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.several aspects of gene insertion may be more hazardous than traditional plant crossbreeding" (Roseboro 2011). The memo came to light during the 1990s when a suit was brought against the FDA, arguing that allowing GMOs to be released into the market unlabeled "violated the U.S. Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, which mandates that new food additives be established safe through testing prior to marketing" (Roseboro 2011). The suit was not successful.
However, even some food industry advocates believe that labeling GMOs might not necessarily be a negative step, given the fact that it has proven to be such a barrier between the U.S. And other nations, in terms of exporting American products. The EU is a large potential market, as is Latin America and other continents that do not allow GMOs to be sold. Labeling GMOs, it is hoped might make them more palatable to regulators. At present, current policies are "leading to potential disruption of trade flows in agriculture; these conflicts could compromise global food security at a time when growing population and food imbalances are seen as increasingly likely in the next century" (Runge & Jackson 2009). Even some developing nations are rejecting American products offered as aid because they contain GMOs.
However, "given the extent to which GMOs have already entered the food and fiber chain" the debate over GMO labeling in the U.S. might be a moot point (Runge & Jackson 2009). Consumers now have choice in the form of 'negative' labeling -- they can select products that are labeled as not containing significant amounts of GMOs, although the degree to which this can be tested, especially in agricultural products, is dubious. Unless products are labeled as not containing GMOs, consumers must be suspicious regarding its content -- and even then they may not be able to live an entirely GMO-free life, if there...
Labeling in the long run will not stem the tide of GMO products, if the labels become ubiquitous on a wide variety of foods, or if non-GMO labels are relatively meaningless (much like the label 'organic') because of cross-contamination. It is uncertain if consumers will refuse to buy products containing GMOs, given that large numbers of consumers do not only consume GMO-free products. The true goal of anti-GMO activists is banning GMOs altogether, and fighting for this cause might be the more difficult, but more legitimate fight if they genuinely believe there is compelling scientific evidence that GMOs will harm human health and agriculture.
References
AquaAdvantage Fish. (2011). Aqua Bounty. Retrieved October 18, 2011 at http://www.aquabounty.com/products/products-295.aspx
Bittman, Mark. (2011). Why aren't genetically modified foods labeled? The New York Times.
Retrieved October 18, 2011 at http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/02/15/why-arent-g-m-o-foods-labeled/?ref=geneticallymodifiedfood
The future of food. (2004). Directed by Deborah Koons.
Philpott, Tim. (2011). Obama's broken promises. Mother Jones. Retrieved October 18, 2011 at http://motherjones.com/tom-philpott/2011/10/fda-labeling-gmo-genetically-modified-foods
Retrieved October 18, 2011 at http://www.non-gmoreport.com/articles/october2011/FDAignoredscientistswarningsGMfoods.php
Runge, C. Ford & Lee Ann Jackson. (2009). Negative labeling of genetically -- modified organisms (GMOs): The Experience Of rBST. 3(1): 9. Retrieved October 18, 2011 at http://www.agbioforum.org/v3n1/v3n1a09-runge.htm
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