The following definition of GMO seems to us to be the most accurate and simple:

A genetically modified organism (abbreviated as GMO) is a living or plant organism whose genotype has been changed using genetic engineering methods to give the organism new properties. Today, such changes are made almost everywhere when creating food products for economic purposes, and sometimes for scientific purposes.

Difference genetic modification- in the purposeful construction of the genotype of an organism, which is in contrast to the random one characteristic of natural and artificial mutagenesis.

How do GM foods affect health?

Today it has been absolutely proven that GMOs have a very detrimental effect on the human body. Due to the influence of such products, the process of hematopoiesis may be disrupted in humans. People who consume GMO foods are much more susceptible to oncological diseases.

An interesting effect of GMOs on the body is that the human body ceases to respond adequately to medicines. In other words, it will be much more difficult to cure a GMO consumer from a disease. Genetically modified organisms, as well as products containing them, provoke the development skin diseases, allergies, digestive disorders, various violations nervous system.

These studies were conducted on adults with mature strong body. One can only imagine how destructive the use of GMOs in children's nutrition will be. By the way, in some European countries the use of GMOs in children's nutrition is prohibited. Now manufacturers are dumping low-quality goods into third world countries.

Are genetically modified soybeans unsafe?

Experiments prove that genetically modified soybeans are particularly harmful to the health and procreation of mammals. Besides high level mortality among experimental rats, studies also revealed increased levels of anxiety and even aggression among males, females, and pups fed foods containing GMOs.

Today, store windows are simply full of a variety of baby food. There are vegetables, cereals, soups, cottage cheese - everything your heart desires. In fact, not everything is so wonderful.

Should be used exclusively in a child's diet. natural products, since only in this case can you be sure that they do not contain GMOs and you will not harm the health of your child.

Which baby food products are especially dangerous in terms of GMO content? These are absolutely all canned meat and fish, products containing soy additives, soybean oil. Since most often, soybeans are a genetically modified product. Almost all formulas that replace breast milk contain soy additives. Now, when buying boxes and jars, think about this. Let the baby get used to it from birth healthy eating and a healthy lifestyle.

But are there any benefits from GMOs?

GMOs against cancer

In the USA, scientists based on GMOs have developed a drug against cervical cancer. Already 13 women have experienced this drug on yourself. They were given this terrible diagnosis. In 4 women the condition improved significantly. In 1 patient, the cancer was completely gone. 2 years have passed since then, and the disease has not returned. In another 3 women, the tumor decreased by 20%. 7 patients who participated in the experiment, unfortunately, still died from cancer.

Vaccine makers believe that if the vaccine is used earlier in the disease, the results will be much more impressive. Today, scientists are also working with GMOs on vaccines for ovarian, prostate, breast, and brain cancer. In modern ecology, unfortunately, even a healthy lifestyle will not protect one hundred percent from cancer.

In England, transgenic chickens are being bred whose eggs have important for medicine. The proteins from the eggs of these birds are taken to make a drug that can heal malignant tumors. This important event happened in the same research facility where the famous sheep Dolly was once created.

Ten years have passed since then. This discovery by scientists is on the verge of developing completely new drugs. These drugs will become much cheaper, their production will be easier, because to produce it you just need to have a chicken coop and feed. The work of scientists from England will, without a doubt, be a new milestone on the path to healing humanity from a terrible disease.

What do GMO supporters say?

It is GMOs that will help solve food problems on our small planet. With the help of this technology, it is possible to develop plants that will not mind African droughts or plant diseases. It is also possible to breed special, genetically modified types of farm animals; they will produce a lot of products and will not be picky about food and resistant to diseases.

Using this technology, it will also be possible to grow organs for transplantation and grow plants that are suitable for producing tissue.

What do GMO opponents say?

It turned out that GMO corn, potatoes and soybeans are much more expensive. In addition, genetically modified plants do not produce viable seeds at all. That is, first of all, this is beneficial only to suppliers of planting material.

Another important disadvantage is that cultivated GMO plants in the field produce wild plants hybrids. One can only imagine what kind of mutants will be on our planet in a few decades.

Among other things, international terrorism may take a new direction. After all, you can create so many new and unknown viruses, which will be very, very difficult to cope with, since when creating them it is possible to introduce any qualities.

In most countries today, special labeling is placed on food products, which indicates that it does not contain GMOs. Whether to buy GMO products or not - the choice is always yours.

GMOs are three scary letters with which we are so often frightened in the media. We have heard a lot about how genetically modified organisms can turn us into almost mutants, but we still know very little about GMOs themselves.

