Poll: What is considered a Non-Gmo?

[bamarebel]

There has been an increase in the number of feeds, seeds and foods labeled as non-Gmos. But, what does it exactly mean?

Simply, they are are not genetically engineered in a lab. What does it mean for an identical seed, feed, or food without the label?

Edit: The reason I brought this up is
a non-GMO seed does NOT ALWAYS make another identical seed a GMO seed.
However, squash and sweet corn do have a GMO variety, so they have a legitimate reason to be advertised as non-GMO

Feeds could have ingredients that do not have any ingredients from GMOs and they could have a non-GMO label or not.
When a non-GMO feed does have ingredients that are a non-GMO variety, the label will not specify which ingredient is that variety.

 

[bamachile]

I need a choice that says "hanged if I know"

 

[tidegrandpa]

We have 16,National Championships,16, what the he_ll is a GMO ?

 

[bama_wayne1]

You can usually tell. If they charge you triple for the seed and call it Heirloom it's NON-GMO.

 

[crimsonaudio]

I typically assume anything not labeled as non-GMO as being modified. I assume there are a few products (doubtful in the feed & seed world) that the cost of the testing / certification of being non-GMO is prohibitive so they continue to make the products as non-GMO and hope to eventually 'buy' the labeling.

 

[crimsonaudio]

BTW, I'm not a natural food evangelist - most folks who don't know me well probably have no idea of my eating habits - but my family went almost 100% organic / non-GMO about five years ago after reading some things we found troubling. While the science seems split if not leaning towards GMO products being fine, what we've found is that in my immediate family, we don't get sick anymore. We used to average about one trip to the doctor per family member annually - colds, stomach stuff, whatever. As of today, since we switched to an organic diet, I've not been to the doctor once, and neither has my wife (outside of routine health checkups). Even the chirruns don't get sick, aside from one of them catching the flu this year (though the rest of us did not).

Not scientific evidence, but it's remarkable how much better we feel all the time now, and that's the only thing we changed in our diet - same types of foods, same overall diet, just organic and non-GMO. We aren't militant about it - I approach it as 'don't let perfect be the enemy of good', but I'd guess about 90-95% of what we eat is organic, non-GMO.

Expensive, but worth it, imo.

 

[chanson78]

Hippy. Next thing you will be advocating for medical marijuana to cure the common cold.

 

[mittman]

Wow, I just realized I am the only one who actually voted, and I only voted to be a little snarky. Identical means identical

Like ca I'm not militant about it, but I do like to lean that way when given a choice. That said, I believe everything today is genetically modified to an extent if only by artificial selection.

 

[crimsonaudio]

That said, I believe everything today is genetically modified to an extent if only by artificial selection.

Sure, selective breeding is fine - it's why we have orange carrots today. It's a natural way of doing things. Genetic modification by altering DNA is stuff I'm not interested in ingesting...

 

[TIDE-HSV]

Wow, I just realized I am the only one who actually voted, and I only voted to be a little snarky. Identical means identical

Like ca I'm not militant about it, but I do like to lean that way when given a choice. That said, I believe everything today is genetically modified to an extent if only by artificial selection.

I agree that we have been genetically modifying plants for generations. Today's wheat is a monster and I'm moving back towards making my own sourdough einkorn bread. (Einkorn wheat has 14 chromosomes, as contrasted with the 42 in modern wheat. "Korn" in German = wheat. Our "corn" = maize.) IOW, we managed to screw up wheat without the benefit of modern gene therapy. All the modern techniques offer is a highly accelerated process. Monsanto modifies corn to resist Roundup. What are the effects on the ultimate product and then me? They can't tell you. For that reason, we try to eat "organic," with all its blurring of definition...

 

[Jon]

I hate to tell the Organic fans this but often Organics use not just more but far more pesticides than non organic crops and they have been proven to be no more healthy than "regular" produce. Also due to lobbying (this article doesn't mention this) IMO the Gov has pretty loose standards as to what constitutes "organic" meaning you aren't buying what you think you are buying when you see that label.

http://blogs.scientificamerican.com...101-organic-farming-conventional-agriculture/

as for GMO's I think they are one of the few technologies we have working that can possibly keep the population of earth from killing each other if managed properly. If not for the Genetic Engineering work of guys like Norman Borlaug (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norman_Borlaug) we'd already have hundreds of millions of people starving. The problem of course is that people can't separate the good (golden rice) from the bad (roundup resistant crops) and there is far more good IMO than bad

 

[crimsonaudio]

I hate to tell the Organic fans this but often Organics use not just more but far more pesticides than non organic crops and they have been proven to be no more healthy than "regular" produce. Also due to lobbying (this article doesn't mention this) IMO the Gov has pretty loose standards as to what constitutes "organic" meaning you aren't buying what you think you are buying when you see that label.

*shrugs*

There's always someone telling me this, yet our overall health has improved significantly.

