Any Concerns About GMO In Your Diet?

ssorllih · Post by **ssorllih** » Thu Mar 01, 2012 22:31

With that politically biased response I will have nothing more to say to you on any subject!

JerBear · Post by **JerBear** » Sat Mar 03, 2012 19:25

Just read this interesting article that came out today. Looks like they did a good job of looking fairly at both sides of the issue: Article from STL Today (St. Louis)

el Ducko · Post by **el Ducko** » Sat Mar 03, 2012 20:39

Good, unbiased article. Thanks, JerBear.

If we can't have "contains GMO materials" labels, how about "does NOT contain GMO materials" labels too? No label would equate to "contains...". That might work, for the time being, for packaged and processed foods (which, being processed, contain all sorts of stuff). Not so easy, however, for non-processed items like meat/fruits/vegetables.

My wife being gluten-intolerant, we have "tons of fun" searching for products that do not contain wheat-based items. It is amazing what gets added to processed foods in this country. Fortunately, adequate ingredient labeling is required here, and especially in Europe. (However, we need more details on the ingredients.) On a recent trip to Greece, where all the produce was vine-ripened and delicious and most dishes are prepared from fresh ingredients, we had only to avoid bread. (...which is a shame, but that's life.) Here in the USA, we have to quiz the restaurant personnel before ordering, because nearly everything contains processed ingredients. Often, she can't eat anything on the menu and we have to leave.

Now think about the contrast between "gluten-free" and "GMO-free." There's no adequate information on the label. Screening out GMO-free foods can't be done.

We need mandatory labeling. Considering the uphill fight we had just to get ingredients labeled and the continuing struggle to get better labeling, it's going to take time. ...but let's do it. It will open world-wide markets to our farmers and food processors.

ssorllih · Post by **ssorllih** » Sat Mar 03, 2012 21:44

I am all in favor of comprehensive labeling. I do wonder if it matters in some cases. For example if corn is processed to make ethanol I doubt that the ethanol carries the modification but the distillers grain surely does. If this is fed to cattle and then we eat pieces of the animals do we also get modified food. There are biogradable drinking cups made from corn products. If wheat starch is made from wheat after the gluten has been extracted is that gluten free or reduced gluten. Just as they label some foods as having been processed on machines that also process tree nuts and peanuts.
I have known people alergic to crustations that have to keep separate cooking utensils and they can't be home if there are shrimp in the food chain .

Oxide · Post by **Oxide** » Sun Mar 04, 2012 01:01

ssorllih wrote:
If this is fed to cattle and then we eat pieces of the animals do we also get modified food.

Yes. The definition of "organic" includes not GMO or not fed GMO. That's part of what organic chicken, beef, and pork is all about.

Swallow · Post by **Swallow** » Sun Mar 04, 2012 02:07

Good point Oxide. Here at my little hole in the wall farm we eat nothing that comes out of a can and if it comes prepackaged we know who raised it , We are lucky that way I guess but if more people demanded good clean HEALTHY food perhaps there might be a chance, but we all know that Ain't gonna happen. Just look at the amount of people who think McDicks is food or buy battery raised pork or chickens at the store and tell you that it tastes like chicken or pork.

Here we raise our own food and it ain't cause it's Easy or Cheap it's because we like to eat Healthy and yuh just ain't gonna get that with GMO anything.

Swallow

JerBear · Post by **JerBear** » Sun Mar 04, 2012 08:23

Ross, I think you hit the nail on the head regarding industries reluctance to adopt labeling rules. Any lost sales from fear-mongering aside I think one of the major industry concerns is the cost associated with tracking the food through the various pipes and roads, however, I think that in this case GMO labeling is just a good way to reduce processing and make a cleaner less industrialized food.

ssorllih · Post by **ssorllih** » Sun Mar 04, 2012 15:08

The fast food industry is the catalyst for food processing. Prior to chicken macnuggets we never considered pre masticated chicken to be a good idea. Now we can get microwaveable everything. In order to maintain freshness they add all manner of stuff so that when it is served it tasted as the customer expects.
Last night friends were over for supper and talk got around to food. She had beenbuying ready made humus. Then she realized that it is just chick peas ground to a paste and seasoned. So she has been buying canned chick peas. I suggested that she buy the dry peas for 90 cents a pound and do her own cooking. Her response was "of course!"
Before we can get the industry to make many changes the public will have to start cooking and as long as we have two income families working is going to take much of the time needed for cooking. People will therefore buy food that has been processed for them so that they can still eat at home. Cooking takes quite a bit of time.

Oxide · Post by **Oxide** » Sun Mar 04, 2012 17:20

ssorllih wrote:
The fast food industry is the catalyst for food processing. ...

Before we can get the industry to make many changes the public will have to start cooking and as long as we have two income families working is going to take much of the time needed for cooking. People will therefore buy food that has been processed for them so that they can still eat at home. Cooking takes quite a bit of time.

I believe the catalyst for processed foods was and still is the ability to ship frozen food. Think: TV dinner. At the same time the market for per-processed frozen foods was established, a brand new product showed up on the shelves that no one had ever seen or considered before: pet food. The left-overs from processing frozen foods had to go somewhere, and there was money to be made from it.

You make a good point about 2-income families not cooking and relying more on processed foods. Since we entered into the Greater Depression and the sustained loss of jobs, there has been an increase in the sells of basic foods, and a decline in the sells of per-processed foods. People are getting back to cooking, perhaps not by choice.

