The Ultimate Guide To Avoiding Genetically Modified Foods

 

As a consumer I am very conscious of purchasing foods that are NOT genetically modified. There are many factors that contribute to my family’s decision to not consume these foods and here is a link to The Non-GMO Project explaining what GMO foods are, facts and myths about them, and a ton of other great information. I could go over all of it, but I’d like this post to focus on how to avoid them, not why I avoid them.  Here are the steps my family took in removing GMO’s from our household:

1. Know the Source

To cut GMO’s from your household first you have to know which foods are genetically modified. Here is a list of the biggest GMO crops in The United States:

• Corn

• Soy

• Cottonseed

• Alfalfa

• Papaya

• Canola

• Sugar Beets

• Zucchini and Yellow Summer Squash

• Dairy treated with rBst

The list looks small, but if you go through your pantry, refrigerator, and freezer and read ingredient lists you will start to realize these 8 crops are in almost ALL packaged foods. Even foods that appear to be “healthy” still can contain GMO ingredients. If you are serious about avoiding GMO’s it is very important to cook from scratch or find verified products (will discuss that later).

2. Know Hidden Sources

It is easy to read the words “soybean oil” and know a product contains GMO ingredients. However, there are other food ingredients and additives that are labeled using different names that can be hidden sources of GMO’s. The best thing to do is look over this list, make a mental note, and start reading packages. Thanks to the Non-GMO Shopping Guide, here is a list of ingredients to look out for:

Aspartame (also called AminoSweet®,    NutraSweet®, Equal Spoonful®, Canderel®,  BeneVia®, E951) baking powder canola oil (rapeseed oil) caramel color cellulose citric acid cobalamin (Vitamin B12) colorose condensed milk confectioners sugar corn flour corn masa corn meal corn oil corn sugar corn syrup cornstarch cottonseed oil cyclodextrin cystein dextrin dextrose diacetyl diglyceride erythritol Equal food starch fructose (any form) glucose glutamate glutamic acid glycerides glycerin glycerol glycerol monooleate glycine hemicellulose high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) hydrogenated starch hydrolyzed vegetable protein inositol inverse syrup inversol invert sugar isoflavones lactic acid lecithin leucine lysine malitol malt malt syrup malt extract maltodextrin maltose mannitol methylcellulose milk powder milo starch modified food starch modified starch mono and diglycerides monosodium glutamate (MSG) Nutrasweet oleic acid Phenylalanine phytic acid protein isolate shoyu sorbitol soy flour soy isolates soy lecithin soy milk soy oil soy protein soy protein isolate soy sauce starch stearic acid sugar (unless specified as cane sugar) tamari tempeh teriyaki marinades textured vegetable protein threonine tocopherols (vitamin E) tofu trehalose triglyceride vegetable fat vegetable oil vitamin B12 vitamin E whey whey powder xanthan gum

 

3. Buy Organic (Especially Meats and Dairy)

When you buy organic, you have the piece of mind of knowing there are no GMO ingredients in your food. This one really goes beyond packaged foods because if you haven’t realized yet, you are what you eat! If you are consuming animal products derived from animals consuming GMO’s, then you essentially are eating GMO’s. I know there are a ton of people who proclaim “Organic foods are the same as Non-Organic” and “It is all just a trick” and so on, but one thing they can’t argue against is scientific research. The fact is organic grass fed butter is higher in “healthy fats”, contains Vitamin k12, and contains more Omega-3 Fatty Acids then its counterpart. Don’t believe me? Check this out! Also, when you buy organic dairy you know the cows weren’t given any Monsanto engineered growth hormones.

Speaking of Growth Hormones…

I stay away from non-organic milk especially because I don’t agree with the way the animals are treated. As a mother who has nursed a baby (I know cows and humans are different but still) I can say it is NOT comfortable to have boobs full of milk. Most of these cows are given hormones to over-produce and then given anti-biotic to fight off the mastitis that comes with over-producing. Call me crazy but I’ve been there, and it is a terrible thing to suffer through. If that was all my life consisted of, it would be a painful, sad existence.

4. Look for Non-GMO Verified Products

If you go through my pantry you will see this label on rice, cereals, lentils, beans, and many other products. I love this label, and even seek it more then the USDA Organic label. Thanks to the Non-GMO project companies who are not using GMO’s can verify their products. This is super important since the government refuses to make it mandatory for companies to label GMO ingredients. If you’d like to check out the verification process here is a link to how companies get verified.

5. Know the Companies Fighting to Keep Us in The Dark

This one is huge for me. Did you know that the companies who own most of the grocery store shelves (there are only a handful of them!) also spend millions of dollars a year to keep us in the dark? If they are a big name brand, they are probably on the list. I don’t support any of these companies essentially because when I buy their products I am putting my own money toward something I don’t agree with. If we stop giving these companies our money, they won’t have the funds to keep us in the dark. Believe me, we are a long way away from that ever happening simply because they have been confusing people about GMO foods from the start. If you can’t convince them, confuse them! And that’s exactly what they try to do! Here is the list of the companies who have previously fought GMO labeling (From Inspiration Green):

• Monsanto

• Dupont

• PepsiCo Inc.

• Coca-Cola

• Nestle USA

• General Mills

• Bayer CropScience

• Dow AgroSciences

• BASF Plant Science

• ConAgra Foods

• Campbell’s Soup Co.

• Hershey Company

• Kellogg Co.

• Land O’ Lakes

• Cargill & Co.

• Bimbo Bakeries (Sara Lee, BallPark)

• Del Monte

• Ocean Spray Cranberries

• Hormel Foods

• Kraft Foods

• Heintz

• Godiva

• Mars

• Sunny Delight

• BumbleBee

• Morton Salt

• McCain

• Rich’s

• Wrigley

• Smithfield

• Goya

• Welch’s

• Abbott Nutrition (Similac Formula)

• J.M. Smucker Co.

• Unilever

• And Many More!

There are also several other companies owned by these big names that you should check out on Inspiration Green (organic and natural food companies specifically).

6. Get The GMO Checker Apps

There are several apps available now that scan barcodes and can identify if the food has GMO’s in it. The one I have doesn’t always know, but they will e-mail you the results once they investigate it. I love this because it means all of these companies fighting against GMO labeling are eating all of their money now because people who really want to know can! When you begin investigating GMO ingredients you probably won’t even need the app but just incase I am unsure, or want to double check it is a great tool.

 

If you liked this information, Please SHARE IT! Nothing will ever change about our food supply until we as consumers take control!

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