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By Root 1233 0

on rural life, access to seeds, or corporate control of the food supply? Fine, let’s talk about safety. Let’s look at unintended consequences, toxins, allergens, superweeds, Bt resistance, antibiotic resistance, and effects on monarch butterflies and (as discussed below) on native corn growing in Mexico. Although most scientists might dismiss such hazards as remote or of little consequence, they cannot prove the concerns insignificant. Just enough evidence exists to fuel ongoing debate and discredit any scientist or regulator who categorically states that genetically modified foods are safe. Safety matters, but so do the other issues to which we now turn.

Labeling: Transparency in Marketing

Labeling continues to be a political issue rather than a simple matter of consumer information, largely because the industry opposes it so strongly and the government supports the industry’s position. The public consistently demands disclosure, but the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) insists that labels would be misleading. The agency’s logic: labels would erroneously imply that genetically modified foods differ from conventional foods and that conventional foods are in some way superior. Although the FDA justifies this position as science based, the policy is clearly political: “Don’t ask, don’t tell.”1 Whether genetically modified foods differ from conventional foods depends on how one views the construction methods. Based on a review of the steps needed to construct Golden Rice, for example, it is quite possible to make the opposite argument: the foods significantly differ (see tables on pages 158 and 280). Whether labeling implies inferiority also is debatable. If genetically modified foods offer significant advantages, why not flaunt them? Calgene intended to advertise its transgenic tomato as superior, and British supermarkets had no problem selling products prominently labeled as genetically modified (pages 212 and 215). Alternatively, if the foods offer no advantages to consumers, the issue boils down to one of choice at the marketplace. Overall, the lack of labeling suggests that something about transgenic foods is best hidden.

The industry tries hard to prove that the public does not really care about disclosure, but independent surveys almost always report substantial support for labeling. Survey results depend on who asks the questions and how they are worded. In May 2001, for example, 62% of respondents said agree in response to a question asked this way: Tell me if you agree, disagree, or if you don’t know whether information about genetic modification should be required on food labels.2 In contrast, here is an industry-sponsored question: “The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requires special labeling when a food is produced under certain conditions: when biotechnology’s use introduces an allergen or when it substantially changes the food’s nutritional content, like vitamins or fat, or its composition. Otherwise, special labeling is not required. Would you say you support or oppose this policy of FDA?” Only 27% answered oppose.3

Regardless of survey results, the makers of transgenic foods are convinced that labeling would have a chilling effect on sales. Unlike vitamin-enriched or organic foods, transgenic foods offer no obvious benefit, and the demise of the British tomato paste reinforced industry fears. Nevertheless, in July 1999 federal officials met with scientific, industry, and advocacy groups to reconsider whether genetically modified foods should be labeled. Commentators interpreted this move as a shift in policy toward regulations based less on science and more on the “dreaded social, political, and economic criteria.” Soon after, “a battered Clinton administration” announced hearings for late 1999, suggesting that the FDA might admit its policy failure in this area and develop labeling rules for transgenic foods.4

This FDA action also reflected politics: Congress was getting involved in this area. In November 1999, 21 members of Congress, led by Representative Dennis Kucinich (Dem-OH), introduced