Additive of the Week - Genetically Modified Soy and Corn

The following foods served at our school contain soy or corn or one of their main derivatives, e.g. high fructose corn syrup:

Entrees:
Chicken Nuggets (corn and soy)
Mozzarella Cheese Sticks (corn and soy)
Tomato/Spaghetti Sauce (corn and soy) (in many entrees - pasta dishes, meatball and chicken parm sandwiches, mozzarella sticks, pizzas made at the school, italian dunkers)
Pizza - frozen - various (soy)
Chicken in Chicken parm sandwiches (corn and soy)
Bagels (corn)
French Bread for Italian Dunkers (soy)
Club roll (meatball heros, etc.) (corn and soy)
Whole Wheat Bread- sandwiches, bread slice (corn and soy)
Sliders (soy) and their buns (corn and soy)
Turkey Taco Meat (soy)
Meatballs (soy)

Sides: (these all contain corn, corn syrup or HFCS)
Mixed Fruit Peaches
Pears
Applesauce
Corn

These are largely USDA commodity foods served in schools all over the U.S. The main exception is the bread.

On June 11th, we served Sliders, Peaches and Corn - putting either soy or corn in every single item we served. Another day, it was chicken nuggets, bread and applesauce - all with corn or soy or both.

Why do we want to avoid this kind of ubiquity of corn and soy?

In the movie The World According to Monsanto, they point out that90% of soy and 40% of corn grown in the US is genetically-modified (GM). They are also pervasive in processed foods.

Monsanto has genetically modified its seeds so that the corn and soy plants could be doused with RoundUp and survive. They tried to claim RoundUp was biodegradable - but regulators have since said this is not true and cannot be stated on the label. So, every day, our kids eat processed foods at lunch loaded with GM corn and soy treated with RoundUp. RoundUp has been shown to cause cell division - which you can take to mean it ultimately causes cancer.

Further, under US law, GM plants were declared to be substantially the same as non-GM plants and were never fully tested. In Europe, they are banned.

You can see the film online for the full story on Monsanto, GM crops and RoundUp.

Or read more online:
GEFoodAlert.org
GMWatch.org
WHO on GM Foods

Sara