Quick Facts on GMOs

April 1, 2004


* If contaminated, crops cannot be marketed as organic or sold to European Union markets, which established a moratorium on GMOs five years ago due to related human health concerns.

* Chemical corporations hold patents on all GMOs, and they have sought penalties against farmers whose crops were inadvertently contaminated.

* "Superweeds" develop as herbicide-resistant traits spread to ordinary weeds, and "superpests" evolve as bugs become immune to high levels of toxins.

* In 1999, a Cornell University study showed bacteria from GMO corn made the caterpillars of monarch butterflies grow slower and die faster.

* In 2000, a GMO corn approved only for animal feed due to concerns that it may trigger severe allergic reactions turned up in taco shells, corn chips, and muffin mixes in the U.S.

* In 2003, tests in Mexico found GMOs contaminating corn and other plants representing thousands of years of purity in all nine regions tested, even though their use has never been authorized.


This article can be found online at www.wildcalifornia.org/publications/article-59