 

[Jon]

*shrugs*

There's always someone telling me this, yet our overall health has improved significantly.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Placebo_effect_(disambiguation)

Plus

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confirmation_bias


in my opinion

I have a buddy that spends a fortune in Gluten Free and swears his kids behave better and yet they are at my house all the time and occasionally "accidentally" consume gluten with no ill effects

 

[crimsonaudio]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Placebo_effect_(disambiguation)

Plus

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confirmation_bias


in my opinion

I have a buddy that spends a fortune in Gluten Free and swears his kids behave better and yet they are at my house all the time and occasionally "accidentally" consume gluten with no ill effects

Again, I don't really care why, I just know that's the only thing that changed, and we never expected we'd be healthier (less sick) as we didn't think GMO and non-organic foods caused short-term health issues.

Whatever the reason, all of us are healthier. Maybe its mental, though I have a hard time picturing younger chirruns' health improving based on the concept that I had some expectation.

 

[Jon]

Again, I don't really care why, I just know that's the only thing that changed, and we never expected we'd be healthier (less sick) as we didn't think GMO and non-organic foods caused short-term health issues.

Whatever the reason, all of us are healthier. Maybe its mental, though I have a hard time picturing younger chirruns' health improving based on the concept that I had some expectation.

its a great point and in the end I am happy that it works for you.

 

[TIDE-HSV]

I hate to tell the Organic fans this but often Organics use not just more but far more pesticides than non organic crops and they have been proven to be no more healthy than "regular" produce. Also due to lobbying (this article doesn't mention this) IMO the Gov has pretty loose standards as to what constitutes "organic" meaning you aren't buying what you think you are buying when you see that label.

http://blogs.scientificamerican.com...101-organic-farming-conventional-agriculture/

as for GMO's I think they are one of the few technologies we have working that can possibly keep the population of earth from killing each other if managed properly. If not for the Genetic Engineering work of guys like Norman Borlaug (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norman_Borlaug) we'd already have hundreds of millions of people starving. The problem of course is that people can't separate the good (golden rice) from the bad (roundup resistant crops) and there is far more good IMO than bad

Jon, my organic food doesn't come from the "organic" corner of the supermarket. What I ate this AM came directly from a local supplier/grower. Also, we have an Adventist market which does an excellent job of vetting food. Their beliefs don't include pesticides either...

 

[bamarebel]

Jon, my organic food doesn't come from the "organic" corner of the supermarket. What I ate this AM came directly from a local supplier/grower. Also, we have an Adventist market which does an excellent job of vetting food. Their beliefs don't include pesticides either...

I'm not exactly sure how the market vets the food but, as far an organic label goes, it's more about the paperwork, records, and what's on the farm. It is possible for the organic growers to still give antibiotics to animals, spread fertilizer, and apply pesticides. Currently, their is no active regulatory policies to ensure that the organic item is truly organic. If someone's passes the organic verification that's about it.
Grass fed beef can be either a certain percentage of fiber or on grass the final 90 days.
Cull cows sold at stockyardare being processed as grass fed

 

[bamarebel]

On vegetable seeds, there are currently only GMO squash and sweet corn.
Yet, there are hundreds of vegetables seeds labeled as non-GMO
when that type of seed doesn't even have a GMO variety
Feed labeled as Non-GMO will not have a single ingredient that has a GMO variety.
They are non-GMO but theye are also very misleading.
It enables someone with less moral integrity or greed to take advantage of someone else.
While another person or group who wants to be completely honest will be affected by the other group.

 

[TIDE-HSV]

I'm not exactly sure how the market vets the food but, as far an organic label goes, it's more about the paperwork, records, and what's on the farm. It is possible for the organic growers to still give antibiotics to animals, spread fertilizer, and apply pesticides. Currently, their is no active regulatory policies to ensure that the organic item is truly organic. If someone's passes the organic verification that's about it.
Grass fed beef can be either a certain percentage of fiber or on grass the final 90 days.
Cull cows sold at stockyardare being processed as grass fed

Well, the owner goes and buys it himself directly and has been doing it for decades. I'm speaking of just vegetable food, it's being Adventist. As for meat, that's all confused. Beef in a supermarket is either grass-finished or it's grain-finished. There is no "fiber" in between, except for incidental amounts . Grain-finished, the norm, is fed corn its last 90 days or so. Longer, and it dies prematurely, since cattle cannot endure a grain diet forever. Once again, to be sure, you buy locally, which is the way I grew up...

 

[bamarebel]

As for meat, that's all confused. Beef in a supermarket is either grass-finished or it's grain-finished. There is no "fiber" in between, except for incidental amounts . Grain-finished, the norm, is fed corn its last 90 days or so. Longer, and it dies prematurely, since cattle cannot endure a grain diet forever. Once again, to be sure, you buy locally, which is the way I grew up...

Sorry, I didn't clarify the best. By fiber, I was referring to the analysis of feeds. I should have used forages. A higher forage diet will have a higher fiber content and a grass-finished can be achieved by a high forage diet supplemented with grain. While grain-finished are also a fed certain amount of fiber in the diet to maintain the ph and microbes in the rumen. Also, I have never heard cattle of dieing prematurely because of being on a grain diet a extended period of time. They can bloat due to excessively eating grain or the extended grain diet cause an higher incidence of abrasived liver.