1. GMOs are everywhere

GMO is a genetically modified organism. Despite the fact that today these three letters act as one of the main horror stories, almost all the vegetables and fruits that we eat today are, to a greater or lesser extent, GMOs.

Thus, wheat is the result of repeated interspecific crossing of different wild cereals with each other and with already cultivated species.

Banana is a hybrid of two inedible species; many varieties of cultivated plants are tetra- and more-ploid hybrids. Corn was completely bred from the teosinte cereal, which today is very far from corn and does not even belong to a different genus, but to a different species. Without any genetic engineering, our ancestors changed the genetics of plants beyond recognition.

2. Gene gun

The process of gene transplantation occurs using a so-called gene gun - a device that delivers particles of heavy metals coated with DNA plasmids into the cell of the plant that they want to transform. This process is also called bioballistics and biolistics.

The first gene gun was made from an automatic nail hammer.

A drop of tungsten powder with genetic material was applied to the bullet and shot into a Petri dish, in front of which a plate with a cutout was placed to stop the bullet. The bullet was delayed by a metal plate, and tungsten particles with genetic material fell on a Petri dish. The cells in the center were completely destroyed by metal particles, but along the periphery they remained intact and transformation took place in them.

Today, biolistics uses particles of gold and silver, since gold is not toxic to cells, compared to tungsten.

3. GMO fiction

With the help of GMO technology, many varieties have already been developed that previously could only be imagined in science fiction films. Thus, in the USA, a strawberry variety was bred with the gene of a fish that lives in the polar seas. Thus, scientists have achieved its resistance to frost.

GMOs have been successfully used to protect species from pests and diseases. By introducing the snowdrop genome into potatoes, they made it resistant to pests; in Brazil, they grow beans that are resistant to mosaic viruses; in China, rice that grows in heat and drought. And the list goes on.

4. Scary tale

The vast majority of the scientific community does not see GMOs as the danger that the media likes to talk about. Opponents of GMOs claim that they are fighting for human health and the preservation of the biosphere, but in fact the fight against GMOs is a hidden lobbying of the interests of producers of pesticides and farmers who receive money for reducing the productivity of their fields. In general, the fight against GMOs is part of the political and information struggle.

5. Checks

GMO products undergo rigorous testing before entering the market. Last year, the journal Critical reviews in biotechnology published a review of almost 1,800 scientific works, devoted to studying the safety of GMOs over the past ten years.

Only three studies raised suspicions about the negative impact of three specific GM varieties, but these suspicions were not justified; in two more cases, the potential allergenicity of GM varieties was established.

The only confirmed case involved a Brazil nut gene inserted into a GM soybean variety. The developers refused to promote the variety to the market.

6 GMOs and rats

In 2012, the journal Food and Chemical Toxicology published an article by French researcher Séralini, who claimed that GM corn causes cancer and increased mortality in rats.

This work caused a lively debate in the scientific community due to the fact that the research was carried out extremely carelessly and contained gross errors that were noticeable at first glance.

However, photographs of rats with large tumors made a huge impression on the public. Even after the article was retracted from the journal, it continues to be cited by opponents of GMOs.

7. Non-GMO

The “non-GMO” product labels that are common today, found on most products from water to meat, have nothing to do with genetic engineering. This is just a marketing ploy and a substitution of concepts.

8. Will GMOs turn us into mutants?

Opponents of GMOs like to claim that transgenes can be integrated into the chromosomes of humans and animals. In fact, each of us eats several tens of kilograms of foreign DNA from ordinary foods throughout our lives, but this does not cause us to become covered in hair, become green, or begin to photosynthesize.

9. Do GMOs affect gut bacteria?

Another horror story about GMOs is that GMOs can be integrated into DNA intestinal bacteria and make them resistant to antibiotics. In fact, even in laboratory conditions it is extremely difficult to ensure that genes from plant chromosomes are integrated into the DNA of microorganisms. No one has observed this under natural conditions.

But the genes for creating GMOs are ordinary genes from some organisms transferred to others. Although transgenic inserts usually include marker genes for resistance to outdated antibiotics, there is nothing wrong with that. Microbes are constantly developing mechanisms of resistance to antibiotics, and in this sense, one tablet of tetracycline replaces tons of transgenic tomatoes.

10. GMOs as a business

Of course, the interests of GMO producers are also lobbied for. Today there is a real struggle between GMO producers and producers of so-called organic products. They are more expensive to produce than GMOs and they cannot compete with GM varieties using market methods, which is why GMOs are demonized in the media.

