GMOs Decoded: A Skeptic's View of Genetically Modified Foods

by Sheldon Krimsky, Marion Nestle (Foreword by)

Overview

The debate over genetically modified organisms: health and safety concerns, environmental impact, and scientific opinions.

Since they were introduced to the market in the late 1990s, GMOs (genetically modified organisms, including genetically modified crops), have been subject to a barrage of criticism. Agriculture has welcomed this new technology, but public opposition has been loud and scientific opinion mixed. In GMOs Decoded, Sheldon Krimsky examines the controversies over GMOs—health and safety concerns, environmental issues, the implications for world hunger, and the scientific consensus (or lack of one). He explores the viewpoints of a range of GMO skeptics, from public advocacy groups and nongovernmental organizations to scientists with differing views on risk and environmental impact.

Krimsky explains the differences between traditional plant breeding and “molecular breeding” through genetic engineering (GE); describes early GMO products, including the infamous Flavr Savr tomato; and discusses herbicide-, disease-, and insect-resistant GE plants. He considers the different American and European approaches to risk assessment, dueling scientific interpretations of plant genetics, and the controversy over labeling GMO products. He analyzes a key 2016 report from the National Academies of Sciences on GMO health effects and considers the controversy over biofortified rice (Golden Rice)—which some saw as a humanitarian project and others as an exercise in public relations.
Do GMO crops hold promise or peril? By offering an accessible review of the risks and benefits of GMO crops, and a guide to the controversies over them, Krimsky helps readers judge for themselves.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780262039192
Publisher:	MIT Press
Publication date:	03/12/2019
Series:	Food, Health, and the Environment
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	216
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.80(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Sheldon Krimsky is Lenore Stern Professor of Humanities and Social Sciences and Adjunct Professor in Public Health and Community Medicine in the Department of Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning at Tufts University. He is the author, coauthor, or editor of fourteen books, including Science in the Private Interest and Stem Cell Dialogues.

Table of Contents

Series Foreword vii

Foreword Marion Nestle ix

Acknowledgments xiii

Introduction xv

1 Traditional Plant Breeding 1

2 Molecular Breeding 9

3 Differences between Traditional and Molecular Breeding and Their Significance for Evaluating Crops 19

4 Early Products in Agricultural Biotechnology 29

5 Herbicide-Resistant Transgenic Crops 39

6 Disease-Resistant Transgenic Crops 49

7 Insect-Resistant Crops 57

8 Genetic Mechanisms and GMO Risk Assessment 67

9 Contested Viewpoints on the Health and Environmental Effects of GMOs 79

10 Labeling GMOs 93

11 The 2016 National Academies Study 103

12 The Promise and Protests of Golden Rice 119

13 Science Studies and the GMO Conflict 129

14 Conclusion 139

Notes 155

Index 183

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

Sheldon Krimsky is a hero; he is one of the few scholars with classical courage. He—and this book—are making the world a safer place.

—Nassim Nicholas Taleb, Distinguished Professor of Risk Engineering, NYU Tandon School of Engineering; author of The Black Swan, Skin in the Game, and Antifragile

Krimsky offers us a helpful, no-nonsense guide to many of the key points of difference in the polarized GMO debate, written with respect for his readers' capacity to grapple with complexity.

—Frances Moore Lappé, cofounder, Small Planet Institute; author of Diet for a Small Planet and coauthor of World Hunger: 10 Myths

GMOs Decoded is an authoritative and balanced examination of the scientific and policy debates about GMOs, from the perspective of a scholar who prioritizes public and environmental health over short-term corporate interests. Readers will gain a better perspective from which to make informed judgments on controversial issues while encountering surprising facts that challenge their assumptions.

—Erik Millstone, Emeritus Professor of Science Policy, University of Sussex

Editorial Reviews

02/18/2019

Krimsky (Science in the Private Interest), a Tufts professor of urban and environmental policy, digs into the controversy about genetically modified foods in this thoughtful, thorough book. Intended for “nonexperts,” Krimsky’s work lays out opposing “claims and counterclaims,” demystifies the science, and shows “where there is consensus, honest disagreement, or unresolved uncertainty.” To that end, Krimsky addresses seven questions, such as “What is known about the health assessment of genetically modified crops?” Applying “organized skepticism” to the available literature, he finds not one but many points of contention, beginning with where exactly the line between GMO and non-GMO products lies, and going on to how risk is defined and measured. Digging deep into bureaucratic procedure, Krimsky explains that the U.S. emphasizes “product-based” regulation—“the method used to assemble or construct” a product is less important than “the properties it possesses after it is constructed”—rather than the alternative process-based model, and thus does not treat GMO products as special cases. While these points may seem arcane, each one, Krimsky shows, is important for policymakers, and, by extension, for food consumers. Nutritionist Marion Nestle’s foreword describes Krimsky’s work a “gift to anyone confused” about the subject, an apt description for this fair-minded, informative primer. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly

Marion Nestle's foreword describes Krimsky's work a 'gift to anyone confused' about the subject, an apt description for this fair-minded, informative primer.”—Publishers Weekly—

From the Publisher