Courtesy Spike Mufford/Photodisc/ Thinkstock It’s possible to create a Thanksgiving feast that’s free of GMO ingredients. |
Genetically modified ingredients can be an unwelcome and hidden guest at your Thanksgiving celebration. This year, GMO Inside, a new coalition that advocates for increased consumer awareness of genetically modified organisms in foods, offers tips and suggestions for consumers on how to remove unwanted GMOs from their holiday feasts. From identifying GMO-laden products and offering non-GMO alternatives to giving tips on how to help spread the word on genetically engineered foods, GMO Inside hopes to give consumers the information they need to celebrate a non-GMO Thanksgiving.
“Thanksgiving is a time to celebrate with family and friends. Consumers should be able to do this without worrying about feeding hidden GMOs to their loved ones,” says Alisa Gravitz, president of Green America, a green-economy organization and member of the GMO Inside steering committee.
According to GMO Inside, genetically engineered foods have not been adequately tested for human consumption. The campaign was started as a response to the failed Proposition 37, a legislative motion on California’s 2012 election ballot that would have required all retail outlets in California to label foods containing GMO ingredients.
“Corporations may have misled voters in California about GMOs, but they can’t change the fact that over 90 percent of Americans support the labeling of foods with genetically engineered ingredients,” Gravitz says.
Some common Thanksgiving-dinner ingredients that GMO Inside has identified as having the potential to contain GMOs include Campbell’s tomato soup, Wesson canola oil, Bruce’s yams, Hershey’s milk chocolate, Pepperidge Farm crackers, Kraft classic ranch dressing, Rice-a-Roni chicken-flavored rice, Ocean Spray cranberry sauce and Kraft Stove Top stuffing. The organization recommends choosing certified organic food products and produce outlined on their website as alternatives to products containing GMO ingredients. It also recommends these tips for spreading the word about GMO ingredients to family and friends:
- If hosting Thanksgiving dinner, print out a menu of foods served for your guests and make sure to note that they are non-GMO and organic.
- Post a photo of your non-GMO feast on Pinterest or Facebook.
- If donating food to shelters this holiday, donate organic and non-GMO foods.
- If you already purchased holiday food containing GMOs, print GMO Inside’s GMO labels, place them on food, photograph and upload the photos to social media to warn family and friends.
- Check to see if food containing GMOs has money-back guarantees. If it does, you can return the food to the manufacturer.
To make sure your Thanksgiving dinner is GMO-free, grow the ingredients yourself and follow this guide to put together a stress-free Thanksgiving meal.
