An artichoke plant grown from seed. Once it flowered, more graines were collected; with them I hope to grow a new plant in our garden. Is it true that seed collection–from our own gardens–may one day be illegal? Or is this just one of those conspiracy-theory rumors? By the way (and not in the same breath as conspiracy!), the film Genetic Roulette is free for viewing today (Friday), after which you will have to pay to see it!
For those waiting to read the English translation to Jean-Marc's story, click here.
OGM (oh-zhay-em)
: un organisme génétiquement modifié
: a genetically modified organism (a "GMO"); a plant, such as corn, that has been genetically modified
A Day in a French Life… by Kristin Espinasse
In the past month, apart from enjoying every moment with my dear mom (Jules left yesterday…), I have been learning about food, specifically genetically modified food–something that is banned here in France (due to the need for further testing regarding health risks…).
In the United States, genetically modified foods are prevalent, having been silently introduced into the market place in the 1990s. Found in fruits and vegetables, GMOs are in everything from ketchup to peanut butter to kids' breakfast cereal, and are served in restaurants, on airplanes, and in school cafeterias. Currently genetically modified foods do not require labelling (in the States) so there's no knowing whether or not an apple or a cookie or a jar of peanut butter contains them.
Because the following topic could be a touchy or emotional one… I'm going to play it safe and assign myself the role of debate moderator–rather than debate participant! (go ahead and call me une poule mouillée or wet chicken–anything in order to hear your personal view on this GMO topic!)
Thanks for adding any related links (to documentaries, websites, books) that might persuade some of us to agree with you!
Share your view here, and enter to win seeds from this amazing artichoke plant, grown in my garden in Sainte Cécile-les-Vignes… and soon to be planted here in our new garden near Bandol.
Click here to enter the discussion: "For or against GMOs".
One of the most exciting days of my life was seeing this gorgeous artichoke plant arise… from a single seed!
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No GMO’s for me…though I suppose I’ve eaten them without knowing. I’m a big label reader now. I think that we are playing russian roulette with GMO’s and pesticides. I’ve gotten over finding an occasional worm in my fruits and veggies. I’d rather have that then a ton of chemicals or modified genes.
I’m very much against GMO-s!!! I agree with Meredith. Messing with Nature is inviting trouble that may have irreversable and damaging results to our health. I also read labels, and it is amazing what is put in our food. I love gardening, but I would never use pesticides or herbicides in my garden.
I’m with Meredith and Marika on this.When you realise that “we are what we eat”it becomes important to keep food natural. We shouldn’t meddle with nature.
Not sure I’m ok with the worms though Meredith!but I know what you mean.
I agree with Meredith and the French. GMOs are not for me, and as far as I’m concerned need a lot more testing, though in the long run even if the tests “prove” them safe, I’d rather stick with what nature has provided us — without the extra pesticides, antibiotics, and/or other manipulations. btw, I’m voting this election (in California) to have GMO foods labeled as such. Voting YES on Prop 37. Thanks Kristin for your courage to post and request feedback on this. Food is essential and important to all of us – esp. us francophiles. 🙂 I grew up in Phoenix, Az. on slices of so-called American cheese. At age 21, while backpacking (and “auto-stopping”) my way through Europe, French friends offered me raw milk camembert. i thought i’d gone to heaven. Since then, I’m a real appreciator of simple, real, profoundly delicious and healthful food.
Thanks, ladies, for jumpstarting this debate! And LOL Meredith and Angela — while at the farmers market this morning, I picked up a gorgeous tomatoe… only to find a big wormhole on its underside. While reaching to put it back, it occured to me that I could just cut that part out. Back into my basket it went!
Nope. Real food for me!
I inadvertently ate GM products for around ten years, though I do not feel any different and my health is good, I am very sceptical of the value of GM products. But I am afraid it is the way of the future, it is about making money and nothing to do with our health.
