Europeans, Americans and Genetically Modified Foods

In the food world, GM’s aren’t heavy, oversized, uninspiring American cars.  Rather, they refer to genetically modified organisms (GMO).  Essentially, GMO crops are grown from seeds stock that has been genetically altered in a lab to either contain or not produce certain inherent characteristics.

One advantage to doing this is that a seed can be genetically modified to be resistant to certain types of bugs or diseases. That trait can be useful because it means farmers can have greater yields from their crops with fewer applications of herbicides and pesticides.

The disadvantage is that there are potential issues to the ecosphere that have not been fully studied. In one study, monarch butterflies that feed on a certain plant died when they ate genetically modified plants.

Much research is being done to look at the positive and negative ramifications of modifying crops.

For example, seeds can be modified to contain many positive traits. A significant one is the addition of Vitamin A to crops that normally don’t have it.  By splicing this gene onto rice, it is estimated that childhood blindness could be significantly eliminated in Third World countries because children would receive the necessary vitamin requirements in their daily food.

Since the advent of GMO’s, there has been a raging debate over whether crops grown from these genetically modified seeds are safe for human consumption.

Cries of “Frankenfood” and charges that scientists should not be altering the seeds from which human food is grown are widespread, and Europe has taken a very strong stance against allowing any foods grown from genetically modified seeds into the food supply without having sufficient labeling on the packages.

United States regulations are less strict and today, almost all of the soybeans and much of the corn planted in the U.S. comes from genetically modified seed.

Which brings us to Mont Blanc and thousands of other manufacturers that use a sweetener derived from corn.

We received a request from a German customer to supply them with a product that is certified GMO free.  We were forced to respond that we cannot make it in the United States because of the issue around the corn syrup.

And so now Mont Blanc is considering producing in Europe, where we will be able to obtain raw materials certified as GMO free. Who knows? Perhaps there’s a market for this type of product beyond Europe as we look to accommodate a number of clients.

The best book I have read on the subject is “Dinner at the New Gene Café” by Bill Lambrecht, which gives a very fair, balanced portrayal of both sides of the issue.  I highly recommend it to anyone that wants to learn more about the issue.

Have you dealt with similar issues in your business, or had inquiries regarding GMOs? I’d like to hear your stories.