Correction to update (April 26, 2012): The campaign has collected enough signatures, close to a million, but has not yet submitted them to the state.
Update (April 25, 2012): We’ve just been informed that the California Right to Know Genetically Engineered Food Act initiative has submitted to the state enough signatures to qualify for November’s ballot.
Help gather signatures for the California Right to Know Genetically Engineered Food Act. Volunteers must collect at least 850,000 signatures by April 18 to place the initiative on the November ballot.
The initiative will require labeling of foods containing Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) to allow consumers to make informed decisions about the food we eat.
Don’t you want to know if your food was produced using genetic engineering—potatoes altered with bacterial genes, corn altered to produce its own pesticides, crops made resistant to herbicides and then over-sprayed with RoundUp or 2,4-D in massive doses, etc.?
The ecological impact of genetic contamination from GMOs is also a concern. Pollen can be carried by wind and bees over long distances. Genetically engineered genes can spread from farm to farm and to wild relatives of crop plants, and these genes can become–and have become–established in nature.
Many crops are engineered to produce Bt toxins to resist infestation from insects. Root exudates from these plants release the toxins into the soil, where they retain their activity for months and even years. This stimulates major changes in soil biota that can affect nutrient cycling and reduce soil fertility.
Bt toxins are also lethal to non-target organisms such as lacewings and ladybird beetles, which play an important role in maintaining the equilibrium of insect populations.
Organic farmers are strongly opposed to GMOs because pollen or seeds can spread the GMO traits, which means that their crops would no longer be able to be certified as organic.
Most advanced countries such as Japan, Korea, and the European Union countries require labeling of GMOs. Most Americans want the same.
WhatYouCanDo
To join the Sierra Club’s effort to help collect signatures, send your name, address, telephone, and e-mail address, and the best time to reach you, to Bay Chapter conservation director Michelle Myers at (510)848-0800, ext. 323, or michelle@sfbaysc.org.
Read the text of the initiative at the initiative campaign web site www.carighttoknow.org.
See the Sierra Club policy on genetic engineering at www.sierraclub.org/policy/conservation/biotech.aspx
Andrew Christie and Cynthia Denny
