GE Foods and the FDA

[Guest guest]

THE FDA FOCUSES ON HEALTH HAZARDS OF ENGINEERED FOODS

The second round of Food and Drug Administration hearings on genetically

 

engineered food brought out a handful of protesters Tuesday and a lineup

of

experts to debate issues of food safety and labeling.

 

Genetically engineered foods are developed by inserting a gene from one

organism into another to create a specific trait. Biotech companies

have

created varieties of corn with built-in resistance to crop destroying

insects and soybeans that can withstand herbicide sprays.

 

Several of these products are on the market, in foods from cereals to

salad

oil. Critics fear that there may be unforeseen health hazards in such

foods

and that genetically engineered crops could harm beneficial insects or

mix

genes with nearby plants. Representatives of consumer and environmental

 

groups urged the FDA to strengthen guidelines on genetically modified

foods,

which were set in 1992.

 

The FDA policy treats genetically engineered foods the same as

traditional

foods, unless they contain new proteins that are known to cause health

problems. It considers genes used in biotechnology to be food additives

 

that are exempt from regulation because they are know entities and are

" generally recognized as safe. " If foods developed through biotechnology

are

not considered as safe as standard foods, additional testing and

pre-marketing approval are required.

 

The final hearing is scheduled Monday December 13 from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

at

the Elihu Harris Sate Office Building, 1515 Clay Street, Oakland,

California

94612, after which the FDA will decide whether to change the existing

policy. For more information and registration for the public meeting

contact Janet McDonald, San Francisco District (HFR-PA100), Food and

Drug

administration, 1431 Harbor Bay Pkwy., Alameda, CA 94502-7070,

510-337-6845,

or FAX 510-337-6708, or E-MAIL jmcdonal.

_________________________________

GENETICALLY ENGINEERED FOOD " RIGHT TO KNOW ACT "

Representative Dennis Kucinich introduced the Genetically Engineered

Food

" Right to Know Act " into the U.S. House of Representatives on November

16,

1999. If passed into law this legislation will require mandatory

labeling

of all genetically engineered foods.

 

Under the provisions of the Act foods that contain genetically

engineered

material or are produced with genetically engineered material must bear

this

label: UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT NOTICE: THIS PRODUCT CONTAINS

GENETICALLY

ENGINEERED MATERIAL, OR WAS PRODUCED WITH A GENETICALLY ENGINEERED

MATERIAL.

For example, goods containing genetically modified soy and genetically

modified corn would have to be labeled as containing genetically

engineered

material. Foods that contain milk from a cow injected with genetically

engineered hormones would have to be labeled as produced with

genetically

engineered material. However, plant varieties developed through

traditional

processes such as crossbreeding are not considered genetically

engineered.

 

Drugs will not have to be labeled under the act's provisions.

Restaurants,

bakeries, and other establishments that prepare food for immediate

consumption will not have to label under the provisions of the Act.

Also,

farmers who plant non-genetically engineered seeds will not be subject

to

criminal or civil penalties under this Act if surrounding crops grown

from

genetically engineered seeds contaminate their crops.

 

For more information on this bill please see www.thecampaign.org. You

can

also send form letters from this site to members of congress asking them

to

co-sponsor The Genetically Engineered Food Right to Know Act.