“Natural” food label means almost nothing

a f x

The campaign against genetically engineered foods didn’t disappear with the defeat of Proposition 37, which would have required the labeling of most foods containing bioengineered ingredients. Instead, it morphed into the GMO Inside campaign, which among other things is behind a Colorado lawsuit that claims Goldfish crackers shouldn’t be labeled as “natural” because they contain genetically engineered soybean oil.

Many grocery shoppers would not consider a food natural if its genes were tinkered with in a laboratory. By that logic, it might not make sense to consider a tangelo more natural than a genetically engineered ear of corn. Tangerines and grapefruits don’t cuddle up in nature; that was accomplished by man. White rice doesn’t naturally shed its layer of bran. So does intervention such as cross-fertilization or processing render a food not natural?

View the original article here: Just what is ‘natural’ food?

{{ reviewsTotal }}{{ options.labels.singularReviewCountLabel }}
{{ reviewsTotal }}{{ options.labels.pluralReviewCountLabel }}
{{ options.labels.newReviewButton }}
{{ userData.canReview.message }}
screenshot at  pm

Are pesticide residues on food something to worry about?

In 1962, Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring drew attention to pesticides and their possible dangers to humans, birds, mammals and the ...
glp menu logo outlined

Newsletter Subscription

* indicates required
Email Lists
glp menu logo outlined

Get news on human & agricultural genetics and biotechnology delivered to your inbox.