These days everything more people They try to eat healthy and pay increased attention to the quality of the products they eat. This is especially true for parents, since the child’s health directly depends on his diet.

In the wake of the popularity of principles healthy image life, began to use in great demand and so-called pure organic bioproducts. The inscription on the packaging “non-GMO” has become a kind of sign of high quality, safety and naturalness.

What actually lies under this abbreviation GMO and how is it translated into simple human language? Are genetically modified foods really that bad for our health? We will try to answer these questions further.

What is GMO?

So, what is GMO and, as they say, “what do they eat it with”? Genetically modified organisms (hereinafter GMO) are organisms whose genome (DNA) has been purposefully changed (improved, supplemented) using genetic engineering methods (source - Wikipedia). It is important to note that changes specifically made by humans to genotype Such organisms would be impossible in living nature due to the mechanisms of natural recombination and reproduction.

This is due to the fact that most living organisms on Earth develop gradually, i.e. generation after generation, adapting to changing conditions of existence. That is why people have learned to influence the process of evolution of plants and animals in order to use the advanced achievements of genetic engineering for scientific as well as economic purposes.

In principle, the decoding of GMOs itself gives a minimal idea of ​​what a genetically modified product is.

In simple words, this is a product for the production of which genetically improved raw materials were used. For example, bread made from wheat that is resistant to temperature changes, products made from modified soybeans, and so on.

Currently, GMOs are produced using transgenes , i.e. specific pieces of DNA that scientists insert into the original genome of an organism. As a result we get transgenic organisms , which, by the way, are capable of passing on improved DNA to their offspring ( transgenesis ).

Genetic engineering has provided modern breeders with an advanced method for improving the DNA of plants and animals. This makes it possible to solve global food problems in those countries where people do not have enough food due to climatic conditions or other unfavorable conditions.

GMO creation process or editing genome consists of the following main steps:

• isolating isolated gene responsible for certain exceptional properties of the organism;
• introduction genetic material into a molecule nucleic acid(DNA vector) for further transplantation into the cell of a new organism;
• transfer of the vector into the DNA-modified organism;
• cell transformation;
• sampling of GMOs and elimination of unsuccessfully modified organisms.

Genetically modified organisms use:

• In applied and fundamental scientific research. Few people know that thanks to GMOs, scientists are learning more and more every year about the mechanisms of regeneration and aging, about the work nervous system , as well as about such serious illnesses like or .
• In pharmacology and medicine. Genetic engineering insulin person was registered in 1982. From this moment it began new era in development modern medicine. Thanks to breakthroughs in genetic engineering, there are now many life-changing important drugs produced from recombinant human proteins, for example, vaccines .
• IN agriculture and in livestock farming. Breeders are using GMOs to create new varieties of plants that will produce greater yields while being resistant to diseases. climate change and others external factors. Improved animal DNA helps protect them from certain diseases. For example, genetically modified pigs do not become infected African swine fever .

Regarding GMOs throughout large quantity There were fierce disputes over time. The thing is that opponents of genetically modified products argued that they can cause irreparable harm to human health (provoke the development cancer , cause mutations ). In addition, the modified DNA of the products will have negative impact and on the health of future generations, causing terrible diseases in such genetically modified people.

However, today proponents of genetic engineering have irrefutable evidence of the safety of products improved with transgenes. At the dawn of the development of selective agriculture, scientists such as Michurin tried to improve food plant species using various tricks.

If we talk about GMOs in a broad sense, then these are organisms of the future, obtained thanks to the ability of humans to influence the process of evolution. Scientists involved in genetic engineering set themselves noble goals - to provide people all over the earth with food in the required quantities.

And this is really not easy to do, because there are places where it is really very difficult to grow crops or raise livestock for food. So, we have learned how the abbreviation GMO stands for, now let’s talk about the sore point.

Harm and benefits of GMOs

As we found out above, GMO products contain components of genetically modified organisms. It turns out that not only the fruits and vegetables themselves and grains (corn, potatoes, rye, wheat, soybeans, and so on) can be called GMO food, but also the products in which they are found.

For example, soy sausages or liver sausage, baked goods, ketchup, sauces, mayonnaise, sweets, and so on. It is important to note that large meat cattle or birds that feed GMO plants cannot be classified as genetically modified products.

It was previously assumed that altered cells of genetically modified foods are capable of integrating into the DNA of the organism that consumes them. However, as scientists have proven, this statement is false. Any food, even if it contains GMOs, under the influence of gastric juice and enzymes breaks down in the human body into fatty acids , sugar, amino acids And triglycerides .

