Category: Political

What more can you say?

Michael Pollan, perhaps best known for his recent book, “The Omnivore’s Dilemma,” explains what the title of this post means in a 12 page article in today’s New York Times Magazine.

Because politically it’s not possible to say we should eat less food, it takes someone like Pollan to expose all the misleading healthy eating advice we are assaulted with on a daily basis. As well as exposing all the lies, he then goes on to offer advice on what to eat that would be hard for anyone to ignore.

As we come up on bird flu season again this year, it seems like a good time to post about the ‘other side’ of the story. We are all familiar with what’s in the news about bird flu. The basic theme is wild birds carry the infection along their migratory routes, infecting everything from chickens to cats and people. Large factory farms are vulnerable, but are also the best cared for places, as the chickens are all in one place. The biggest problem in the spread of bird flu are small farmers and individuals raising chickens outside, as these animals are difficult to track and slaughter in case of a bird flu outbreak. Chicken and eggs are safe to eat, we are told over and over! Eat more food!

What’s not frequently mentioned is the story behind these factory chicken farms. These indoor farms contain tens of thousands of birds and recently have been operated at levels of hundreds of thousands. They are very dirty places, and breeding grounds for diseases. Only a small amount of space is allocated to each bird, and their beaks are cut off to keep them from killing and injuring each other. In the case of ‘free range’, a small door on the side of the building lets the birds wander out onto a small grassy area if they choose. If they choose is the key word here, because the breed of chicken in these farms do not generally choose to go outside. The outdoor area is often not big enough, should the birds all decide to go out at the same time.

This special breed of chicken used in these farms is only suitable for being raised indoors, and one of it’s characteristics is a very weak immune system. It’s immune system is so weak, that generally at any sign of infectious disease all of the chickens must be very quickly destroyed or brought to market. Any human visitors to these farms must be carefully managed, and generally they have to be suited from head to toe in a plastic hazardous materials suit fitted with a respirator. In fact the risk of infection is so high that during bird flu outbreaks the doors on ‘free range’ farms have to be closed because the risk of a bird walking outside and contracting bird flu is so great.

It’s increasingly the view of scientists and other people involved in the bird flu issue that it is not so much of an issue of wild birds causing bird flu, but rather the factory farms are the source of bird flu and the wild birds simply spread the disease. It’s a growing travesty that people who raise small numbers of poultry outdoors are being victimized by bird flu because the birds they raise, with their normal immune systems, are the solution to the problem not the cause.

What about the farmers who operate these large farms? Last year in Europe chicken farmers were awarded substantial compensation because the bird flu scare resulted in low demand for their products. This would seem to suggest that whether or not we are even interested in these products, we still have to pay for them with our taxes, and farmers will continue to be paid for producing them.

If you are interested in reading more on this issue, GRAIN has a collection of articles here.

Recent polls in the US have suggested more than 80% (some polls suggest more than 90%) of all people think GM food should be labelled as such, and more than half of these people say the reason they support such labelling is because they would like to avoid eating it. It turns out many people don’t understand that even in the absence of such labelling it is possible to reduce or eliminate your consumption of genetically engineered products. In this post I am going to explain how to do this.

Even though Europe has some laws protecting the food supply from GM organisms, there are many loopholes and weaknesses in these laws. There are many steps Europeans can take to avoid these genetically engineered products as well. In fact these steps can be taken by anyone regardless of where they live.

Why avoid consuming genetically engineered products?

For many people this isn’t an important issue, and this post probably isn’t for them. In fact this post is not intended to offer dietary advice to anyone. However, if you are someone who prefers not to consume genetically engineered products, here are some ideas on how to go about doing that. For an excellent in-depth analysis on reasons for being concerned about eating genetically engineered products, I would refer you to the excellent website, books and videos published by Jeffrey M. Smith.

For those of us who prefer not to eat genetically engineered products, it’s important to understand these products are not created for our benefit. They are not created because they are a solution to world hunger, in a world that already produces too much food. They are not created to benefit farmers who are already suffering from the food gluts on world markets and costs associated from growing patented seeds. They are not grown for the benefit of food processors or distributors. They are grown solely for the benefit of a few politicians and corporations who want to control the world food supplies, through patents, laws, treaties and other means.

