GMOs

Prop 37 on California Ballot: Vote Yes to Label GMOs

I’m thrilled that Prop 37 is on the California Ballot this November. Because I’m voting yes. And if you’re in California, you should vote YES, too.

If you’re not in California, you need to do everything you can to help spread the word. Because this affects all Americans.

If food manufacturers are forced to label GMOs in California, they’re not going to make special labels for one state — they’re going to have to label GMOs nationwide.

This is the biggest food fight of our lives, and we are going to need to pull out all the stops.

Why Vote Yes on Prop 37

Voting YES on Prop 37 means that genetically engineered foods (GMOs) will have to be labeled in the state of California.

Voting NO on Prop 37 means that no labeling of GMOs would be required.

I don’t like the idea of eating pesticides. I go out of my way to buy organic.

Especially when those carcinogenic pesticides are embedded within the foods themselves. It’s one thing to spray pesticides on crops — it’s something else to engineer seeds that have the pesticides built right in.

Cancer, anyone?

Arguments for Prop 37

People who oppose Prop 37 (Monsanto, et al) say it’s going to cost too much to label foods.

They say:

Prop 37: Means Higher Food Costs
Prop 37 would force farmers and food companies to implement costly new labeling, packaging, distribution and record keeping operations or switch to higher-priced, non-GE ingredients,
like organics, in order to sell food in California. Economic studies show this would increase food costs for an average California family by hundreds of dollars per year – a HIDDEN FOOD TAX that would especially hurt seniors and low-income families who can least afford it. (Source: No on Prop 37)

Here’s my response:

Increase food costs by hundreds of dollars per year? How much is a human life worth? Would you rather pay a little extra now and save the lives of your loved ones?

The Cost of Cancer
The cost of cancer in the year 2020 is projected to reach at least $158 billion (in 2010 dollars). Assuming a 2 percent annual increase in medical costs in the initial and final phases of care, the projected 2020 costs increase to $173 billion. Estimating a 5 percent annual increase in these costs raises the projection to $207 billion. These figures do not include other types of costs, such as lost productivity, which add to the overall financial burden of cancer. (Source: Cancer.gov

Follow the Money

This is a battle of the chemical companies against the people, plain and simple. Multinational corporations including Monsanto, Dupont, Dow, Syngenta have raised over $25 million so far to fight Prop 37.

If GMO foods really are safe, why are these chemical companies shelling out so much money to make sure these GMO foods don’t get labeled?