This means that regular foods, like genetically modified ones, are equally digestible and do not cause harm to health. Another talk of the town about the connection between GMO products and the risk of development oncological diseases , and also mutations at the DNA level has been debunked by the scientific community.

In 2005, domestic scientists conducted an experiment on mice and received sad results. As it turned out, the mortality rate of mice from cancer that ate genetically modified soybeans increased sharply. Similar experiments were carried out around the world.

Researchers were in a hurry to publish the sensational results of their observations, sometimes forgetting to double-check everything thoroughly. The media, in a constant state of pursuit of “hot facts,” have been relishing this topic for several years and writing exclusively about possible harm GMO.

Indeed, only a few tried to understand the issue without emotions and get to the truth. As a result, mass hysteria about GMOs reached its apogee and hundreds of thousands of people around the world firmly believed that there was nothing more terrible in their lives than genetically modified products .

On forums on the Internet, at home in the kitchen, on the street and in the store, mothers shared their concerns about baby food, which contains ominous GMOs. Grandmothers could not sleep peacefully and thought only about the benefits and harms of Nesquik cocoa, chocolate and other sweets that their grandchildren love so much, and fathers and grandfathers lamented about “not the same” meat products and chemical bread.

In fact, recently scientists have not been able to find evidence that eating GMOs increases the risk of developing cancer or other diseases. And all previously conducted experiments could not resist comprehensive criticism and verification.

It turned out that the mice and rats that were used to conduct the experiments also died en masse both when GMOs and regular food were used in their diet. The problem was not with the fruits of genetic engineering, but with this particular species of rodents used in laboratory research. They are genetically more susceptible to cancer, regardless of diet.

According to the World Health Organization, talking about the dangers of GMO products can only be based on the results of specific studies of one type or another. Available worldwide, genetically modified products undergo rigorous quality and safety controls. They are consumed as food by entire isolated nations without any mass negative consequences, therefore can be considered safe.

In fairness, it is worth talking about some, albeit not fatal, but still negative aspects associated with GMOs:

• It has been proven that where genetically modified plants once grew, conventional varieties will never be able to grow again. This is due to the fact that the soil where GMO plants grow is poisoned by pesticides, herbicides and other toxic compounds used in agriculture to combat pests and diseases. They kill conventional crops, but cannot harm genetically modified crops.
• GMO plants can accumulate toxic substances(pesticides, poisons).
• Due to changes in DNA structure, not only the positive, but also some negative properties of plants are enhanced. For example, GMO soybeans or potatoes can cause persistent.
• GMO plants displace other varieties of their species. This is due to the peculiarity of their pollination.
• GMO plant seeds are disposable material that does not produce offspring. This important point, which is primarily associated with commerce. When the state switches exclusively to GMO plants, abandoning its own crops, it automatically becomes dependent on seed producing companies.

List of GMO products

In 20016, there were more than a hundred world-famous scientists (chemists, biologists, doctors), among whom there were Nobel laureates contacted open letter to the UN and Greenpeace with a request to stop the persecution of GMOs. Even devout Jews recognized genetically modified products as kosher, Muslims that they are halal, and catholic church says that GMOs will help solve the world's food problem.

However, if you still want to know what exactly you are eating, then below is a list of manufacturers who use GMOs and their trade names in their products.