When we show a preference by not buying and eating these products, there is a backwards ripple effect. When we demand from our local food outlets GM free foods, they demand the same from their suppliers, who in turn demand the same from farmers. It is not necessary for many people to make these demands to be heard, and a GM food consumption drop of 5-10% will make a very big difference and be noticed very quickly. Reducing our consumption of GM foods is the most effective way we as individuals have of showing the way they are being forced on us is simply unacceptable.

GM crops

There are commercial varieties of genetically engineered potatoes, tomatoes, soy, long grain rice, corn (maize), rape (called canola in the US), Quest tobacco (sold in the US), cotton (used for cotton seed oil used in cooking), Hawaiian papaya and a few zucchini and yellow squashes (courgettes). Of these, the tomatoes and potatoes are not currently on the market and rape and cotton seed oils are more common in North America that other places. Soy, corn and long grain rice are the most important for people wishing to avoid eating GM foods.

Apart from traditional crops, some products are made using genetically engineered bacteria. The most widespread of these products is the rbGH a growth hormone used to increase milk production in cows, aspartame (NutraSweet) and rennet (often labelled as vegetarian) used for making hard cheese. In addition many enzymes, flavorings, processing agents, food supplements and pharmaceuticals are made from genetically engineered bacteria.

GM grains like corn and soy are frequently used as animal feed. This is true even in Europe, where the ban on GM food products does not cover animal feed. Honey can have GM material when the bees can collect pollen from GM plants.

Even in Europe where many GM foods are prohibited, many other GM foods are on the market. As mentioned before, animal feed is allowed to contain GM material, meaning almost all animal products will contain GM material. The ban on GM foods does not include products previously approved, which among other things means hard cheese can be made with GM rennet. In addition 0.9% GM contamination is allowed, even where GM products are otherwise not allowed. Labelling GM foods is required, but only where the percentage of GM material exceeds 0.9%. There is also no routine testing of foods for GM contamination, so if GM contamination exceeds permitted levels, probably no one would know.

Centralized distribution and processing

In centralized distribution products from all farmers are mixed, processed and then distributed. Doing this insures if there is any contamination of any kind, it will be spread throughout the entire process.

The days are mostly gone where we buy food directly from the farmer. Some of us may live near farmers that sell their own food, or we may buy some of our food from farmers at a market, but for many of us this is not an option. Most of us buy at least some of our food from supermarkets, restaurants and fast food outlets, who in turn buy the food for us. Nearly all farmers sell their products directly to food processing and distribution companies.

Many people don’t realize how few of these companies there are. For example, in the US, nearly all meat goes through one of just a handful of meatpacking companies. Recently there was an outbreak of E Coli in the US due to contaminated spinach, and this outbreak was nationwide because it turned out nearly all spinach in the US was processed by a single company. This concentration of food processing and associated contaminations turns out to be one of the biggest challenges when it comes to avoiding genetically engineered foods.

There is a great deal of financial pressure in this centralized distribution model. Farmers are often expected to produce crops for less than their own costs. Fortunes can be made or lost when prices vary by just a few cents, and the temptation to substitute a cheaper (possibly illegal) GM crop while claiming it to be GM free can be very tempting. There is usually no way to tell the difference between a GM and non-GM crop by just looking at it, so this kind of dishonesty is very hard to detect.

An important aspect of food processing are the additives used, nearly all of which are derived from soy or corn, and so can contain GM material. A partial list of corn products is: vegetable oil, high fructose corn syrup, citric and lactic acid, glucose, fructose, maltodextrin, ethanol, sorbitol, mannitol, xanthan gum, modified and unmodified starches, dextrins, cyclodextrins and MSG. The most common soy products are soy lecithin and cooking oil. These are just partial lists, and there are many more products. Most processed foods contain at least one of these additives.

Certified Organic (Biological) Foods

Recent changes in both Europe and the US require food certified as organic to also be GM free. At the moment there is a transitional period where for some components of processed foods, GM free certification can be made on the sole basis of written statements by suppliers. Eventually all components of certified organic foods will have to be certified GM free.

What does this all mean?

It all comes down to this. If you want to eat GM free food, almost anywhere in the world, you have to avoid the following: meat or other animal products that are not from completely grass fed animals, honey, products made from soy, corn or rice (which includes almost all processed foods), Quest tobacco, Hawaiian papaya, cotton seed or canola (rape) seed oils, products containing aspartame sweetener, all hard cheeses and many drugs and food supplements (check with your doctor or pharmacist). Exceptions for all of these are for certified organic products.

Is there anything I’ve missed? Please let me know.