The Creator of GMO Potatoes Reveals The Dangerous Truth

[kyoloco]

"The food" makes you fat largely because of how it's prepared. It's more common in the US for food to be prepared with a lot of fat and/or sugar (especially from high-fructose corn syrup) compared to many other countries. If your salad comes with a HFCS dressing, it's not the lettuce that is making you fat. And you can eat all the kale you like, if you serve it with lard-fried pork or whatever, that's where your calories are coming from.

European and Latin American countries tend to use their produce differently in their cooking; that's not to say they're somehow super healthy all the time (far from it) but there does tend to be less empty calories etc. all around.

Another big factor is drinks. Pop is a KILLER, and the US drink it a lot more than most other countries.

As for GMO produce, blind tests have found that it generally tastes good enough. It doesn't score perfectly on all tests (though that can vary considerable based on the test), but that's not unexpected. You make compromises all the time in food. Non-GMO foods also lose out to high-quality artisanal produce - unsurprisingly, considering the difference in price. That's what it comes down to, really. GMO didn't get introduced by accident, economic and scale factors are what's behind it most of all. You simply cannot feed everyone with hand-grown, individually named strawberries. The more you scale up, the more problems you face with non-GMO foods. Diseases, pests, etc. etc. are disproportionately more problematic the larger your operation. And we need those large operations if we want people to be able to afford their food, and if we want food producers to make an actual living.

Anyone who's against GMOs should ask themselves what's behind them, and why they're needed. Feel free to quickly solve the problem of neo-liberal capitalist production systems, and then we can make sure all the less well-off people don't have to live off water and gruel like they used to when fresh fruit, vegetables, and meat were too expensive for them. You can't have your cake and eat it, too. GMOs are a more accessible and more realistic solution than a radical transformation of our entire economic mindset. (Same goes for nuclear power, by the way - it's all well and good if you're against it, but do tell how countries like e.g. Japan are supposed to power themselves without nuclear power plants, or without going bankrupt in the process).

Don't just follow slogans, make yourself aware of all the implications that come with your convictions.

im not following any slogans

im not lobbying to change laws

i just telling my experience from travelling around South America and Asia

food in the US just doesnt taste the same

luckily i am a heavy drinker so i dont notice it as much

[Biomega]

im not following any slogans

im not lobbying to change laws

This was just some general advice, not directly targeted at you. I apologize if it came across as personal, it wasn't meant like that.

food in the US just doesnt taste the same

I'd be surprised if it did But that doesn't mean it's because of GMO, it could be for any number of reasons. Also keep in mind that in some countries, people value the quality of their products a lot - and in other countries, people put more value on things like price. The suppliers service the market accordingly.

[kyoloco]

This was just some general advice, not directly targeted at you. I apologize if it came across as personal, it wasn't meant like that.


I'd be surprised if it did But that doesn't mean it's because of GMO, it could be for any number of reasons. Also keep in mind that in some countries, people value the quality of their products a lot - and in other countries, people put more value on things like price. The suppliers service the market accordingly.

my bad, i did take it personal

i dont mind modified foods

if anything, someone should try to create senzu beans

[swineflu]

Considering the OP's track record, I'm surprised people take any source from him seriously.

My source material to you is untrammeled reality you insubordinate twerp.

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From a side dedicated to "spreading the news about the dangers of GMOs"....


Yeah, this is trustworthy!

Just your garden variety poison the well fallacy. Is that all you have to contribute ant?

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Anti-vaxers, anti-GMO it's the same people.

On your way to mcdonalds don't forget your boosters. Consider the double dose of glyphosate well-deserved karma you cockroach.

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it's swineflu back with his hatred for all things monsanto and gmo.....

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wrong. but then again that's just par for the course for you hubcap.

Lick my feet you inconsequent mewl.

[grexly75]

"but we gotta feed the wourd"
you idiots with little understanding of how genetics interact between members of a species or even their environment will kill us all with your good intentions.

Exactly this^, maybe done with all good intentions but we have no idea of the impact GM produce will have on the wider environment.. Humans have created many a thing for what they thought were for the greater good and turned out to be highly detrimental to the humans and the environment..

