The Genetic Modification Of Our Food Compared To The Modification That Happens Naturally In Nature

There are many justifications for Genetically Engineered Foods. All of them have strong counter-arguments that many people are simply not aware of. This article does not dive deep into those, but simply focuses on one small aspects that concerns many experts in the field.

In March 2014, scientists from Indiana University announced that they had conducted research to examine the operations of the fruit fly genome “in greater detail than ever before possible” and had identified “thousands of new genes, transcripts and proteins.”

Their results indicated that the fly’s genome is “far more complex than previously suspected and suggests that the same will be true of the genomes of other higher organisms.”

Of the approximately 1,500 new genes that were discovered, 536 of them were found within areas that were previously assumed to be gene-free zones. Furthermore, when the flies were subjected to stresses, small changes in expression level at thousands of genes occurred, and four newly modelled genes were expressed altogether differently.

Why is this important? Because it reveals how little we know about this planet and the organisms dwelling on it, yet also how much we think we know. This kind of hubris is found within all areas of human knowledge, but particularly when it comes to science.

When it comes to our genes, and the genes of other organisms, we really know next to nothing. Unfortunately, proponents of the biotech industry claim otherwise, and have developed multiple, flawed assumptions that undergird agricultural bioengineering....<<<Read More>>>...

The toxic world of GM crops

 The biotech industry promised genetically engineered foods would reduce pesticide use, increase the nutritional content of food, boost farmers’ profits and feed the world by increasing yields.

In reality, GM crops have turned glyphosate into one of the most widely and recklessly used herbicides in history and monoculture has led to a loss of biodiversity.

GM crops have also failed to live up to expected increases in crop yields and, nutritionally, GMOs primarily provide cheap, unhealthy ingredients for ultra-processed ready meals, pre-packaged foods and fast-food restaurants.

More than 40,000 people in the US have filed lawsuits alleging exposure to Roundup is the cause of their cancer. Once a rare cancer, non-Hodgkin lymphoma is now the seventh most common cancer in US men and women.

The agricultural biotech industry continues to advance with a new suite of genetic engineering technologies known as gene editing, which includes techniques such as CRISPR as well as synthetic biology and gene drives....<<<Read More>>>...

Britain using Ukraine conflict as excuse to push for legalizing gene-edited Frankenfood

 Genetically engineered food is heavily restricted in the United Kingdom, and for good reason. But a new bill being pushed in Parliament right now could sidestep these restrictions using the Ukraine conflict as an excuse.

Gene-edited crops differ from standard genetically modified organisms, or GMOs, in that their own DNA code is modified as opposed to be spliced with foreign DNA. And British politicians are attempting to exploit this by claiming that gene-edited crops are excluded from their country’s strict GMO regulations.

Entitled the “Genetic Technology” bill, the legislation was first introduced on Wednesday. It is described by the UK’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs as a way to “cut red tape and support the development of innovative tech to grow more resistant, more nutritious and more productive crops.” “These precision technologies allow us to speed up the breeding of plants that have natural resistance to diseases and better use of soil nutrients so we can have higher yields with fewer pesticides and fertilizers,” added Environment Secretary George Eustice, who is heavily pushing the bill. “Outside the European Union (EU), we are free to follow the science.” ...<<<Read More>>>....