I’m about to try harvesting tomato seeds for next year from the 2 plants I was given at a Connect meeting here in Saint Yrieix la Perche. I only moved here in may, from Scotland and have been stunned by the fruitful garden I bought. No herbicides, though my neighbour tells me that the local farmers use them on the fruit trees and that’s why my mirabelles and peaches were not attacked by birds, as they would have been in Scotland. The farmers still lost a lot of fruit in the frost this winter.
I was not aware of this until this past year and am not surprised that our government does this to us.
I think scientists and the government have gone too far. They need to find something else to play with, not our lives!
God has done a good job,leave it to him…………………
GMOs are safe to eat.
I’m the same, I go along with the majority view, I don’t eat or want GM for anyone really, because of the unknown risks. I wish our PM would ban GM’s, but no chance, whilst there’s greater chance of profit from them!
No, I absolutely do NOT believe any good could come from GMOs. That is, except for those who profit from it. We already have enough self inflicted illnesses and deaths attributable to our “brilliance” in altering foods and other products with carcinogens. Why create a potential for more??
I understand that feeding the world is a tremendous task, but I think they are playing with fire by modifying the foods we eat…..I don’t want GMO foods and I believe foods that ave modified or contain fods that ave been should be labeled as such so we can knowingly choose wether we want to purchase and consume them instead of eating like a lab rat.
I believe we have been eating a form of Genetically modified foods for centuries. Each time we hybridize plants or cross pollinate to bring out a specific trait we are manipulating the genetics of that plant. Without it, our corn would be tiny, the apples you eat today would look and taste more like crab-apples and the wine industry would not be where it is today. More genuine discussion is needed without inserting emotion or unfounded fear.
Today’s GMOs are the same thing on a much shorter timeline, I don’t believe they are the “Frankenfoods” they are made out to be in the press.
I don’t even eat from a microwave, so it is unlikely that I will be seduced into eating GisMO food. But I am a vegetarian and only organic at that, so perhaps I am too health orientated for this debate.
It does help with some big world problems. If poorer countries rely on one stock, like rice for feeding their people, more nutrients can be introduced to that grain. It also helps reduce our carbon footprint.
“It’s been estimated that the carbon emission savings from introduction of genetically engineered crops that encourage no-till farming are equivalent to removing 19.4 bn kilogram of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere worldwide. This is equal to the carbon emissions savings from removing 8.6 million cars from the road for one year.
Minimal tillage farming also has several other benefits, such as better moisture retention in the soil and reduction in soil erosion.” Richard Rousch, Univ of Melbourne
I sure hope that this is less about big business (like the hormone fed crops are) but I’m not naive.
why do corporations need to recreate that which is already perfect??????do they need to control EVERYTHING? do they not understand that mother nature will eventually win out ? industry has a very poor record with the environment,,,,,and nature…….it is scary, and i am firmly anti genetically altered food…….why spend time and money to change that which is already perfect…..susan
One more thing:
I am more afraid of the artificial hormone injected foods than the GMO’s.
That artichoke photo is spectacular. THAT”S what “natural” gives us!!
I found out about this recently and am very frustrated by the lack of labeling. I would not knowingly eat GMO fruits and vegetables, but probably have because of not knowing. My health has suffered severely in the last 10 years and I’m wondering if that had something to do with it. I have eaten “correctly” for the last 20 years, yet still have several major diseases. I buy organic when possible and from local farms as well but still wonder.
As an American, I necessarily eat GMO foods all the time and don’t seem to come to any harm.
There is no serious scientific evidence that they are harmful. Until there is, I’m not going to be swayed by the herd-like GMO opponents.
The two things that bother me most about GM foods are the fact that the government hasn’t seen fit to tell us that they were being used in the first place (making me very suspicious), and won’t label them so we can make our own private choice as to whether to eat them (making me further suspicious), and the fact that no actual proof has been given that they are safe to eat. We’ve only been given assurances based on “expert” opinion. Expert opinions have been found to be faulty in the past.
