188 the rice diet renewal
petroleum (a major contributor to global warming), and other costly
farm - related products, as well as tragically degrading our natural
resources. To counteract this, we have a choice to become conscious
and become part of the solution by buying more organic foods.
Genetically Modifi ed Organisms ( GMO ) =
Genetically Engineered ( GE )For generations, farmers have adapted their crops to specifi c farm-
ing conditions and needs. They have selected seeds and created
hybrids by cross - breeding plants that occur naturally to protect
their crops and encourage their growth. The changes or muta-
tions that helped a species survive were the traits in a species that
were then more likely to be passed on to the next generation.
But biotechnology has taken this concept to the lab and has
attempted to improve crops, primarily by increasing yields, through
a process called genetic engineering, in which genetic material
(DNA) is taken from one organism and inserted into the cells of
another organism. Genetically modifi ed organisms, or GMOs,
could never occur in nature; they are man - made organisms.
First, a carrier or vector is needed to “ smuggle ” the gene of
interest into the target organism. Because organisms are naturally
designed to protect their cells from invasion, one might question
the intelligence of forcing bacteria and viruses into cells that have
evolved to keep them out. Yet we have allowed this, albeit unknow-
ingly, and now the majority of Americans eat GMO foods numerous
times a day, as unconscious participants in the largest uncontrolled
experiment in the history of the world!
Megan Thompson, the executive director of the Non - GMO
Project, recently cited worldwide consumer resistance to GM
foods, with thirty - six countries either restricting or banning GMOs
because of safety concerns. She also revealed Americans ’ ignorance of
GMOs ’ prevalence when she shared how 90 percent of consumers
say they won ’ t eat GM foods, despite the fact that they had eaten
them for breakfast! Today, more than sixty varieties of GM foods