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Title: Genetically Engineered Food: Changing the Nature of Nature by Ralph Nader, Martin Teitel Ph.D. ISBN: 0-89281-948-0 Publisher: Inner Traditions Intl Ltd Pub. Date: March, 2001 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $12.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4 (7 reviews)
Rating: 1
Summary: these reviewers blindly regirgitate antiscience gibberish
Comment: This book is garbage. Tell me of one documented case of human ill-effects from GMO's and maybe I will sway. Recently the Zambian gov't turned down 18000 tons of emergency grain from the US because it was GM. People died of starvation as a result. At least take the time to get the other side of the story before taking this book as the gospel truth. I respect Nader for alot of the things he has done. This book is certainly not on that list.
Rating: 4
Summary: Explore genetically modified food and its dangers...
Comment: I first heard about the issue of genetically modified (GMO) food a few years ago when the protest movement against it began in Great Britain and then spread to the rest of Europe. However, I did not know the issues involved...
After reading this book, I think I have a better grasp on the problems with GMO foods as contrasted to traditional food. The most shocking assertion I found in the book is that GMO foods do not offer any benefits (whether it be higher yields, higher nutritional value etc...). I have not done enough research to verify this either way but if true that would be quite shocking.
Some of the interesting things I learned in the book:
- GMO science is quite imprecise. Researchers are often not sure if the insertion of foreign genes into a host (e.g. a plant) will have the predicted results or not.
- The immense size of some GMO companies, notably the American firm Monsanto. (To give some perspective: Microsoft is to the software industry as Monsanto is to the GMO industry)
One of the most pressing concerns for me was the commercialization of agriculture. For example, Monsanto spent $8 billion US in the first half of 1998 buying out seed companies (a few companies may end up owning patents to all the seeds in the world if this is left unchecked). The new trend of patenting seeds is also creating a dependency on the part of the farmers. Prior to GMO, farmers would save the seeds from their better crops and plant those next years. GMO companies, through contracts and other legal instruments, now insure that farmers buy from them EVERY year and they penalize the farmers if they attempt to save seeds. The whole concept of OWNING plants and organisms was very disturbing (it was interesting to note that a little known US Supreme Court decision Diamond v. Chakrabarty 1980 set a precedent in patenting life)
There was also some discussion of whether GMO foods should be labeled as such (the authors argue that GMO foods should be labeled). Of course, this is done in Western Europe, so there is no question of whether this is possible. GMO companies are vigorously fighting this, fearing that the public will immediately stop buying their products.
The main content of the book consisted of documenting various cases where GMO foods have caused problems of some sort or another. There was an interesting point made on how much of an influence GMO companies have on the Food and Drug Administration in the US. There was also an introductory section on genetic engineering, so the beginner will not get lost.
The authors offered a personal strategy whereby one can try to publicize the issue, find alternatives to buying and eating GMO foods and so on. The authors are clearly of the view that GMO foods are, at best, a strange unknown and, at worst, a foolish risk.
I took off a star off because the writing could have been better and the authors made their agenda a little too obvious. It would have improved the book if they had included and responded to some of the pro-GMO counter-arguments.
Rating: 5
Summary: Essential Reading
Comment: The authors have succeeded in putting forward a well-researched and well-argued overview of genetically modified food which the layman can understand. It deals not just with the science, but with the moral, ethical and political debate. With one of the agri-giants reputed to be developing a courgette with a human conscience, this book examines the far reaching implications of genetic engineering.
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Title: Genetically Engineered Food: A Self-Defense Guide for Consumers by Ronnie Cummins, Ben Lilliston, Andrew Kimbrell ISBN: 1569246351 Publisher: Marlowe & Company Pub. Date: 28 July, 2000 List Price(USD): $13.95 |
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Title: Genetic Engineering, Food, and Our Environment by Luke Anderson ISBN: 1890132551 Publisher: Chelsea Green Publishing Company Pub. Date: September, 1999 List Price(USD): $7.95 |
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Title: Genetically Engineered Foods by Laura Ticciati, Robin Ticciati ISBN: 0879839678 Publisher: McGraw-Hill/Contemporary Books Pub. Date: 11 January, 1999 List Price(USD): $5.95 |
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Title: High Tech Harvest: Understanding Genetically Modified Food Plants by Paul F. Lurquin ISBN: 0813339464 Publisher: Westview Press Pub. Date: 28 May, 2002 List Price(USD): $25.00 |
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Title: Seeds of Deception: Exposing Industry and Government Lies About the Safety of the Genetically Engineered Foods You're Eating by Jeffrey M. Smith ISBN: 0972966587 Publisher: Chelsea Green Publishing Company Pub. Date: September, 2003 List Price(USD): $17.95 |
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