[Suluhu]

Genetically modifying crops has been done since we first started farming. Crossbreeding, selecting plants with qualities we liked.

Now we have the knowledge and technology to do the same thing much faster and more efficiently. I really do not understand what the problem is people have with this.

[swineflu]

People still refuse to believe that pesticides can be problematic when it comes to killing bees.

Exactly. What is surprising by revelation of the GMO potato expert interviewed above is the double whammy of destructive herbicides and gene silencing by double-stranded RNA in GMO pollen to bees. GMOs are worse than we thought.

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Genetically modifying crops has been done since we first started farming. Crossbreeding, selecting plants with qualities we liked.

Now we have the knowledge and technology to do the same thing much faster and more efficiently. I really do not understand what the problem is people have with this.

Equating crossbreeding with transgenic mutation. Let this moronic drivel stand eternally in this forum as a shameful beacon of your ignorance.

[Super Kami Dende]

As someone that is friends with a few Microbiologists that actually work in food science. Stop letting yourself get scared by fearmongers. GMO's aren't some sort of evil poison that some people claim them to be.

Literally 1000's of Scientist support and work with GMO's. Having one or 2 say "BUT DEY ARE DANGEROUS!" makes you nearly as stupid as listening to the few idiot scientists that claim Climate change isn't real.

When 99% of a vocation of people agree on something, listening to the 1% of outliers as a "fact" is simply moronic.

[swineflu]

wait...what?!

you heard me.

[Super Kami Dende]

wrong. but then again that's just par for the course for you hubcap.

What exactly is wrong? Both groups are full of people so idiotic that ignore very basic science and the people that do it for a living just to scare themselves and others.

[Tabrotar]

And here in Europe we just laugh at your stupid american "But no GMO will ever be dangerous, you´re just scared and and something like a flat-earther and no-vaxxer".

Serves you right for you beeing stupid little sheeps. Have fun with your so called "save" GMOs.

[swineflu]

There are multiple seed banks worldwide, some are even built to survive some sort of nuclear world war extermination event. You are right that genetic erosion is a big risk when you rely on a single seed line, but in reality any breeder (traditional or GMO) will always work with a wide array of lines (OP mentions "hundreds of thousands" varieties).

As for the OP, total fucking clickbait clear as day. Some choice quotes that seem terrifying to a layman who knows fuck all about plant breeding conveniently bolded and voila.

The stupidity. Nobody mixes GMO and non-GMO seeds. Transgenic plants spread in nature you simpering dolt, that's the point. GMO pollen contaminating nearby plant fields and gene patent enforcement is profitable and therefore encouraged. Authoritarian bigmouths like you are useful idiots for the profits of big Ag and enemies of the bee.

[Suluhu]

Exactly. What is surprising by revelation of the GMO potato expert interviewed above is the double whammy of destructive herbicides and gene silencing by double-stranded RNA in GMO pollen to bees. GMOs are worse than we thought.

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Equating crossbreeding with transgenic mutation. Let this moronic drivel stand eternally in this forum as a shameful beacon of your ignorance.

It is exactly the same thing, though. Please look up what a transgene is.

[swineflu]

And here in Europe we just laugh at your stupid american "But no GMO will ever be dangerous, you´re just scared and and something like a flat-earther and no-vaxxer".

Serves you right for you beeing stupid little sheeps. Have fun with your so called "save" GMOs.

I like the cut of your jib.

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As someone that is friends with a few Microbiologists that actually work in food science. Stop letting yourself get scared by fearmongers. GMO's aren't some sort of evil poison that some people claim them to be.

Literally 1000's of Scientist support and work with GMO's. Having one or 2 say "BUT DEY ARE DANGEROUS!" makes you nearly as stupid as listening to the few idiot scientists that claim Climate change isn't real.

When 99% of a vocation of people agree on something, listening to the 1% of outliers as a "fact" is simply moronic.

"Outliers" AKA truthtellers AKA whistleblowers. ..Got dumb?

[Guardian Bob]

Will GM potatoes not lead to larger yields and bigger tubers?

and these mutations compromised yield

I hate to rain on your anti GMO parade but if genetic engineering didn't create more yield then why do companies spend millions on something that doesn't benefit them? Companies are in it to make money, so I'd imagine if GMO's don't make them money then they wouldn't use it. If it doesn't increase yield then why do they do it? It obviously must do something.

