Their second largest ingredient is canola oil, but not organic canola oil – - 60% of canola grown in the USA is of the genetically engineered variety.
In other words, the odds are at least 3-2 that some of the ‘expeller pressed canola oil’ in their ‘Pico de Gallo’ and ‘Guacamole – - All Natural Tortilla Chips’ contains genetically engineered canola. Plus the Guacamole chips also contain maltodextrin, which is made from corn starch.
38% of US corn is of the genetically engineered variety, and if the corn starch is not organic corn starch, guess what!
What’s the worry?
Although we have been assured that genetically engineered foods/products/DNA would never get past our stomach acid’s destructive power, studies have shown that this is not true. In fact, according to Jeff Smith, DNA from certain genetically altered foods has been found in several organs of tested individuals – - including the spleen, liver, kidney, stomach and mesenteric intestinal lymph nodes. In addition, our intestinal bacteria that help us digest our foods, also have been found to have incorporated genetically engineered DNA.
A myriad of genetic effects may result from this, including promoter viruses ‘turning on’ inactive genes in our DNA line-up, or waking up dormant viruses that wiggled their way into our protoplasm over the centuries of our evolution. Plus, it has been found that rats fed genetically engineered potatoes developed hyper-growth of their villi and mucosa in their stomachs and intestines. Hyper-growth or ‘hyperproliferation’ is on the road to cancerous growth possibly. A cancerous cell that starts multiplying and multiplying and multiplying, soon can become a ‘tumor,’ or leukemia, for example.
Rats fed the potatoes from the parent line in this mentioned experiment, those parent potatoes existing just before their offspring were genetically engineered, showed NO SUCH DETRIMENTAL EFFECTS!
When 40 rats were studied in testing out the first commercial genetically altered vegetable – the Flavr Savr tomato – 7 (seven) of them died within two weeks. The rats refused to eat these tomatoes in the first place, so they had to be force-fed with tubes that ran into their guts. Yet the Flavr Savr was released into the marketplace, being called ‘substantially equivalent’ to our previous non-genetically engineered tomatoes. No further safety testing was deemed required by our government agencies, which is to this day, still too often the case.
Calgene, bought up by Monsanto, was the company that produced the Flavr Savr tomato. Ann Veneman, currently our Secretary of Agriculture, was on the board of Calgene. She is a strident true believer in biotech, still dispensing the dogma that biotechnology is necessary to feed the world. Even though we have more food per person today than ever in the history of planet Earth (distribution is the problem, and supply and demand).
No, the Flavr Savr tomato was not a hot seller, and is no longer out there in the marketplace.
‘Heinz holds a 20 equity share in Hain’ according to Jason Mark in his article ‘Big Business Follows the Green’ which you can read in full at http://www.alternet.org/envirohealth/19645/
Garden of Eatin’, Rice Dream soy milk, Celestial Seasonings, Earth’s Best, Health Valley, plus 15 more ‘organic’ brands are under the Hain hood.
Kellogg is the owner today of Sunrise Organic; Kraft, which was just bought up by Philip Morris, owns Boca foods – - you know those Boca Burgers. And M & M Mars now owns Seeds of Change, ‘the largest organic seed company,’ according to Mr. Marks.
And then there are your Odwalla bars that Coca Cola controls now.
So, the game is, the big corporations are trying to get into the organic market, because the organic slice of the food industry is showing the best sustained growth. 15-20% per year for organic food; only 2-4% for regular old ‘conventional’ foods that actually can be full of pesticides, herbicides, fertilizers, chemicals, sewage-treated with anything from dioxin to anything that you can imagine in sewage, plus genetically altered foods – - for starters.
In polls, more than 50% of Americans want to eat organic foods, if given the choice.
Right now organic food is only 2% of the food market, but that percentage is sure to go right on up and up and up.
Main thing re Hain right now:
They should be informed, and so should our Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the US Dept of Agriculture, and the Environmental Protection Agency, that Hain’s labelling is incorrect. Send them a letter or copy this one that says:
Dear Hain and Heinz,
You are mistaken and misleading the buyers of your Garden of Eatin’ chips, and the stores that sell them, by claiming they are ‘made with no genetically engineered ingredients.’ The canola oil you use is not specified to be ‘organic,’ and 60% of canola is genetically engineered in American fields. And your maltodextrin is not specified to be ‘organic’ either – - maltodextrin is made from corn starch. If the corn that is used to make the corn starch is not organic, you should know and be aware that 38% of US corn is of the genetically engineered variety. Thus, your maltodextrin could be made from genetically engineered corn, and contain genetically engineered ingredients, contrary to your claim on the outside of your chips package. As goes for your canola oil.
Please fix this problem, or remove the erroneous label on your packaging.
An aware American wanting truth in labelling,
Your Name
Garden of Eatin’s address is:
Garden of Eatin’ Consumer Affairs
734 Franklin Avenue, #444
Garden City, NY 11530
or you can call 1-800-434-4246 from 8-4 Pacific Time (11-7?? East Coast Time) Monday thru Friday
Spread the word! Tell your friends. They might think everything is hunky dory, our protective agencies are doing their jobs perfectly!
