Food & Ag Features
The GLP explores the role of genetic engineering in food production and the polarized debate surrounding it. We highlight the work of our own writers, as well as that of contributors from around the Web. The GLP does not take a position on genetics-related issues; any opinions expressed belong to the authors.
Categories include:
- Chemicals and pesticides
- Organics
- Conventional crops
- New breeding technologies
- Animal biotechnology
- Food systems
- Sustainability
- Regulations
- Politics
- Ideology
Video: Organic, non-gmo, gluten-free, keto? How food labels mislead us about health benefits
Dr. Mike Isratel of Renaissance Periodization explains how food labels can mislead consumers on the health benefits of eating their ...
Viewpoint: Captured by agroecology ideologues — The Conversation fans advocacy group propaganda challenging glyphosate safety
It is frustrating to read blatantly false science information online, but it’s a fact of our time. For years, we’ve ...
Viewpoint: How to best regulate chemicals? ‘Precautions employed to regulate tiny, sometimes nonexistent risks can cause real harm’
For virtually everything in life, we face decisions about whether we should “sweat the small stuff.” No doubt, most may ...
GLP podcast: Debunking opioid myths; Decaf coffee boosts cancer risk? No. Local food might not be better for the planet
Most of what you know about the opioid epidemic is probably wrong. One expert shares the facts about pain pills ...
Concerned you may have a food allergy? Don’t waste your money on ‘sensitivity tests’
Food “sensitivity” tests are sold direct-to-consumer and marketed as an easy and convenient way to detect an individual’s reactions to ...
Meet the beetles: Mealworms could be a food of the future
I have a special fondness for the yellow mealworm, Tenebrio molitor ...
Analysis: Misguided activist attacks on Africa’s push to increase the use of synthetic fertilizer — ‘Maintaining low agricultural yields won’t accomplish the climate and environmental goals rich Westerners purport to support’
One of the many impacts of Russia’s war against Ukraine was a spike in global food prices. Although food prices ...
GLP podcast: Lead in Lunchables? Dismantling Consumer Reports’ latest chemical scare
"Should You Pack Lunchables for Your Kid’s School Lunch?" Consumer Reports asked rhetorically in a recent headline. "CR's tests found ...
Viewpoint: England’s Precision Breeding Act ‘remains an empty shell and serves no functional purpose’ — Will politics scuttle crop gene editing future?
In March 2023, after 10 months of scrutiny and debate, both Houses of Parliament confirmed their mandate to remove precision ...
Viewpoint: Few topics in science, health and food elicit more fear and misconceptions than the phrase GMO, most of it based on intentional disinformation
Few topics in science, health and food elicit more fear and misconceptions than the phrase GMO, and most of it ...
Scientific evidence in the courtroom: The ‘Daubert standard’ is again under attack, opening the door to more junk science in controversial tort cases
The 1993 Daubert decision assigns to judges the role of “gatekeepers” – meaning judges must first vet scientific evidence before its submission ...
GLP podcast: CBD’s placebo effect; The right-wing raw milk conspiracy? Tattoos boost cancer risk? Unlikely
Does CBD treat pain, or is the marketing hype around this supplement just driven by the placebo effect? It appears ...
Viewpoint: Rockefeller Foundation and other advocacy organizations argue agricultural production ‘hides’ the ‘true’ cost of food, favoring big corporations and wealthy and wasteful countries to the planet’s detriment. Here’s the nuance behind the inflammatory rhetoric
The first battle in President Lydon Johnson’s “War on Poverty,” launched in 1964, was figuring out how to measure it ...
Viewpoint: Anti-biotechnology activists decry the ‘Bioengineered Ingredients’ label but exploit confusion over what it means in order to scare people
When the federal government decided in 2015 to establish uniform national standards for bioengineered food labels, anti-GMO crusaders went into ...
GLP podcast: Facts and myths about ‘ultra-processed food’; Time to transform our food system? Don’t trust AI chat bots to tell you the truth
Is there a corporate conspiracy to cover up the dangers of processed foods? A recent news report say yes. Let's ...
Food phobia: Activists want to scare us about safety and sustainability of what we eat. Here’s why they are (mostly) wrong
Today’s choir of food critics would have us all fear our food. But is that fear really justified? One happy ...
Viewpoint: Zombie ‘Moms Across America’ tries to link non-carcinogenic glyphosate to Celiac disease, autism and other health disorders
I can’t wait for the day when anti-science activists decide to cling to an entirely different pesticide to fixate on ...
GLP podcast: EPA wrong about ‘forever chemicals’? Heatwaves and drugs don’t mix; Idealistic activism harms public health
The EPA is facing a new crop of lawsuits brought by plaintiffs who say the agency's new guidance on "forever ...
Infographic: Global regulatory and health research agencies on whether glyphosate causes cancer
A jury decision, while significant, is not a substitute for scientific research ...
Glyphosate legal update: Meta-study used by ambulance-chasing tort lawyers targeting Bayer’s Roundup as carcinogenic deemed ‘junk science nonsense’ by trial judge
Trial lawyers suing over a popular weedkiller saw six words they never want to read in a court document approving ...
Was there Russian collusion? When it comes to prominent anti-GMO groups, the disturbing answer is ‘yes’
Strong and disturbing evidence is emerging that anti-biotechnology groups have succeeded in muddying the media and scientific waters by aligning ...
Are bananas at risk of extinction? Many varieties are, but gene editing offers a solution
Bananas are one of the world’s most widely available fresh fruits. They are particularly popular with children and are a ...
Viewpoint: Why green activists’ tactics of zero-compromise, slurs, insults and ideological disunity feed unrealistic expectations
2023 was a horrible year for the European environmental activist community. On pesticides, their StopGlyphosate campaign failed to resonate with ...
Viewpoint: Organic chemicals don’t harm essential soil microbes — but glyphosate does? Propaganda claims collapse after real-world study
Is glyphosate damaging essential microbes in soil? A multi-year study sought to answer the question using real-world conditions ...
Book review: In Biotech Challenges, ‘technological optimist’ Catherine Regnault Roger outlines the history of genetic modification in agriculture — and what awaits us
The discovery of CRISPR in 2012 accelerated the evolution of genetic engineering. Distinctions are now made between first-generation biotechnologies developed ...
What’s next for GMO corn and herbicides in the wake of Mexico’s latest presidential election?
Thomas Jefferson famously noted that "[T]he greatest service which can be rendered any country is to add a useful plant to its ...
Is tilapia a human-made freak that we should avoid — or an evolutionary rockstar?
Posts were appearing on my Facebook feed warning against the dangers of eating tilapia. So I decided to do a ...