I object to being the corporate mega farms’ guinea pig.
I recognize that it does help “super-nutrisize” crops for countries finding it hard to feed its population. However, it also changes native crops and creates mono-crops. Variety is always good in nature. The companies haven’t been required to post long-term studies on the health effects on people of GMOs. I think anything that has GMO ingredients absolutely needs to be marked — especially food directed toward children, like milk. We should be able to make a choice – GMO or non-GMO, just like we can make a choice “organic or non-organic.”
Forgot to say, Kristin, gorgeous photo of artichoke and bee.
Regardless of whether GMOs are bad for us health-wise, they are definitely bad in terms of the concentration of food patents in the hands of big corporations like Monsanto. Does anyone foresee any advantage in having all our food produced by big corporations and having it be illegal to get seeds from our neighbors? We buy from the local farmers, and we buy organic as much as possible. We buy seeds from companies that are opposed to patents and grow our own produce.
I know very little about this subject but wonder if my problem with gluten isn’t part of this issue. Modifications to wheat over the years in order to increase yield has given us a wheat quite different from the wheat our ancestors ate. Apparently this is the problem; the modifications and our genetic makeup don’t mix well!
So I believe I’ll skip GMO products if I can identify them!
I have a wheat allergy, so GMOs create a huge problem as Monsanto has used genes from wheat and added them to other, supposedly safe foods, like tomatoes. I run the risk of having a reaction to foods that I am normally not allergic to if I don’t try to avoid GMOs, which, as you point out, here in the states, is very difficult, and very expensive.
One issue that is linked to this is recent research into Lectins, glycoproteins that occur in all living things. Each plant and animal haver their own unique lectins, but when you trade genes, lectins that do not normally occur in a certain plant, may begin to do so. Many people are sensitive to certain lectins and can become very sick when exposed to them. Current theories are that autoimmune diseases such as Lupus and Multiple Sclerosis are linked to lectin exposure. Dr. Power, PHd at the Univ of MD has a paper online that explains some of this. Do a search on “lectin”.
A lady near where I live runs a farm that uses no GMO grains in raising their livestock. She notes that less than 10% of the US grain supply is reliably GMO free. She also says it is getting harder and harder to find GMO free grain to feed her stock. In the US, even ogranic food is allowed to have a fairly high percentage of GMO grain used in it’s production. Scary stuff.
I am in agreement that it is unnecessary and unethical to alter the genes of our food supply without our approval or worst yet our knowledge. It seems that this flourished at the same time we were building shopping malls in our farm fields. I took my children to protest a mine recently and it may become the proudest moment of my life. I think that is what the U.S. is lacking is the spirit of civil disobedience we once held so dear. That may be the only path to change in the face of a disinterested congress. The French are so much more bold that the result is their government respects them.
I understand that GMO’s came about as a means for growers to use less pesticides and fertilizer by increasing certain qualities of the resultant fruit and vegetables. Unfortunately, very little study has gone into the resultant effects on the human body. The FDA’s methods for testing such things is woefully lacking, generally based on limited studies on mice and even fewer on humans, often for very short periods of time. It could be decades before private studies reveal possible harmful effects to humans from these modified foods.
Yes, you are correct in stating that labeling laws do not require including information that GMO’s are in the packaged food you are buying. However, there is one safe practice when purchasing foods at your supermarket … buy organic. These products do have a far more stringent labeling requirement, and GMO’s are NOT included — ever.
Another thing to look for are those foods typically effected by the GMO rage. High on that list is corn, and we can eliminate or greatly reduce it from our diets. Replace corn oil based margarine and cooking oil with organic butter and olive oil. Read package labels and steer clear of foods containing corn. We may be forced, in time, to eat only GMO corn, but we can see that it is a less frequent event. An occasional piece of corn bread with chili or a few ears of corn with a summer BBQ is better than a daily dose of corn hidden in packaged and processed foods.
I agree wholeheartedly with Cynthia B … God has done a good job, leave it to Him.
