We have written about the positives and negatives of Genetically Modified Foods (GMOs), and the debate continues. An article titled “Eating Dangerously” by Jennifer Brown and Michael Booth in the March 12, 2014 Denver Post describes “…how 50 million Americans will get food poisoning this year…More than 100,000 will go to the hospital; 3,000 will die.” Federal authorities do not ban the sale of chicken contaminated with bacteria such as salmonella. They instead rely on consumers to cook the chicken to at least 165 degrees, which would kill the bacteria. However, there was a “Foster Farms chicken scare (in) 2013” that involved chicken contaminated with an antibiotic-resistant strain of salmonella that wasn’t killed by cooking to 165 degrees. Dozens of consumers were hospitalized.

The article focuses on the Colorado case of salmonella-contaminated cantaloupes that killed 33 people in 2011. Federal inspectors had never visited the farm that was the source of the cantaloupes prior to the outbreak.

There is a wealth of food safety information and warnings in the article, and you should click on the link and read it. The closing part of the article is what brought home the reality of fears about GMO safety compared to what we readily accept in our daily diets. I’ll quote that closing paragraph. “Don’t waste worries on spilled GMO milk:  You might fear genetically modified foods because you don’t like big corporations, or because you prefer local, smaller farms. But don’t worry about food safety—a solid, international scientific consensus declares them safe for human consumption. Clear labeling would help eliminate many fears.”

Another article titled “A clear case for growing golden rice” by Peter Slinger published in the Denver Post March 23, 2014 had an even more pronounced impact on my thinking about GMOs.  Vitamin A deficiency contributes to the death of as many as 2 million children for whom rice is the staple food.  It causes blindness in between 250,000 and 500,000 preschool children annually, and about half die within a year. There is also increased susceptibility to other diseases such as measles and higher mortality during pregnancy and childbirth.

“Golden rice” is a form of the grain that has been genetically modified to have higher beta carotene content, which is converted in the human body to vitamin A. It was developed fifteen years ago by Swiss scientists, but it is still not available to farmers. Further field trials are needed “…to meet the strict regulations governing the release of GMOs. That hurdle was raised higher when activists destroyed fields in the Philippines where trials were being conducted.” One complaint about GMOs that resonates with many is that the industry is dominated by “big agribusiness that can’t be trusted.” The agribusiness giant Syngenta did assist in developing the rice, but “…has given the right to sub-license the rice to a nonprofit organization called the Golden Rice Humanitarian Board.” The board can provide rice for research and to low-income farmers in developing countries as long as it doesn’t charge more than the price of ordinary rice seeds.

The author of the article “…was among those who argued for strong regulations to prevent biotech companies from putting health or that of the environment at risk…” He gives the opinion that regulation should be maintained and caution is reasonable, which perhaps is why, “There is no reliable scientific evidence GM foods cause illness.” No other proven negative effects have occurred despite the fact that, “Genetically modified crops are now grown on about one-tenth of the world’s cropland.”

I’ve sat at my keyboard for several minutes trying to think what wanted to say to Greenpeace and the other activists who have campaigned against introduction of beta carotene in rice as part of their overall opposition to GMOs. My least harsh comments would be something to the effect that “You should be ashamed! I understand it is part of the human condition to be suspicious of new technology. However, there is no justification for preventing the development of a food that could save large numbers of children when the facts don’t support your beliefs. Why don’t you spend your energies converting to the Luddite tradition of looking for looms to burn and let the children live?”