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Author to tour region, speak on threats posed by use of GMOs
By Toby Henry
Brattleboro Reformer
Brattleboro, Vermont
October 3, 2003
Author Jeffrey Smith, a longtime speaker on the possible dangers of genetically modified food, will conduct a tour of the region to discuss the health risks he believes are posed by altering the genes of crops.
"Genetically modified foods are inherently unsafe, and they have been responsible for deaths and sicknesses with at least one dietary supplement." He said. "Our main goal is to encourage families to protect themselves by avoiding any genetically modified food and by taking steps to have them removed from schools and other institutions."
In his recently published book, "Seeds of Deception: Exposing Industry and Government Lies about the Safety of the Genetically Engineered Foods You’re Eating," Smith alleges a laundry list of cover-ups and half hearted research by agencies charged with protecting public health as well as misinformation campaigns and intimidation by the corporations that produce and market genetically modified foods.
Genetically modified foods, also referred to as genetically modified organisms or "GMOS," are generally defined as animals and plants that have been modified at the DNA level to be made healthier, more productive or resistant to disease.
One of the first and most successful GMOs to arrive on U.S. markets was the "Flavr Savr" tomato, created by Calgene Inc., of Davis, Calif., and developed to have a firmer texture and a longer shelf life. In May 1992, the Food and Drug Administration concluded that there was no difference between genetically modified foods and those grown by traditional means. The tomato went into large-scale production in 1994.
Smith, an Iowa resident with a master’s degree in business administration, began spreading information about the potential dangers of GMOs soon after the Flavr Savr made its public debut. He faults safety testing of GMOs to determine if they will cause long-term health problems.
For example, he said, cows were injected with bovine growth hormone; a substance used to boost milk production, and were tested in the mid-1990s to see if unsafe levels of the hormone would later be found in milk. The three cows tested received doses of about 11 milligrams of the hormone per day, he said.
"But in practice, farmers usually give the cows an injection of 500 milligrams every two weeks," he said. "What (the researchers) did was avoid the huge ‘spike’ of hormones that follows the larger injections."
In other studies, Smith said British researchers found that incidences of soy allergies climbed 50 percent in the U.K. following the introduction of genetically modified soy. While there has never been a direct link established between GMOs and illnesses, Smith said there is ample evidence to underscore the need for such an investigation.
A 1989 incident involving a food supplement is illustrative, he continued. A genetically modified product known as L-tryptophan, marketed by the Japan-based Showa Denko KK company, was being sold in the United States when a number of its users began to experience ill health. The symptoms, which ran from mild fever and rashes to heart and liver failure, were later identified as eosinophilia-myalgia syndrome, a sever illness. In a subsequent investigation, the Centers for Disease and Control in Atlanta found that the approximately 100 people who died from the disease and the hundreds more who were sickened had been taking 10 milligrams or more per day of the supplement.
"The chances of it (being caused by GMOs) are so high but still, genetically modified foods are allowed on the market," he said. "But I’m not a researcher; I can’t find that causal link."
Smith added that efforts to research the safety of GMOs are beset by poor studies.
"There are efforts going on right now in Norway, but it’s only in the preliminary stages," he said.
Messages left on Wednesday at the Food and Drug Administration and the St. Louis offices of Monsanto, a worldwide manufacturer of genetically modified seeds, were not returned.
Public awareness about the prevalence of GMOs, which he said are estimated to occupy 70 percent of the food market, could occur through the practice of mandatory labeling, he said. In Vermont, such efforts have taken place at the legislative level during the past two sessions. In the most recent session, the bill passed the Senate, but was later voted down by the house after being attached to the Fee Bill.
In light of surveys that indicate more than half of all U.S. residents polled would not knowingly purchase GMOs, Smith said, manufacturers appear to have realized that labeling might end their industry.
"Most Americans have said that if they had a choice, they would not eat genetically modified foods," he said. "Labeling could be the death knell of the industry."
Smith will speak in Brattleboro on Friday at the Brattleboro Food Co-op at 4:30 p.m. and at the New England Youth Theater on Main Street at 6:00 p.m. More information can be found online at www.seedsofdeception.com.
Reprinted with permission from the "Brattleboro Reformer"
Toby Henry can be reached at thenry@reformer.com
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