Oxide · Post by **Oxide** » Sun Mar 04, 2012 17:30

Swallow wrote:Good point Oxide. Here at my little hole in the wall farm we eat nothing that comes out of a can and if it comes prepackaged we know who raised it , We are lucky that way I guess but if more people demanded good clean HEALTHY food perhaps there might be a chance, but we all know that Ain't gonna happen. Just look at the amount of people who think McDicks is food or buy battery raised pork or chickens at the store and tell you that it tastes like chicken or pork.

Here we raise our own food and it ain't cause it's Easy or Cheap it's because we like to eat Healthy and yuh just ain't gonna get that with GMO anything.

Swallow

You have no idea how much I envy you.

I have never tasted real pork like you talk about. I have been shopping around for an organic pig, field raised. It will set me back about $7 /lb, butchered, and I need to keep it in a freezer that I don't have.

I will suggest you try one thing from a can, if you get the chance -- tuna in olive oil, imported from Italy. It is nothing like the stuff from the US which is steamed tuna. Italian canned tuna in olive oil is slow cooked in olive oil at about 160 F, the way the Romans did it. The Romans discovered as long as the cooked tuna stays under the olive oil it is preserved. The quality stuff can set you back as much as $32 for 6-oz can. Look for something in the $6-$8 range ... you won't be disappointed.

ssorllih · Post by **ssorllih** » Sun Mar 04, 2012 18:31

The next time you go for a ride in the rural areas keep an eye to the farms with pasture. Quite often you can find farms that pasture pigs. An uninvited visit and some polite conversation will usually lead to a source of pasture raised meat. A food freezer is one of the best investments we can make because it allows us to take advantage of opportunities in food buying. Half a hog carcase when broken down doessn't occupy very much volume.

el Ducko · Post by **el Ducko** » Tue Mar 06, 2012 01:51

I eat what the grocery stores sell me.
I'm genetically modified, aren't I?
My genes are now spliced and resistant.
I think I'm part human, part fly.

With all the hormones I've ingested,
My growth is exceptionally high.
My breasts are the envy of every
Turkey that might happen by.

My hair is as fine as corn tassel.
My skin with fruit pigment is crossed.
If my hide wasn't so bruise resistant,
I'd wilt at the first sign of frost.

They assure me that this stuff's quite safe,
That controls are far better than fine.
I shiver to think what might happen,
With leaves that have grown from my spine.

I eat lots of GMO, each meal.
I can't stand in one place too long.
I used to have feet. Are they hooves now?
They may be, but my tap root's quite strong.

I wish that they'd label all foodstuff
With contents exceedingly clear.
Can you tell when or if it's safe enough
To eat Franken-foods found far and near?

ssorllih · Post by **ssorllih** » Tue Mar 06, 2012 02:28

Hey Ducky, That's good! your work?

Oxide · Post by **Oxide** » Tue Mar 06, 2012 03:38

el Ducko wrote:
With all the hormones I've ingested, ...

My breasts are the envy of every
Turkey that might happen by.

Last night I listed to Dr John Gray on the radio -- author of 'Men Are From Mars, Women Are ...'. He mentioned how the estrogen given to cattle to fatten them and promote growth is affecting men's testosterone levels. Estrogen suppresses testosterone, I guess. A 40-year old man today may have the same testosterone level of a 70-year old man 30-years ago. There has been that much change.

I looked into today, read some stuff online.

Pig, chickens, and turkeys are NOT approved for hormones. However, there is no control over their feed unless it is labeled "organic" ... then there is no GMO or antibiotics or hormones allowed. So your hormone breast would be the envy of cows, not turkeys.

.

Cows are given 6 diff hormones, all synthetic. One for milking cows to increase milk output causes utter infections for they also give the cows antibiotics for the puss and bacteria that is discharged during milking. A natural byproduct of that hormone is igh-1, something suspected in cervical cancer and prostate cancer. Folks with those cancers tend to have a higher than normal amount of igh-1 in their bodies.

The other thing I was disappointed to read was that Switzerland (?) in 1999 tested beef from America and found hormones that are banned there, and even banned in America!!! Europe will not allow American beef to be sold there. Japan will not allow America beef over a certain age (14 months?) to be sold there.

I'll say it ... the quality of corporate/factory produced meat in America these days is just crap ... total, absolute s*** scraped from the bottom of the bucket.

ssorllih - I need to get a piece of land to graze my own cow and pig as you suggested. Thanks ... presuming that isn't violating the new federal food manufacturing law that allows the food police to come into your backyard and confiscate your own personal little garden.

Yes, all of your sausage and salami making is now subject to the food police, even tho it is for personal use only.

I very rarely eat beef, anyways. Now, no chance I'm eating any American beef except certified organic. I don't drink milk, but use organic creme for cooking. American Ice Cream and cheese are now off my list! Cheese from Canada (bans hormones) and Europe (bans hormones) is ok.

I'll start a new thread on legume proteins.

ssorllih · Post by **ssorllih** » Tue Mar 06, 2012 04:14

If your wife takes birth control pills then she is taking synthetic hormones. If you have thyroid problems then you are probably taking synthetic thyroid hormones. There is much good derived from synthetic medications and there can be much harm if they are misused. The hormones given to increase milk production are basically the same as those produced by the cow when she freshens. Most farmers don't use them. If you come to Harford county I will introduce you to beef farmers that raise grass fed angus beef, pastured hogs and sheep. There are no feed lots here Most farms raise all of the feed for their stock or buy hay from local farms that only grow hay and corn for silage.