A freakish element has long colored the historically impassioned GMO debate. The “frankenfood” term was first advanced decades ago by anti-GMO activists to play into health fears about foods produced from the (then) new genetic engineering technology. (These concerns have not been borne out by science.) Today, the meme is an ingrained feature of the discourse, echoed widely in the…Continue Reading…
There is nothing you can say about Mike Adams that is more revealing than what appears at his website, Natural News. For example, today’s bolded headline: US Navy sailors “disappeared” – Fukushima radiation cover-up Among the day’s “most read” articles: Companies begin planting microchips under employees’ skin Yes, this would be the same Mike Adams that…Continue Reading…
I really thought Mike Adams couldn’t write anything more possibly deranged than he already has at his Natural News website. (Readers of this blog have seen a freaky side of Adams.) Jon Entine has the scoop on his editorial output and alt-med empire. Entine’s piece, which Forbes cravenly took down (after Adams threatened to sue), asked if…Continue Reading…
Earlier this year I explored how Monsanto, the world’s most successful agricultural biotech company, became the poster child for the anti-GMO movement. (The best book-length history of how this came to be remains “Lords of the Harvest,” by NPR’s Dan Charles.) What fascinates me–and undoubtedly infuriates anyone who works at Monsanto–is how hard it is…Continue Reading…
Have you ever wondered why some people are fearful of GMOs? Even if you shake your head at this question, it is important to ponder because most discussions of genetically modified crops are shaped more by emotions than facts. This is why the evidence-driven search for truth by Nathanael Johnson was not appreciated by anti-GMO food…Continue Reading…
This open letter to President Obama from Maria Rodale is the sort of low-hanging fruit that I try to avoid. But I give in to temptation every now and again when the author is someone widely admired within the U.S. food movement and a prominent environmental voice. (In the letter, Rodale identifies herself as “the…Continue Reading…
As if the meaning of “natural” wasn’t already overly twisted for ideological and commercial purposes. Check out this campaign recently launched by the nonprofit Green America: Here’s the pitch: If you thought that one way to cut GMOs from your diet was to avoid foods with high-risk GMO ingredients, think again. Meat and dairy products, while not…Continue Reading…
I’m guessing that nobody at Monsanto has ever invoked the adage, “There is is no such thing as bad publicity.” The biotech giant, already a bogeyman to the anti-globalization/anti-corporate/anti-GMO crowd, has endured a particularly rough PR stretch of late. Last month, protesters from around the globe marched against the company. Then came news of Monsanto’s “rogue” GMO wheat,…Continue Reading…
There are two kinds of people who write about genetically modified foods: Those who believe that GMOs are bad and those who don’t. In case you haven’t figured it out, I’m in the latter group. Unfortunately, the simplistic debate between these two camps has devolved into a Three Stooges slapfest: More specifically, one group shrieks…Continue Reading…
Whatever your opinion of the worldwide protest against Monsanto this past weekend, one thing is true: It deserved media coverage. Lots of noisy people with colorful signs took to the streets to voice their opposition to GMOs and the company that has come to symbolize them. It was an event tailor made for TV. So…Continue Reading…