According to its developers, the technology of genetic engineering was created to reduce the use of pesticides and herbicides, and increase crop yields to feed our growing world. Though it has grabbed the support of the United States government, many scientists believe this technology reduces the nutritional value of our foods, perpetuates the international dependence on agricultural chemicals, and disrupts the flow of intelligence in the genetic sequence of our ecosystem.

What is genetic engineering? Are these foods safe for us to eat? What about nutrition or food allergies? What happens when pollen from these plants is carried by the wind to neighboring fields? Could the balance of the ecosystem be changed? Do we really need more food in the world or just more generosity?

Is Genetic Engineering the Same as Traditional Crossbreeding?

Supporters assert that genetic engineering is a natural extension of traditional crossbreeding, where traits from the same or closely related species are interbred. But in fact, it is radically different.

Crossbreeding uses natural reproductive mechanisms. Only the same or closely related species can combine their genetic material—cauliflower can combine with broccoli but not with zucchini. And the rules of crossbreeding are very specific—when a donkey breeds with a mare, the crossbreed— a mule—is sterile. Further propagation of that genetic combination is not supported by nature.

In contrast, genetic engineering is not constrained by nature’s rules and crosses all boundaries set in place by Natural Law. According to the Environmental Defense Fund, "Scientists can now readily shift genetic material from one species to virtually any other species. Genetic material can also be synthesized in the laboratory and then transferred into organisms. As a result, a virtually limitless number of genetically encoded substances… can now be added to organisms used as food."

Not only can these genes now be found in unnatural combinations—fish and animal genes in fruits and vegetables— but many of these substances, such as bacteria DNA in the genes of a potato, have never before been part of the human food supply.

The biotech industry claims that crops modified with genes of one bacteria (Bt) would reduce the use of pesticides because they produce their own insect-killing toxins. But look more closely. The EPA now registers genetically engineered Bt corn as a pesticide, and not a vegetable at all.

Dr. John Hagelin, award-winning physicist and director of the Institute of Science, Technology and Public Policy at Maharishi University of.

Management, remarks, "When genetic engineers disregard the reproductive boundaries set in place by Natural Law, they run the risk of destroying our genetic encyclopedia, compromising the richness of our natural biodiversity and creating ‘genetic soup’ They are, essentially, rewriting the genetic library on earth."

What’s Out There Today?

The foods, supplements, household and personal care products you now use may already contain ingredients made from genetically altered crops. The long list of crops includes soybeans, corn, canola, papaya, potatoes, tomatoes, squash, cotton, flax, sugar beets, and milk from cows injected with a genetically altered hormone (rBGH). Products made from these crops range from infant formula to cheese, candies, cookies, breads, chips, cereals, corn syrup, salad dressings, oils, juices, detergents, sugar, animal feed and vitamins.

You would have to be an avid label reader at the grocery store to avoid genetically modified ingredients in processed foods. That is, if they were listed on the labels. But they’re not.

Despite warnings from scientists and physicians all over the world including several of the FDA’s own scientists, the official government position states that transgenic foods are "substantially equivalent," or essentially the same, as their natural predecessors—and completely safe. Current government regulations reflect that position. They do not require these foods to be labeled or rigorously tested before they hit the market. The bottom line is that no one knows if these foods are safe, for us or our environment. We have all become subjects in a highly controversial experiment, without our knowledge or consent.

Dr. John Fagan, internationally recognized molecular biologist and former genetic engineer states, "We are living today in a very delicate time, one that is reminiscent of the birth of the nuclear era, when mankind stood at the threshold of a new technology. No one knew that nuclear power would bring us to the brink of annihilation or fill our planet with highly toxic radioactive waste. We were so excited by the power of a new discovery that we leapt ahead blindly, and without caution. Today the situation with genetic engineering is perhaps even more grave because this technology acts on the very blueprint of life itself."

We are at a place in our world’s history where we can no longer afford to violate the Laws of Nature in our haste for progress. We need to shed our national addiction to profit-driven, quick-fix solutions, and make a decision as a society to embrace technologies that support all of life.

There is an order in the universe, a seamless web that nourishes and connects us all—from the tiniest seed, to the beating of our hearts, to the stars in the galaxies. Every time we act without reference to this underlying intelligence of Natural Law, we harm ourselves, each other, and our planet. But if we align ourselves and our society with the nourishing power of Nature, we will create a civilization that upholds the integrity and dignity of life for all of us.

Laura Ticciati is a mother of two and Executive Director of Mothers for Natural Law. She is co-author, with husband Robin Ticciati, Ph.D, of Genetically Engineered Foods: Are they safe? You decide (Keats Publishing, 1998), the first consumer book on the subject. For more information or to order a copy of the Ticciati’s book, contact Mothers for Natural Law at 515-472- 2040, or visit www.safe-food.org.

Canadian Campaigns for Safe Foods

For the past five years, Dr. Richard Wolfson, a Trustee of Maharishi Vedic Colleges in Canada, has played a vital role in making Canadians aware of the health risks related to genetically modified foods.

Together with Donna Hiscott, Dr. Wolfson founded the Consumer Right to Know Campaign, which gathered over 50,000 signatures on petitions given to the Canadian Parliament calling for labeling of genetically modified foods.

Dr. Wolfson's efforts—in coordination with the Council of Canadians, Greenpeace, the Sierra Club, and the Canadian Action party— have contributed to the following achievements:

The Canadian Senate voted to disallow the use of genetically engineered bovine growth hormone (rBGH) used to stimulate the milk production in cattle.

This ruling on rBGH resulted in a Senate Committee investigation into whether scientists at Health Canada, a government agency responsible for evaluating rBGH, had been pressured by the biotech industry to approve the product.

Some large Canadian food processors have stopped using genetically modified ingredients. For example, McCains no longer uses genetically modified potatoes.

Dr. Wolfson writes a regular column on the hazards of genetic engineering in Alive, Canada's largest health magazine.

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