North Coast Advisory Council requests Labeling of Genetically Engineered Foods at Cambria Farmer's Market

Here is an excerpt from a draft of the letter:

There are several concerns regarding GE crops:

1. Unknown long-term health implications: Even though mankind has manipulated genetics since the first seed was saved and replanted, genetic engineering is a very recent technique accomplished only in the lab that transfers genes from one species to another.  This process puts into our food genes that humans have never before eaten such as viruses and bacteria.
2. No independent testing: Our regulatory agencies, the USDA, FDA, and EPA are NOT testing these foods, instead have declared them “substantially equivalent” to conventional foods.  These agencies rely on the corporations who make the products to test the products for safety.
3. Risk of contamination of GE to conventional and organic crops:  Unlike other technologies, such as pesticides, GE crops cannot be recalled. Contamination can occur in many different ways such as seed contamination, pollination and post harvest mixing.  Trying to keep GE crops separate from organic and conventional crops has failed as evidenced in a recent scientific study scientist showing that between .05 and 1% of conventional and organic seed stocks are contaminated with GE varieties.
4. Potential for mistakes: As the acreage of GE crops and test crops increase, the potential for mistakes increases.  Several such instances have already occurred such as the Starlink and Syngenta recent discovery that it had mistakenly used the unapproved Bt10 gene in corn seed.  The US is still feeling trade repercussions because of these mistakes.

It is apparent from the results of the voting on Measure Q that the citizens of Cambria want to know if and when they are eating GE foods – the public feels they have the right to know.