Genetically modified food
Regulatory loopholes
Despite health and environmental risks posed by genetically modified (GM) foods, Congress never has passed a single law intended to regulate them.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently proposed new regulations for GM animals and crops but critics say that these regulations have several loopholes including:
- The proposed rules weaken regulation standards.
- Non-organic and organic crops are contaminated by GM varieties.
- Food crops being grown to produce pharmaceutical and industrial compounds — in open-air fields — can become comingled with crops destined for the food supply. The National Academy of Science reports it’s virtually impossible to keep untested pharmaceutical crops out of our food.
- The FDA says the new regulations will protect animals, yet data show that more than 50 percent of cow clones are born with abnormalities that adversely affect their health.
- FDA guidelines say GM foods must be thoroughly tested, but biotech corporations themselves determine whether their products are safe or whether they warrant analytical or toxicological tests, and not all GM foods are tested.
There is no requirement to label GM food, even though surveys show the majority of Americans want mandatory labels.