Genetically Modified Organisms Crops In Agriculture? Food For Thought

I would like to comment on the article, “Why We Need GMO Crops in Agriculture,” by Melvin J. Oliver, PhD (November/December 2014). My contention is that not only do we not need GMOs in agriculture, but we should eliminate GMOs from our food supply (including indirectly in our animals) because of the abundance of evidence that they are likely dangerous. In a 1998 lawsuit by public interest attorney Steven M. Drucker, 44,000 pages of the FDA’s internal documents proved that the consensus of their own scientists was that GMOs could not be presumed safe; that they were different and dangerous; could lead to diseases and needed long-term safety studies. (“How the U.S. Food and Drug Administration Approved Genetically Engineered Foods Despite the Deaths They Had Caused and the Warnings of its Own Scientists About Their Unique Risks” executive summary, by Steven M. Drucker). Their warnings were ignored and GMOs got “fast-tracked.” It may help to know that our current “Food Czar,” Michael Taylor, was previously a Monsanto attorney. In the first nine years since introduction of GM crops in 1996, the incidence of people with three or more chronic diseases nearly doubled from 7% to 13%. (Kathryn Anne Paez, et al, “Rising Out-Of-Pocket Spending For Chronic Conditions: A Ten Year Trend,” Health Affairs 2009;28(1):15–25). Causation? Maybe, we don’t know because the GMOs haven’t been tested sufficiently. Over 93 scientists have signed a statement that there is no consensus on the safety of GMOs. (“No scientific consensus on GMO safety” ENSSER October 21, 2013) For a good summary of the concerns get “Genetic Roulette: The Gamble of Our Lives” by Jeffery M. Smith (DVD, 2012 available on Amizon.com).