[swineflu]

I'm all in favor of caution and oversight, but this interview has a lot of questionable points in it - the most striking being that it's plugging the interviewee's book. That he has the gall to talk about conflicts of interest in an interview promoting something he has a financial stake in is breathtakingly hypocritical.

You can also see that in many places he doesn't make clear statements, but just vague suggestions. Example:

"Are GM potatoes less carcinogenic, as suggested by the GMO industry?

I guess that many people will ask themselves: are potatoes carcinogenic? I don’t think there is any evidence for that. So, an even more interesting question is: why would GM potatoes be promoted as less carcinogenic?"

He didn't say anything, he just threw doubt around that could be interpreted in a number of ways. There's many similar instances, where he leads into general questions, or phrases things in ways such as "I believe..." or "may cause..." - especially when talking about areas of scientific ignorance (i.e. things we don't know yet, or don't know for sure yet) that is extremely questionable, as you could lead people to misconstrue a lack of information to mean that other, conflicting information is true instead, which is often simply not the case and a gross logical fallacy. "A is not B" does not equal "A must be C"; this is a false dichotomy caused by lack of information.

Also, it is fallacious to call him "THE creator of GMO potatoes" - he was the leader of ONE team of 15 people at Monsanto, and then the head of R&D overseeing about 50 people. That's it. The GMO industry employs THOUSANDS of people, and a great many teams are working on all sorts of organisms - often the same ones at rivaling companies. And that's not even including the thousands of scientists in academia who also do research in many of these areas, and cross and double check results all the time. They'd love nothing more than to find a flaw in someone else's work and make it public. Yet for some reason, it seems only this one person is coming forward at a time when they also happen to have a book out that they want to sell? What an amazing coincidence!

And don't misunderstand me - I am not being apologist for the GMO industry or praising the infallibility of scientific progress. Far from it. I firmly believe we need strict and rigorous oversight in these matters. But it has to be done RIGHT. Facts, not "well I believe..." and "well maybe..." statements with vague implications during your personal book tour. That's how we get into these messes where nobody knows what to believe anymore, and is swayed by rhetoric that just services personal echo-chamber mentalities. This is a complicated scientific discipline, where you often cannot make simple statements or easy and accurate predictions. But ignorance is not an excuse for fear mongering.

"Fearmongering" AKA the precautionary principle, the bedrock of ethical science. You sound like that patronizing cocksucker on 1950s TV who mocks the connection between lung cancer and cigarettes.

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Good reasons to stay totally clear of all GMO food

Indeed, friend of bee.

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I'd bet you a dollar that you and 95 out of any random 100 people wouldn't be able to tell the difference in a blind taste test.

How is that different than saying the average consumer is like a cockroach? Not much and in that I actually agree with you however it's hardly dispositive.

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On a sidenote, if you're interested in potato breeding check out Solynta. They're developing diploid potato breeds which you can grow from seeds. Currently farmers have to plant whole potatoes which is a pain in the ass; you need to save all the potatoes to plant and that means storing them and you need a whole lot of them. Using seeds, you can cut down the total weight by a factor of atleast 10000.

If I were to believe you (and that's a big IF) reducing storage space at a cost of sacrificing bees and disrpupting the human gut microbiome? Shirley..you can't be serious.

[Voidism]

The willfully ignorant kids that are scared of GMOs are the same ones that would be fine with banning Dihydrogen monoxide.

But dihydrogen monoxide is the leading cause of drowning!

[swineflu]

You've never planted potatoes before have you. You can get several potato plants off of one bulb and several bulbs from one plant.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ianApRDflh0


OT: Well if it isn't our favorite anti-GMOist Swineflu. Come to post more BS articles?

Yeah. In your FACE. And what you call BS I call the salty truth. It stings your eyes and you HATE it.

[Deleted]

"but we gotta feed the wourd"
you idiots with little understanding of how genetics interact between members of a species or even their environment will kill us all with your good intentions.

Are you against dwarf wheat?

[Suluhu]

But dihydrogen monoxide is the leading cause of drowning!

Did you also know that they use that stuff in nuclear facilities?