Farm Wars
With help from the FDA and USDA, the biotech industry is set to completely take over our food supply with genetically modified ingredients, irregardless of the wishes of “we the people.” Through collusion, subterfuge, and a bit of back-door manipulation, Monsanto can write it’s own ticket with the U.S. Federal Government’s stamp of approval. If the rules get in the way, then change the rules, or at least their interpretation, to fit the situation.
Monsanto is now ready to grow soybeans that are genetically modified to produce omega-3 fatty acids. The fact that the company is doing this comes as no surprise, but the important thing to note is the process that the FDA goes through to approve these types of substances as Generally Recognized as Safe, or GRAS, is to simply rubber-stamp the Monsanto application, no questions asked.
The biotechnology firm Monsanto stands just one FDA approval away from growing soybeans that have been genetically modified to produce those omega-3 fatty acids that doctors are always recommending. (Forbes)
Here is a quote from the FDA GRAS approval letter recently sent to Monsanto for its new soy invention:
Based on the information provided by Monsanto, the agency has no questions at this time regarding Monsanto’s conclusion that SDA soybean oil is GRAS under the intended conditions of use. The agency has not, however, made its own determination regarding the GRAS status of the subject use of SDA soybean oil. As always, it is the continuing responsibility of Monsanto to ensure that food ingredients that the firm markets are safe, and are otherwise in compliance with all applicable legal and regulatory requirements. (FDA)According to the FDA site, this is how the FDA’s GRAS Notification Program works:
The GRAS notification program provides a voluntary mechanism whereby a person may inform FDA of a determination that the use of a substance is GRAS, rather than petition FDA to affirm that the use of a substance is GRAS. (FDA)Monsanto does its own tests, determines its products are GRAS, and the FDA rubber stamps the results, no questions asked.
Here is a list of products that this new soy product will be put in:
The subject of the notice is stearidonic acid (SDA) soybean oil. The notice informs FDA of the view of Monsanto Company (Monsanto) that SDA soybean oil is GRAS, through scientific procedures, for use as an ingredient in baked goods and baking mixes, breakfast cereals and grains, cheeses, dairy product analogs, fats and oils, fish products, frozen dairy desserts and mixes, grain products and pastas, gravies and sauces, meat products, milk products, nuts and nut products, poultry products, processed fruit juices, processed vegetable products, puddings and fillings, snack foods, soft candy, and soups and soup mixes, at levels that will provide 375 milligrams (mg) of SDA per serving.1 (FDA)Here is a chart showing foods that are already high in omega-3 fatty acids, taken from WHFoods:
Notice that fish, nuts and soy are already high in omega-3 fatty acids. Why is Monsanto creating a product to “boost” these already high content items with something that they do not need more of? Could it be so that Monsanto can claim even a larger percentage of the processed food chain? It seems that oil from this new and improved soybean is scheduled to be included in just about every processed food item on the shelf.
This is nothing short of a complete takeover by Monsanto and the biotech industry of what was left of any non-GMO processed foods still remaining on the shelves, with the FDA paving the way through collusion and subterfuge.
But the FDA is not the only government arm that is making things easy for Monsanto. Recently, GMO Alfalfa and Sugar Beets were called off the market pending an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) by the USDA. These GMO crops are currently available for spring planting, but it was a nuisance to deal with pesky court issues. So, what does the USDA do?
To satisfy the legal system’s pesky demand for environmental impact studies of novel GMO crops, the USDA has settled upon a brilliant solution: let the GMO industry conduct its own environmental impact studies, or pay other researchers to. The USDA announced the program in the Federal Register for April 7, 2011 [PDF]. (Grist)It appears that instead of a government of the people, by the people, and for the people, our Federal Government should more accurately be described as a government of Monsanto, by Monsanto, and for Monsanto.
© 2011 Barbara H. Peterson, protecting independent farms from corporate-government tyranny at Farm Wars.
