Saturday, November 10, 2012
Prop 37 in California -
... so this proposition to require food manufacturers to label their food if it contains Genetically Modified Organisms ended up being outspent by Monsanto to defeat the measure, but now more people are aware of GMO foods and that's a step in the right direction. I try to avoid them like the plague. There are still some areas I need to improve. Yellow mustard is my latest thing to phase out because of the vinegar .. which most likely contains white distilled vinegar made from Round Up ready corn. Wouldn't it be nice to know and decide if we want to consume such food? The movie, Genetic Roulette, is a good introduction to GMO foods and the problems they can cause. Once in a while you can view it for free .. but currently there is a $2.99 donation fee to watch on-line, however, there is a free movie trailer to watch at the website.
I spend a good amount of time in the kitchen preparing nutritious food for my family. If I take the time to soak, sprout, dehydrate organic wheat to grind into flour, you can bet if I make waffles I won't want to top them with sugary sweet artificial syrup containing (Round Up ready high fructose corn syrup). Our options are to spend close to $30 for a bottle of real organic maple syrup .. or make a lightly sweetened fruit syrup made with very little cane sugar and fresh berries. Most often, I make the berry syrup and save the maple for special treats. Are you even aware or concerned about the health risks associated with GMO foods?
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8 comments:
how come no one ever mentions being nice to your neighbors as part of being ready for disasters?
Hi, I heard that there was a huge number of votes that weren't even counted...
I am noticing a lot more products contain corn/fructose syrup here in NZ now. We don't have GE labelling here.
Unfortunately most people don't seem to be concerned about it, or even aware of what they are eating. They are simply just too brainwashed/dumbed down.
Prop 37 about broke my heart...until I realized that it got dang near half the vote when it was outspent four dollars to one. (Monsanto & Friends spent somewhere between $45Million and $50M, depending on what source you're looking at.)
That's a whole lotta cash to spend on something you're so confident is safe, folkses. Ugh!
Also, I think the pro-labeling folks came to the table late, really. (No pun intended.) By the time the campaign really revved up, Monsanto was already funding shill groups and "experts" and fake consumer groups to spread a lot of half-truths and misinformation -- it was way too hard to counteract it for us. (Part of it may be the fact that there are about a zillion pro-label/anti-GMO groups, but the GMO-peddlers all spoke with one voice. We were just out-PR'ed, all around.)
And with all of that? Still got 47% of the vote. Not too shabby.
A similar prop is coming up in WA State in 2014, and I'm hoping we've learned a lot of lessons from the CA campaign and can use that, going forward. It's just too big of an issue to let it rest. :/
(And vinegar's made from corn? For real? ARGH.)
The position in the UK is detailed at this website
http://www.food.gov.uk/policy-advice/gm/gm_labelling#.UJ9XoOTtQl8
and means that food containing GMOs has to be labelled, although you can still be caught if they are using GM technology rather than GM ingredients! It certainly bears thinking about, and the supermarkets here seem to be helpful in allowing us to know - Tesco changed all its own brand [even the value range] of soya milk to Organic because it wanted to be sure that it was GMO-free.
@ fishn275 ..not sure the specifics you're talking about .. but in general, when people are miserable for too long of a time during a large disaster, they tend to get over stressed and rightly so .. making tempers fly. EVERYONE should have some basic emergency supplies on hand and NOT expect the government to provide immediate aid.
@ Eli .. not all vinegar is made from corn .. but the cheap white distilled type usually is. Unless it's organic, then you can bet it's made from gmo corn. Your organic vinegars should be fine.
@ Morgan .. I'm sure there are lots of GMO loopholes/cracks .. but at least you have a labeling system in place and people are familiar with GMO's Most people in the states are clueless and the problem is so widespread you'd have to eliminate 90% of all supermarket foods.
@ Cabbage Tree Farm .. Do you have strict import laws for seeds, etc?
I was so surprised that the measure was defeated. I cannot believe we are not "allowed" to know what is in our food. If they keep telling us GMO's aren't bad, then WHY are they ashamed to put it on the label???? THey brag and brag if a product has this or that vitamin (whatever is in "vogue" at the time...), so if GMO's are so harmless, brag on THAT!
LOL!
I had NO IDEA vinegar had GMO's.
Scary. Another product I have to reevaluate.
I'm going to use your berry syrup recipe. Sounds good. Thanks for posting it and providing a link. I know that I can use other types of berries, but I've been meaning to ask you whether you know where I can get huckleberries, especially this time of year. I actually called Pilgrim's thinking they might have frozen huckleberries, but no luck. Do I really have to go up into the mountains to pick them myself?
I need to educate myself on the problems associated with GMO foods.
@ Sue ... not all vinegar, but if you are buying the large white gallons for canning, the label often states made from distilled corn. I have so much more to learn myself and to teach my family.
@ Kim ... if you don't want to traipse in bear country to gather berries, you can buy them fresh or frozen all over town during the summer. I usually purchase a quart or two from Carver's Farm and stick them in the deep freeze double bagged.
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