Sign the following petition urging the FDA to regulate all genetically engineered plants and animals from Center for Food Safety, and be sure to sign our petition against genetically engineered eucalyptus here.
Genetically engineered (GE) salmon. GE apples. Synthetic oil squeezed out of GE algae. “Gene-edited” cows, mushrooms, and cabbage. These are just a few of the new genetically engineered animals and plants that may be making their way to your local supermarket.
Obviously, these foods are all genetically engineered. But the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has proposed that these foods not be classified as GE, choosing instead to refer to these GE techniques as “modern breeding” and “precise,” and that some of these foods need not go through any specific assessments at all!
Right now, FDA has a public comment period open right now about how it should regulate these types of new genetically engineered animals and plants.
Center for Food Safety has filed a lawsuit challenging the FDA’s approval of the GE salmon, the first GE animal approved for human consumption. The case is still in Court, and until it is decided, FDA should not approve ANY GE animals!
Right now, new GE crops like DuPont’s CRISPR gene edited “waxy” corn are being approved using outdated and ineffective processes that negatively impact rural communities, the environment, pollinators, and the public.
The last two decades have shown that FDA’s system for regulating genetic engineering and “DNA modification” has been a failure. Worse, new gene edited products are now being approved, despite major scientific concerns about unexpected negative impacts like environmental contamination, unexpected toxins, and unpredictable genetic responses. Rather than protecting farmers and the environment, the FDA has approved food products which could create new allergens, wipe out wild salmon species, contaminate seeds, create more herbicide-resistant weeds, and cause massive increases in pesticide use.
We can change that. FDA has called for a review of its genetically engineered plant and animal regulations. We want a robust and effective regulatory system, not weak voluntary “guidance” for industry as is now the case. But we need your help!
Big Ag and chemical companies are arguing that these new gene editing techniques do not count as genetic engineering, even though under international definitions they are. The result? We will continue to rely on a voluntary system for corporations to self-approve new gene edited crops, with no independent safety tests of direct and indirect harms. That is unacceptable. It’s time for people and the environment to be prioritized over big Ag’s profits.