Hybridizing and genetically modifying are not the same thing. If GMOs contain/help release pesticides which destroy the digestive systems of insects, chances are they aren’t benign on the human body. Like other readers, I would like testing and labeling. The French government is accountable to its citizens. I would like to see that happen here too! Et vive l’artichaut!
Much of the GMO activity is to modify our food to be resistant to herbicides and pesticides. That is…genetically modified crops so that they can spray more chemicals on them! Choosing organic is a good way to avoid them.
And recent (but conducted over a long period of them) research in the UK produced clear evidence that GMO food for resistance to roundup resulted in cancer in rats…
from the peer-reviewed scientific journal Food and Chemical Toxicology http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0278691512005637
Another abstract in the International Journal of Biological Sciences http://www.biolsci.org/v05p0706.htm
and, a great video explaining the study…
another article about use of pesticides with GMOs… http://www.enveurope.com/content/24/1/24/abstract
Genetic modification is the foundational principle of agriculture. It’s been around for millennia. The potential health risk of these modifications as they are applied today comes from the removal of diversity. Pause for a moment to reflect on the startlingly narrow variety of fruits and vegetables that can be found in the American supermarket. Compared with documentation we have of the varieties extant in the 18th century vegetable garden, we can begin to see how genetically poor even a basketful of local organic produce can be.
This is an intentional act including the participation of all the links of the food production and distribution chain. It’s not economically feasible to mass produce or distribute hundreds of vegetable varieties, so the selection has been intentionally narrowed in order to focus on those which have the best yields and the longest “shelf life.” This isn’t about secret scientists or “the government.” It’s about free market economics.
Who will decide which will prevail? Will it be a rich diversity of locally produced small harvest crops (i.e. the individual or community garden)? Or will it be the economy of feeding a planet populated by creatures who are not willing to part with enough of their leisure time to make the former possible?
To Hendon, be aware that no scientific research on GMO seeds has ever been done in the US (President Bush passed a proclamation that GMO seeds were substantially equivalent to non-GMO seeds allowing producers to bypass the steps that normally protect us) and that the contract end users of the seeds sign with Monsanto, Dupont, etc, specifically forbids any research using them. Nobody even knows if they perform the way they are supposed to, as they are not legally allowed to conduct a study to find out.
I have had Lupus for over 40 years and nobody can explain to me what causes it. When I cut certain foods out of my diet, I went from losing my eyesight and barely able to climb steps or walk any significant distance, to suddenly being 20/20 visually and back to stair climbing, beach walking, having a life, etc. I am working with an allergist, pulmonologist, rheumatologist and several other medical specialists who all firmly believe that the US food supply is part of the problem. They have seen a huge uptick in the number of cases of autoimmune diseases recently. The only way to control these diseases currently, is to switch off the patient’s immune system. Not a good choice. So we have been experimenting with diet modification with fantastic results. I also put all my pets on wheat free diets and they lost weight, no longer have any skin problems and their arthritis has dramatically improved.
A little correction of your English:
Just to tell you that the word “role” in English is spelled identically to the French rôle [apart from the circonflexe]….”ROLL” in English, is, as you surely know, un petit pain, ou un rouleau, ou autrechose que “rôle”!
Thanks for your daily messages from le midi!
I applaud France for taking action to ban GMOs or OGMs! Canada seems to be taking a very complacent stance on the proliferation of our food system with GMOs. My daughter is an environmental scientist and if everyone knew what she knows, they would be afraid to eat anything without first ensuring it wasn’t genetically modified. There are foods on the market that contain GMOs that made test animals literally explode…..and yet its “safe” for humans? I think not!
This topic is so close to my heart. I have been anti-GMO, anti-preservatives, anti-chemical additives, anti-synthetic/non-caloric sweeteners from the get-go. When the US adopts policies like the EU, especially France and others regards synthetic and altered foods, we will have taken a huge step in returning the US population to the road of health.