Product name	Trade name
Chocolate	Hershey‘s, Fruit&Nut, Milky Way, Mars, M&M, Twix, Snickers, Cadbury, Ferrero, Nestle, M&M’S
Cocoa, tea, coffee, chocolate drinks	Cadbury, Nestle, Nesquik, Kraft, Lipton, Conversation, Brooke Bond
Soft drinks	Soca-Cola, Pepsi, Sprite, Fanta, 7-up, Dr. Pepper, Kinley tonic, Mountain Dew, Fruittime, Fiesta
Cereals and breakfast cereals	Kellogg's, Corn Flakes, Rice Krispies, Frosted Flakes, Corn Pops, Froot Loops, Smacks, Apple Jacks, Chocolate Chip, All-Bran, Raisin Bran Crunch, Honey Crunch Corn Flakes, Cracklin'Oat Bran
Cookies and sweets	Parmalat, Kraft, Yubileiny, Hershey's products (Toblerone, Kit-Kat, Mini Kisses, Kisses, Milk Chocolate Chips, Semi-Sweet Baking Chips, Milk Chocolate Chips, Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, Strawberry Syrup, Chocolate Syrup, Special Dark syrups Chocolate Syrup), Pop Tarts, Crispix
Canned soups	Campbell
Rice	Uncle Bens
Sauces (ketchup, mayonnaise, salad dressings), seasonings, dry soups	Gallina Blanca, Knorr, Hellman's, Heinz, Ryaba, Vprok, Baltimore, Calve, Maggi
Meat and sausage products	Minced meat and pate from Mikoyanovsky Meat Processing Plant CJSC, minced meat from Cherkizovsky MPZ OJSC, pate from MK Gurman LLC, Klinsky Meat Processing Plant LLC, MLM-RA LLC, ROS Mari Ltf LLC, Bogatyr Sausage Plant LLC ", LLC "Daria - semi-finished products", LLC "Talosto-products", CJSC "Vichyunai", MPZ "KampoMos", MPZ "Tagansky".
Baby food	Similac, Hipp, Nestle, Kraft, Delmi Unilever
Canned vegetables	Bonduelle
Dairy products	Danon, OJSC "Lianozovsky Dairy Plant", Campina, Ehrmann
Ice cream	Algida
Butter, margarine, spread	Puffy, Delmi
Chips	Russian potatoes, Lays, Pringles

This is by no means an exhaustive list trade names and producers who use GMOs. Since many people have a very negative attitude towards genetically modified organisms, not all companies want to spoil their image and openly declare that they use the achievements of genetic engineering. And although the problem of GMOs is overblown, and the harm from such products is clearly exaggerated, only the person himself can decide for himself whether to eat them or not.

Produced using genetic engineering. The production of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) involves the “incorporation” of a foreign gene into the DNA of other plants or animals (transporting the gene, i.e. transgenization) in order to change the properties or parameters of the latter. As a result of this modification, new genes are artificially introduced into the genome of the organism.

The first GM product was obtained in 1972, when Stanford University scientist Paul Berg combined two genes isolated from different organisms into a single whole, creating a hybrid that does not occur in nature.

The first GM microorganism, Escherichia coli, with a human gene encoding insulin synthesis, was born in 1973. Due to the unpredictability of the results, the scientists who made this invention, Stanley Cohen and Herbert Boyer, appealed to the global scientific community to suspend research in the field of genetic engineering, writing a letter to Science magazine; Among others, Paul Berg himself signed it.

In February 1975, at a conference in Asilomar (California), leading experts in the field of genetic engineering decided to break the moratorium and continue research in compliance with specially developed rules.

It took seven years to develop a method for the industrial production of microbial-human insulin and test it with particular passion: only in 1980 American company Genentech began marketing the new drug.

In 1983, German geneticists at the Institute of Plant Science in Cologne developed GM tobacco that was resistant to insect pests. Five years later, in 1988, genetically modified corn was planted for the first time in history. After this, development began at a very rapid pace. In 1992, transgenic tobacco began to be grown in China.

In 1994, the American company Monsanto introduced its first development of genetic engineering - a tomato called Flavr Savr, which could be stored in a cool room for months in a semi-ripe state, but as soon as the fruits were warm, they immediately turned red. The modified tomatoes obtained these properties by combining them with flounder genes. Then scientists crossed soybeans with the genes of certain bacteria, and this crop became resistant to herbicides that are used to treat fields against pests.

Manufacturers began to pose very different tasks to scientists. Some wanted bananas not to turn black throughout their shelf life, others demanded that all apples and strawberries be the same size and not spoil for six months. In Israel, for example, they even developed cube-shaped tomatoes to make them easier to pack.

Subsequently, about a thousand genetically modified crops were developed in the world, but only 100 of them were allowed for industrial production. The most common are tomatoes, soybeans, corn, rice, wheat, peanuts, potatoes.

Today there is no uniform legislation on the use of GM products either in the USA or in Europe, so there is no accurate data on the turnover of such goods. The GMO market has not yet fully formed. In some countries these products are completely prohibited, in others they are partially prohibited, and in others they are generally allowed.

At the end of 2008, the area under GM crops exceeded 114.2 million hectares. Genetically modified crops are grown by about 10 million farmers in 21 countries around the world. The leader in the production of GM crops is the United States, followed by Argentina, Brazil, China and India. In Europe, genetically modified crops are treated with caution, and in Russia it is completely prohibited to plant GM plants, but in some regions this ban is circumvented - genetically modified wheat is planted in Kuban, Stavropol and Altai.
For the first time world community seriously thought about the advisability of using GMOs in 2000. Scientists have spoken loudly about the possible negative impact of such products on human health.

