October Is “Say No to GMO”
October is Non-GMO Month, so pledge to spend one week without eating any genetically modified food.
GMOs are in roughly 80 percent of the packaged foods sold in the U.S. and Canada, according to the Grocery Manufacturers Association.
Back in the late 1990's, the GMO corn food contamination forced our family to radically rethink our growing efforts by turning our typical "hobby" garden into a full scale micro farm which provides our family with over 90% of our produce, annually harvesting 6,000 lbs on just 1/10 acre plot. Visit our blog to learn more.
This October, the Non-GMO Project is sponsoring its first-ever Non-GMO Month in an effort to raise awareness of its "Non-GMO Project Verified" certification. Their focus is primarily on packaged or processed foods, which can contain any number of genetically modified ingredients, such as soy, corn, cotton (cottonseed oil is a common ingredient in processed foods), sugar beets, and sugar cane.
The folks over at Rodale have come up with 4 simple ways to avoid GMO"S
#1: Buy organic. Because the FDA doesn't require food companies to label products as containing GMOs, the easiest way to avoid them is to buy only certified-organic foods. By definition, organic products can't contain any ingredients produced using biotechnology or genetic engineering.
#2: Know the code. Most of the attention focused on GMOs deals with commodity crops commonly used in processed foods (corn, soy, cottonseed oil, and canola). But biotech scientists have genetically engineered a bunch of other crops that are still sold in stores, though in smaller quantities, that don't get quite as much attention: zucchini, yellow crookneck squash, sweet corn, and Hawaiian papayas. In other parts of the world, GM sweet peppers, potatoes, and rice are under development. One way to know if your sweet corn is of the frankenfood variety is to look at the little stickers attached to produce. According to international PLU-code guidelines, GMO foods contain the number "8" before the four-digit code printed on the produce sticker. Organic foods contain the number "9."
#3: Get verified. As mentioned, the Non-GMO Project has a third-party verification system that certifies products as being GMO free. If you can't find a certified-organic version of what you're looking for, look for the "Non-GMO Project Verified" seal. That goes for dietary supplements, as well, which can't be certified as organic but often contain soy-based fillers. Currently, the only supplements manufacturer verified by the Non-GMO Project is New Chapter. You can search for GMO-free products on the organization's website
I would like to add
If you have the land, time, and resources, grow your own food. As long as you make sure you're not buying GM seeds, and aren't near any GM plants which could cross-pollinate, you'll know for sure that the food which comes from your garden is not genetically modified.
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[...] Before I show off a pictorial blitz of the state of the garden, like to remind folks of an important food advocacy announcement. October is SAY NO TO GMO month. [...]
Thank you so much for writing this article! WholeSoy has put together a guide for ways to participate in Non-GMO Month as well. Here’s the link for reference: http://wholesoyco.com/blog/item/take-action-guide-for-non-gmo-month