Genetically modified (GMO) foods and all the preservatives, additives, and added junk are taking over our food system. They not only hurt us but our environment as well. Dawn Jackson Blatner author of The Flextarian Diet says, “Spray butter, whipped topping, and other similar ‘diet foods’. My food philosophy is to eat real food with simple ingredient lists. I’d rather enjoy my food with smart amounts of real butter, oil, sea salt, or whipped cream rather than artificial flavors and chemicals.”

Preservatives and food additives are the pesticides; factory made fertilizers, and chemically made preservers going into our food system. Food producers no longer depend on natural ways of harvesting crops since these were made. The problem is that these chemicals when farming get into our water supply and cause things like cancer and birth defects. Pesticides also cause nausea, muscular weakness, and irritation of the eye, nose, and throat. They also cause central nervous system disorders and damage to the liver and kidneys. Now if farms were to start using organic fertilizers like seaweed and manure, the soil quality would improve, they would strengthen soil, they’re harmless to all organisms, and they reduce toxic waste. Also, using these organic preservers, pesticides, and fertilizers would create less addition of toxic and poisonous substances into our environment.

Genetically modified food or GMO is made when scientists transfer genes from one organism to another, creating an organism that is genetically different from a preexisting plant or animal. GMO products look just like natural plants or animals. They reduce the cost and effort required to control insects, plant diseases or weeds. Yet, GMO causes improper growth and diseases. It’s also against nature and changes the course of it, which can destroy natural food sources for some animal. Also, people can have allergic reactions to this and not even know it because our food isn’t labeled if it’s genetically modified or organic. Monsanto spent more than 8 million dollars trying to stop the law that food products should be labeled GMO or not, and for misleading ads about grocery bills, and how farmers will cripple with fees, paperwork, and other conflict. Other companies like Pepsi, Kraft, Coca-Cola, Kellogg’s, and Campbell’s Soup were a part of this, trying to take away our right to know what we eat. Agbitotech firms are misleading the public by claiming that GMO crops will increase the world’s food supply and feed the hungry in poor nations. “Hunger is not caused by deficit of food production. It is a deficit of morality”. In our supermarkets today 70% or more foods are genetically modified. We have to try to stay away from foods that are GMO and start eating organic.

Organic food is food that was naturally grown, not genetically modified, or has added preservitives and additives in it. Organic livestock is fed 100% natural food and has no added hormones or antibiotics to promote the livestock’s growth. Organic farming will be a guaranteed non GMO food production, reduces soil and water pollution, more nutrients, and reduces exposure to chemical. Conventional farming emits greenhouse gases that cause global warming. Yet, organic soil traps carbon dioxide from the atmosphere inside itself. Also, conventional farming uses about 12% of the total energy supply, and organic farming uses 30% less energy. Since organic farms have no artificial fertilizers it reduces the amount of energy required by fertilizer industries and energy consumed in transportation. It’s also grown, sold, consumed locally, which is less transportation and more energy. Now some people think that everything that says “natural” is organic, when really there might be some GMO food, pesticides, or preservatives sneaked in there. Also, people say that organic and nonorganic food has the same amounts of nutrients, and actually organic food has less contaminants and more nutrients then nonorganic food. All in all, organic food will promote our health and our environments.

To conclude, preservatives, additives, and genetically modified food are hurting us and our environment. They are taking over our food system and causing health problems that some people are not aware of. We need to stick up for our rights and get GMO food labeled. Monsanto and all the companies helping it are trying to take away our rights, and misleading us with ads. It’s time to change what we eat and how it’s made. By eating all of this junk we are helping these companies control our rights! We need to change our ways and eat healthy food and eat organic. These organic companies actually want us to have rights and eat healthy because they are labeling the food they make. They also are helping our environment as well. Start eating the way nature intended, not the way a company controlling your rights intended.