Posted on 11/10/2014 8:39:21 AM PST by John David Powell
Nothing says summer like being on the beach and licking on a cone with your friends.
But, have you ever thought about what’s in that ice cream? Turns out that it has some ingredients you might want to think twice about.
And those are called genetically modified organism products, or GMOs for short.
GMOs are exactly what the name says: food products that have been genetically altered.
That means they are not the same as what Mother Nature intended. Kinda like human growth hormones for food. It may not always be a good thing.
Folks like those at the Non-Gmo Project are more than a bit leery of what genetically modified foods will do to our non-genetically modified bodies.
So what does all of this have to do with ice cream?
Well, in 2015, the state of Vermont will require food labels to show if any ingredients are genetically modified. And Vermont is the home to Ben & Jerry’s, the ice cream maker.
Ben and Jerry’s used to have “Coffee Heath Bar Crunch”, a best-seller. But the Heath Bar contains GMOs.
And Ben and Jerry’s has pledged to take out all GMOs from their ice cream.
So, if you scream, and I scream, and we all scream for non-genetically modified ice cream, then maybe that next scoop not only will be mighty good, but it could be mighty good for us, too. Just some food for thought.
F B&J’s liberal BS.
I don’t eat ice cream, but if I did, I would definitely choose a non-GMO product over the other. Good for them. Liberals using the free market.
B&Js stores are actively promoting petitions to stop or OUTLAW GMO products. These two wealthy clowns are products of the wacky weed circles of snowed-in Burlington Vermont.
Everything is genetically modified, else we wouldn’t be here in the first place.............
Another reason not to buy the bs promoted by Ben and Jerry’s by not buying any of their ice cream.
“Everything is genetically modified, else we wouldn’t be here in the first place............”
Dang there you go again, bringing up reality not bs.
Mother Nature didn't provide flush toilets either, but I prefer them. As for these fruitcakes Ben and Jerry, well, there are plenty of other ice creams on the market ( I really did like their Vanilla Heath Bar Crunch...).
“Everything is genetically modified, else we would still be swimming in a pool of slime in a swamp......................
d-bags. Both of ‘em.
Nothing says summer like being on the beach and licking on a cone with your friends. But, have you ever thought about what’s in that ice cream
Not then and not now.....
Not a nut and berry kinda guy.
I have not purchased their products for years now. Commie CEO’s are liars and they suck.
Exactly!!! They can’t really use the milk of domesticated cows, cones made of wheat or corn if they want to be consistent. Then, as you say, all the “wild” flora and fauna has undergone ultimately billions of years of genetic modification.
They’re just as meaningless as kashi’s (kellogg’s) claims. Doesn’t unilever own b&j?
Correct. Almost every one of our domesticated plants and animals is the result of generations of selective breeding by our ancestors. There are no Jersey cows in Nature. There are no Siamese Cats in Nature. There are no Poodles, Pomeranians, or Pit Bulls in Nature. There is no corn or wheat or string beans or even lettuce in Nature. The potatoes we eat are probably closer to the original than any other food, and yet they have been modified since they were domesticated. And these are just examples. The same is true of practically everything we eat.
However, modern Genetic Modification doesn't use selective breeding or cross-breeding. Instead, technical means are used to insert genes into seeds with the intent of giving them desired properties such as resistance to herbicides or pest resistance. These are the genetic modifications that we need to examine carefully. The fact of modification in itself is not necessarily cause for concern. What might be cause for concern is the modification. If a plant is modified to be Roundup-resistant, what does that do to anyone who eats it? If a plant is modified to be pest-resistant, what does that do to someone who eats it?
The case of pest-resistant potatoes is relevant. Potatoes were selectively bred, not using modern gene-insertion techniques but classical selective breeding, to increase the amount of solanine in them, making them more resistant to insects. Unfortunately, the high-solanine potatoes also poisoned those who ate them. Whether it's selective breeding or gene-insertion, the issue is not the fact that the organism has been "modified," but the nature of the modification. Safety of the modification has to be verified.
Just remember, practically nothing that we eat is as "Nature" intended it. Almost everything we eat is the end result of a long chain of selective breeding, to shape something originally found in Nature into something that we think is better suited for us.
While I find GMO hysteria to be silly, the ice cream tastes great. If it takes some silly hysteria to make great ice cream I say MORE, be sillier.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.