Thanks for allowing me a platform (my children have long thought that I was nuts.)
I’m so glad that you had a great time with Jules. Chief Grape did a great job subbing for you.
Mary
I am sure I have eaten GMO foods without knowing it. I’m not crazy about the idea myself, more testing needs to be done. Instead, in the summer, I grow my own vegetables from seed and eat my own fresh foods everyday. My cherry tomato plants yielded more than 3 gallons of tomatoes this summer! I grew an eggplant for the first time and have harvested seeds for next year. Tomatoes that drop and rot on the ground readily sprout new seeds, so it’s easy to harvest those seeds for next year too. My favorites are sweet peas, which I eat right off the vines everyday.
The ancient, heirloom veggies our grandparents grew thrived, and still do. Why mess with what works? It’s painful to read about all the autoimmune diseases that potentially are caused from unknown diet factors. No GMOs please!
HiHoney,
I´m at my hotel in Mexico City, just finished a wonderful breakfast, compliments of the manager here at the Ramada. I will be in my room in about 10 minutes if you want to call me – Room 4427…I will go back to the airport in about 5 hours. I miss you so much.
XOXO
MOM
I agree with Andy’s observations regarding the relationship of ‘economics’ and relative ‘laziness’ of the American culture being driving factors in the widespread growth of GMO’s. Common sense tells us that the less chemicals and unnatural substances coming into our bodies the better. We also know that if there is money to be made, someone is going to try it, even if it is not ‘healthy’. (Prime example – cigarettes …they are not healthy, they are packaged with warnings galore and yet as long as people buy them, they will be produced and sold by some while others are, at the same time, out raising money for ‘research’ to cure the diseases we know will be brought on by their usage!) As ‘consumers’ we can make a difference, but as Andy pointed out, we need to be willing to put in the time … to garden, to arrange our schedules to shop from a local grower instead of the neighborhood hyper-market, to be vigilant, and to require accountability from corporations and our government. Basically we need to slow our lives down enough to appreciate and care for things that matter, besides money. That’s what I have come to appreciate about the French as I’ve become personally acquainted with individuals and their culture over the past decade – they value people and ‘quality’ in a way that truly enriches their lives. Thanks for sharing that part of French life with us, Kristi! 🙂
If GMOs are all about making profits for big corporations, then I’m against them. If they’re about adding pesticides, genetically, to plants, then I’m also against them. But if they’re about feeding more people, or about growing more nutritious plants in poorer, arid soils, then I say go for it.
Not all parts of the world are as fortunate as Europe and North America in terms of good soil and climate. Research that helps people in other parts of the world eat well is a good thing. Research must be done in parallel to prevent unanticipated results also. And, I agree, ALL GMOs MUST be labelled so that those of us who chose to not partake may do so.
I also feel strongly that we must all support small local farmers and help to preserve heirloom varieties of plants for posterity. But that is not mutually exclusive to the development of GMOs that will help feed people more effectively.
GMO’s will contribute to starving nations all over the world. How? Because the plants are designed to never reproduce. You have purchase new seeds each season.
Imagine a poor country having to buy new seeds every year. They will starve, if Monsanto has their way.
It’s an evil plan, one that only benefits the greedy owners of Monsanto and other companies that are spreading this unnatural way of growing food.
And, GMO’s create allergies and other problems in humans. NO to GMO!
I agree with Andy above that this is a question of economics. The target of our regulations should be less centered on science and research and more on the abuses caused by human greed. We should aim at developing a diverse robust food system the fills the needs of all members of the human family. Ending hunger should be a top goal for the international community. Some of this need will be filled by scientific research on genetically modified foods. Much can be accomplished through better management and less waste alone.
