immunizations. More people have died from the non-use of DDT from malaria, in areas where medicines and health professionals are not readily available.

The arguments against research into alternative was to grow food are being made by science-phobes and those with a political agenda.


Attempts to assassinate the character and insights of individuals opposed to forceful subjugation by either a corporation or a governmental body are a typical ploy of those who wish to grab and hold power in any arena. Even on a forum and even in the industrial world we live in where our government is swayed by the interest of major corporations who have deep pockets. That's exactly why much of the research into GMO's has been hushed. The argument that Agent Orange "probably" saved more lives than were damaged is merely a supposition. Since we have nothing on the other side for comparison, i.e. not using Agent Orange, then the argument becomes quite moot in the big scheme of things. People were led to believe DDT was so safe that children used to run through the spray behind the trucks spraying it in neighborhoods for mosquito control, but there haven't been long term studies on what happened to those people. There's been a big uptick in cancer cases, but that's probably just a coincidence, aye. Everyone believed the government, who believed the chemical companies. Personally, I'm opposed to all biotech and big pharma who put profits before people, but that's probably just crass and inane. So, without a doubt, it was better to induce cases of cancer where malaria was prominent than to provide proper medication and sanitation that would have led to a reduction in mosquito populations.

Inadequate research followed by he assertion that these products are "safe" is the hinge-pin to the problem. Hindsight is the clearest perspective and forethought is too often hindered by the clamoring of those with enough money and power to push their agenda onto the masses. My argument is that people have a right to know what is in their food. If people don't want to eat genetically mutated food products there should be a label, and if a state chooses to vote in a law requiring such labeling, then that law is the will of the people and shouldn't be attacked. When children are vaccinated the parents are given an informational sheet explaining pertinent details about the vaccine and it's side effects. When we buy corn flakes in the store we currently have no right to know if those corn flakes contain Bacillus thuringeiensis, which, by the way, is perfectly safe to spray on a plant because it degrades and washes off, but which appears to attack the intestinal tract of mammals who consume genetically modified BT crops where the Bacillus thuringeiensis neither degrades nor washes off. Maybe that's why Probiotics has suddenly become such a prominent product in the market, hmmmm, I wonder.

I take no issue with those who are researching better ways to produce food, but some biotech companies can't seem to do it without destroying the lives of farmers around the world; or, with pharmaceutical companies looking for ways to heal and protect the health of people. I suppose that's why there are more treatments for erectile dysfunction than there are for adult onset diabetes in children, because at least if the children die of diabetes then men can be equipped to impregnate women and produce more kids.

So, the argument that the will of the people should be overpowered by the will of major corporations who have government in their hip pocket is supposed to be the higher ground?

[Kathianne]

I've no interest, personal or financial in Monsato or any other company for that matter.

As for kids riding through the 'mosquito spray' on their bikes, ya, I was one.

They over sprayed and did that often. 'They' being the municipalities.

During the same period, pediatricians were handing out antibiotics to any kid with sniffles, their moms insisting on it. And ya, those pediatricians had a pretty good idea that it wasn't a good idea.

The price for those types of shenanigans are people who generally one thinks of as intelligent saying that they're not immunizing their kids; they want only 'organic' foods, when they really mean no additives such as pesticides.

Thinking a bit more on that level, all pesticides should be treated like WMD's. No medicines should be released unless everyone can have them for 'free.'

Now one wonders why R&D is nearly eliminated in both US and France. There are no new antibiotics on the horizon, which is a problem because from ill use, many are resistant to those currently on the market.

[Kathianne]

Oh yeah, get rid of 'fish farms...'

Truth is, there aren't enough wild fish to meet demand. However, R & D as illustrated by the following article says, "let's try to get something right, at the beginning...'

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/foodfeatures/aquaculture/

[Joyful HoneyBee]

Now one wonders why R&D is nearly eliminated in both US and France. There are no new antibiotics on the horizon, which is a problem because from ill use, many are resistant to those currently on the market.

Exactly, which is why the rampant use of antibiotics in livestock and poultry is such a huge problem. It needs to be stopped. Cows given growth hormone have been shown to produce more milk, but the milk is contaminated with pus. That sounds tasty, aye.

The overuse of anything, whether pesticides, herbicides, or antibiotics is leading us into a risky place. One from which it may be exceedingly difficult to return.

[Kathianne]

Point of agreement, overuse and abuse need to be addressed. Making more laws isn't the way to go though. Expecting companies to become humanitarian outposts is not likely.

Encouraging R & D and rewarding good products though is likely to make the world a better place: in wealth and health.

Regurgitating about agent orange, especially when those very facts are misleading at best, flat out wrong at worst, not so persuasive.

Understanding that not everyone in the US, much less in the Amazon rain forest can worry about 'organic' and really don't give a fig if the food they get has USDA approved on it.

Those in the rain forest may well be luckier than those in the deserts and politically unstable regions of the world. At least in the rain forest, one has a chance for food and for herbal medicines. They would likely though like a reduction in malaria.

I have no problem in hitting companies that knowingly profit from products that do harm, I don't think it's as often as some would believe. However, the reaction to wildly popular products that create harm, whether intended or not, has bordered on the new age of Luddites regarding science. That I can't buy into.

[Joyful HoneyBee]

As to regurgitating about Agent Orange, these two agencies don't seem to concur that the facts are misleading, wrong, or not persuasive. They take the factual data quite seriously, actually.
http://www.cancer.org/cancer/cancercauses/othercarcinogens/intheworkplace/agent-orange-and-cancer
http://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/agentorange/

But, back to the topic at hand, as for GMO research, there are clauses in the contract a buyer must sign when purchasing GM seeds that prohibit research on any level. Gathering seed in a violation of patent laws and anyone in possession of patented seeds for any reason invites prosecution for patent infringement. The tentacles of this octopus were further strengthened when Barack Obama signed into law HR933 IN 2013, affectionately known as the Monsanto Protection Act. GMO foods are required to be labeled all around the world, at least in places where they are not banned altogether. Other countries are rejecting shipments of GM crops from the U.S. http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303873604579493790405023808. ADM and Bunge are two of the largest global grain traders and ADM is intent on researching GMO further, but considering what's happening on the world stage, it doesn't appear to be in the best interest of U.S. grain exports to continue down the GMO path. http://ecowatch.com/2014/03/26/u-s-farmers-planting-gmo-corn-banned-china-markets/

Interestingly enough, even the poorest countries around the world are rejecting the "right" to grow GM crops. Sadly, poor farmers in India found out the hard way that signing away their farms in exchange for the "right" to use patented GMO seeds would have multi-fold negative results, and the result is a multitude of homeless widows and orphans. Fortunately for farmers in the U.S., loss of their farms will permit them to be enrolled in our illustrious welfare and food stamp programs, so they don't have to kill themselves to escape the poverty exacted by signing away their farms in exchange for the dubious "right" to grow crops.