Just Behind the Door

Once in a while I feel like I need to do my part to get information out on an issue that affects us personally. Thus the blog today. Please forward to anyone who might read and help to pass it on.

Let me set up the scenario. Years ago I purchased a 1/4 of a beef from a local farmer in Michigan and was shocked by the difference in taste. I had heard the farmer raised it ‘the old fashion way’ but had to compare for myself what the difference meant. Not only was it delicious but pound for pound cost less than store bought beef. Years later I visited Australia and going to the grocery store was taken aback to see eggs in the aisles not even refrigerated. Yet when I tasted them…. Wow! In the far reaches of my mind I remembered the taste … a real egg! Back in Michigan this summer I was able to buy farm raised tomatoes, cucumbers, green beans, peaches (the list goes on) you know what I’m talking about – the stuff that actually has a smell and taste that takes us back to a time when food may have not always looked perfect but tasted real.

During this trip to Michigan I biked through a lot of beautiful farm country yet soon began to feel an unease. I remember being raised in Michigan and the corn, for example, was rarely uniformly perfect. This time, the color, height and everything else about it – for mile after mile – was absolutely exact…. That’s when the feeling of unease began. Something was a bit off…what could it be? Then I started seeing the signs…. Not obvious by name but doing further research I discovered the meaning – GMO (genetically modified…) It seems to get crops to look so perfect (even though they don’t taste or smell like the real deal to those of us old enough to remember) …the real issue is the use of herbicides. The seeds are now modified to include the herbicides. OK, I thought, people must know about this and have a right to a choice until … wait for it…the New York Times ran a 2 page article about the GMO topic and what we don’t know by design by the major corporations involved. After all a wise consumer could mean less profit to the big conglomerates involved.

Companies have a right to grow crops, make profit and be successful. I also get that people are sometimes used to further the cause of the mass production food industry. They have a right to their own values. I even get the idea that we can feed more people with higher crop yield. But what I can’t accept is these paid lobbyists or scientists working to influence the FDA and others in Washington to “BAN states from adopting laws that REQUIRE the DISCLOSURE of food produced with genetically modified elements. You might want to read that last sentence again. It is happening and this blog is a call to arms. Let’s at least be heard!

In addition to our taste buds telling us what is better we also have the right to engage our brains and have truthful information on food labels so we can choose what to put into our bodies. Using politics to keep us in the dark is NOT the American way! One person can make a difference – please pass this on to others and let’s get fired up and demand full disclosure?

Havea great few days!