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Biotechnology In Our Food Supply
What's the big deal? Nobody knows. We don't yet know the long-term ramifications of eating genetically engineered food. But researchers mention these potential concerns: increased toxicity to humans; unexpected allergies or other undesirable effects on the human body; decreased nutritional qualities; contributing to the growing resistance to antibiotics; loss of natural pesticides in the products; environmental dangers; or spawning of mutant products resistant to herbicides. Some argue that it should be OK to proceed with GMOs because nobody's proven we shouldn't. But others argue that until GMOs can definitively be proven safe, the food industry should wait before adding them to their products. Who regulates it? The federal Department of Agriculture, the Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency share the responsibility of regulating biotech foods. The FDA is working on regulations concerning genetically engineered products and voluntary product labeling, although officials say they believe current regulations do work to protect the public. Are current regulations enough? Rebecca Goldburg, a biologist with Environmental Defense has said that the Kraft recall of millions of taco shells (contaminated with genetically engineered corn) shows how "full of holes federal oversight of genetically engineered foods is." And U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer also has argued that the U.S. doesn't have a method for catching illegal use of genetically engineered ingredients or a method of determining whether genetically engineered products are even safe for consumption. Recommendations for tighter controls -- In December 2000, a 20-person committee formed by the United States and the European Union recommended tighter controls on genetically engineered foods -- including mandatory labeling of any products with gene-altered ingredients. The committee was made up of people from industry, farm, science and consumer groups. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced a proposal in January 2001 to require companies to notify the FDA 120 days before bringing a genetically modified product to market. The proposal does not require companies to label their products as genetically modified, however. United Nations agency says biotech benefits outweigh concerns -- In July, 2001, the U.N. Development Program (UNDP) released its annual Human Development Report which says that concerns over biotechnology are outweighed by the plight of hundreds of million people going hungry. The report recommends increased investment in developing hardier biotech strains of millet, sorghum, soybeans and other crops -- along with consumer labeling of any resulting products.
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