Kristie,
Thank you for asking this important question, possibly the most important subject of our times. Would I eat GMOs? As a matter of fact, yes I would – but not because I WANT to. I live in a country where Big Pharma and it’s ilk practically run my country. “We the people” don’t really matter. We are simply pawn in the hands of these large corporations. If I had a choice, NO, NEVER would I buy or eat or put on our family table, anything containing GMOs, but that is absolutely impossible in the USA. The Monsantos of this country OWN our Congress, they have fought labeling with multi-million dollar ad campaigns, telling us to “not worry” and defending their rights to own and command all farmers to pay them for any crops they plant, alleging they own the seeds the farmers used. In fact, Monsanto now owns 88% of corn seed in our country. If farmers try to not use GMOs and their fields become contaminated by the GMOs in field down the road, they are sued by Monsanto, like this Canadian small farmer: ” a farmer from Saskatchewan Canada, whose Canola fields were contaminated with Monsanto’s genetically engineered Round-Up Ready Canola by pollen from a nearby farm. Monsanto says it doesn’t matter how the contamination took place, and is therefore demanding Schmeiser pay their Technology Fee (the fee farmers must pay to grow Monsanto’s genetically engineered products). According to Schmeiser, “I never had anything to do with Monsanto, outside of buying chemicals. I never signed a contract.”
So please, please, thank your adopted country for being on the side of the people and not the corporations. It is one of the many reasons we love France. It is also one of the reasons we spend our vacations in France every year – keep up the great work and keep up the pressure on these people. Thank God for France!
I think when big companies start dumping millions to defeat legislation like PROP 37, in California people should sit up and take notice.
I think the root of American health problems and obesity will eventually be outed as a direct result of GMO’s and pestisides. I want labels, I want clean, natural food, and I don’t want my seeds held hostage by big corporations. These companies play dirty and Americans should wake up and take a stand before it is too late. At least the EU is showing some common sense about the issue. Vote prop 37!
Oh and the weather here in Texas is overcast and in the 70’s. It is seriously humid here.
The farmers of the world need to be able to sow seeds which will yield not only food but seeds for next years crop.
GMO seed companies would have the entire world dependent on buying their seeds each year, rather than being able to save their seeds for next years crop. This is intolerable and for this reason I will not consciously buy GMO foods.
I’m with the French on this one. I believe all products that have any genetically modified ingredients should be labelled. In the meantime, I assume everything is genetically modified in the states and try to eat what is locally and organically grown. But there again, that is probably already genetically modified as well. Sad state of affairs.
I am a Vegan. Sadly because they are not required to label GMO’s in the USA we are at danger of ingesting such without our knowledged. I try to buy organic when I am able, but cannot always get the organic produce/products that I want within my budgetary constraints. We also have no guarantee that the organics have not been cross-contaminated. I also have a gluten allergy and run into the same problem. I often wonder if it isn’t the introduction of said GMO’s that has brought on my serious late in life food allergies!
It is curious that there is a lack of labelling of GM products in Supermarkets. If you even consider wheat and soya beans, these form large ingredients to so many products we consume, which again also lack the appropriate labelling. I think the consumer should have the choice and option to form their own opinion. If I could avoid GM I would; I grew up with my Dad’s veggie patch and maybe we’ll need to go back to collecting seeds and planting them because will the nurseries be honest on labelling their seeds given the focus on GM nowadays?
For centuries, possibly for millennia, people have been improving plants (and animals) thru selective breeding. All Luther Burbank’s work involved gene-tinkering. Today’s tinkering can be more direct and is much faster. That is what plant breeders can now do.
It is becoming easier to directly modify human genes to remove tendencies for certain people’s bodies to clog their arteries, to be stroke prone, to retard premature aging, to reduce mongoloidism.
Tongue-of-the-newt medicine definitely has standing in tradition, but hardly justifies rejecting science? Results from scientific break-thrus are not rushed to market upon discovery. They are first subjected to extensive testing.
GMO origin food should be labeled as such. Everyone has the right to know what’s in their food. GMO food may be perfectly safe to eat for some people but not for other people
Why take a chance? Peanut butter is banned in many places in the U.S., due to food allergies. Why should GMO origin food be any different?