YOUR RIGHT TO KNOW: Genetic Engineering and the Secret Changes in Your Food

by Andrew Kimbrell,foreword by Nell Newman

ISBN1932771190

*A comprehensive reference guide to the hidden facts of genetically modified food with a pocket guide for informed choices in the supermarkets.

*The Deluxe hardcover edition features a DVD, The Future of Food, produced and directed by Deborah Garcia.

Three Important Questions:

1. Did you know that the US Government holds a patent on “Terminator Technology”, developed by Monsanto, that makes plants sterile after a single growing season?

2. Are you aware that the UN Food and Agriculture Organization estimates that three-fourths of agricultural genetic diversity has been lost in the past century?

3. Did you realize that the Grocery Manufacturers of America estimate that 75% of all processed foods contain Genetically Modified ingredients?

If fish tomatoes and human pigs are frightening concepts to you, if organic foods matter to you, if you are concerned about the impact of toxic genes on human health, this book is a must read for you. More than half of America's processed grocery products from cornflakes to granola bars; from milk laden with growth hormones to diet drinks containing genetically altered ingredients. They are unlabeled, untested ... and we Americans are unwittingly consuming it all. Your Right to Know: Genetic Engineering and the Secret Changes in Your Food is a complete reference outlining how unmarked, genetically modified foods find their way onto our dining tables impacting the food supply, our health and our lives.

There are charts linking the men and women of Monsanto/Searle to the halls of power in Washington, where they, as policy makers, control the outcome of such tampering, including: John Ashcroft, former US Attorney General, Margaret Miller, of the FDA, Linda Fisher, of the EPA, Michael Friedman, MD of the FDA, Michael Taylor of the APHIS – Plant Health Inspection Service, Anne Vaneman, of the USDA, Clarence Thomas of the Supreme Court, and Michael ‘Mickey’ Kantor Secretary of Commerce. If that doesn’t set your alarm bells off, you may also remember that when Donald Rumsfeld was on the Board of Directors of the Chicago Tribune and CEO of Monsanto, he cut a deal with soon to be President of these United States, Mr. Ronald Regan, the upshot of which was that if elected with Rumsfeld’s help, he was to remove the road blocks at the FDA to approve the poison Aspartame for human consumption after more than ten years of rejection by that agency. (See our page “You Are What You Eat” and read the section on artificial sweeteners.)

Turning a spot light on genetically engineered foods and the corporations who profit mightily from them, this definitive book is for all concerned consumers, from parents to the general public who need to know more about the inherent health risks involved. It also covers organic options and other food choices available to us as well as ways through which we can fight corporate agribusiness and the industrial takeover of the food supply which imperils us all.

At your vegetarian kitchen we care about local, sustainable agriculture and food safety issues; about organic farming and human health; we care about good wholesome food, so it is nice to find Your Right to Know: Genetic Engineering and the Secret Changes in Your Food available at the bookstores, and here through this link, to expose the dangers of genetic engineering. This is a book which does a terrific job of covering the many issues involved from the standpoint of our personal health and the impact on the ecology, to the political pressure put on the FDA by the corporate lobbyists and policy makers, as well as the future of farming itself when greed takes precedence over the common weal and common sense. It also outlines what we consumers can do about it.

We found the book exceptionally user-friendly and graphically appealing. The sound bite sized informational sections and educational inserts are dynamically interspersed with images and pull quotes and well researched and argued articles by various experts in several disciplinary areas. Speaking the scary truth of the situation with clean language, author Andrew Kimbrell somehow tells the story without becoming shrill in his warning. He makes the text both educational and accessible. There is also provided a pocket shopper’s guide to genetically engineered foods for informed grocery shopping.

Here are quotes from the experts on the back cover:

Dr. Martha Hebert:

“We are being exposed to one of the largest uncontrolled experiments in history.”

John Robbins, author of Healthy at 100 and Diet for a New America:

”Food activists describe genetically engineered foods as “Frankenfood.” They say that by growing and eating them we are opening “Pandora’s Pantry.” What is the truth? Is this just overheated rhetoric, or are we taking potentially catastrophic risks? This book by Andrew Kimbrell, is wise, sane and reliable. It will enable you to make informed and healthy choices. It’s the answer we’ve been needing.”

Alice Walters, Chez Parnisse:

“In this important primer, Kimbrell explains the threats that GE foods pose to our health, our environment, and our farming communities. He reminds us that the everyday decisions we make about the food we eat have the power to change the world.”

Michael Pollan, author of The Omnivor’s Dilemma and Botany of Desire:

“Andrew Kimbrell, America’s leading critic of genetically modified crops, has written a comprehensive field guide to this treacherous new landscape that both citizens and consumers will find indispensable.”

Jim Hightower, populist, best-selling author, columnist and radio commentator:

“The genetic manipulators are not merely messing with your food, they are messing with you, your children, and your environment. Kimbrell’s book and handy shopping guide gives you what you need to fight back. Digest this book… And go forth!”

Dr. Vandana Shiva, author of Earth Democracy: Justice, Sustainability, and Peace, founder and director of the Research Foundation for Science, Technology, and Ecology:

“This book will be an invaluable resource to the American public in understanding the hazards of genetically engineered foods. Their informed choice to avoid these foods will have a positive impact on our farms, communities, and biodiversity worldwide.”