The technology for obtaining GMOs is relatively simple. Special techniques The so-called “target genes” are introduced into the genome of the final organism - essentially, those features that need to be grafted onto one organism from another. After this, several stages of selection are carried out under different conditions and the most viable GMO is selected, which will produce the necessary substances, for the production of which the modified genome is responsible.

The resulting GMO is then subjected to extensive testing for possible toxicity and allergenicity, and the GMO (and GMO products) is ready for sale.

Despite the harmlessness of GMOs, the technology contains several problems. One of the main concerns of specialists and the environmental community in connection with the use of GMOs in agriculture is the risk of destruction of natural ecosystems.

Among the environmental consequences of the use of GMOs, the most likely are the following: the manifestation of unpredictable new properties of a transgenic organism due to the multiple effects of foreign genes introduced into it; risks of delayed changes in properties (after several generations) associated with the adaptation of a new gene and the manifestation of both new properties of GMOs and changes in already declared ones; the emergence of unplanned mutant organisms (for example, weeds) with unpredictable properties; damage to non-target insects and other living organisms; the emergence of resistance to transgenic toxins in insects, bacteria, fungi and other organisms that feed on GM plants; influence on natural selection, etc.

Another problem arises from the lack of knowledge of the effects of GM crops on the human body. Scientists identify the following main risks of eating GM products: suppression of the immune system, the possibility of acute disturbances in the functioning of the body, such as allergic reactions and metabolic disorders resulting from the direct action of transgenic proteins. The impact of the new proteins that the GMO-integrated genes produce is unknown. The person has never consumed them before, and therefore it is unclear whether they are allergens. In addition, there is scientific evidence that, in particular, Bt toxin, which is produced by many varieties of transgenic corn, potatoes, beets, etc., digestive system breaks down more slowly than expected, which means it may be a potential allergen.

Resistance of the human intestinal microflora to antibiotics may also appear, since when producing GMOs, marker genes for antibiotic resistance are still used, which can pass into the human intestinal microflora.
Among possible dangers The toxicity and carcinogenicity of GMOs (the ability to cause and promote the development of malignant tumors) are also mentioned.

At the same time, in 2005, the World Health Organization (WHO) published a report, the main conclusion of which can be formulated as follows: eating genetically modified plants is absolutely safe.

In an attempt to protect themselves from GM crops, many countries have introduced labeling on GMO products. There are different approaches to labeling GMO products around the world. Thus, in the USA, Canada, Argentina, these products are not labeled; in the EEC countries, a 0.9% threshold is adopted, in Japan and Australia - 5%.

In Russia, the first interdepartmental commission on problems of genetic engineering activities was created back in 1993. On December 12, 2007, amendments to the Federal law“On the Protection of Consumer Rights” on mandatory labeling of food products containing genetically modified organisms, according to which the consumer has the right to receive the necessary and reliable information about the composition of food products. The law obliges all manufacturers to inform consumers about the content of GMOs in a product if its share is more than 0.9%.

On April 1, 2008, new labeling of food products containing genetically modified microorganisms (GMM) was introduced in Russia. According to the decree of the chief sanitary doctor of Russia Gennady Onishchenko, GMM should be divided into living and non-living. Thus, on the labels of products containing live GMMs, it must be written: “The product contains living genetically engineered microorganisms.” And on the labels of products with non-viable GMMs - “The product is obtained using genetically engineered modified microorganisms.” The threshold for GMM content remains at the same level - 0.9%.

The document provides for mandatory state registration of products with GMMs with Rospotrebnadzor plant origin, manufactured in Russia, as well as first imported into the Russian Federation. Products will be registered only if they pass a medical and biological assessment of their safety.

In case of violation of the rules for labeling goods in accordance with Article 14.8 of the Code Russian Federation about administrative offenses"(Administrative Code of the Russian Federation) violation of the consumer’s right to receive necessary and reliable information about the goods (work, service) being sold shall entail the imposition of an administrative fine on officials in the amount of five hundred to one thousand rubles; on legal entities- from five thousand to ten thousand rubles.

The material was prepared based on information from open sources

Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are food products, as well as living organisms created using genetic engineering. Genetic modification technologies are widely used in agriculture. Plants with GMOs have increased productivity and are resistant to pests.

In Russia, the production of GMOs is currently prohibited. However, the import of food products that contain genetically modified components is permitted. Mostly modified soybeans, corn, potatoes and beets are imported to Russia from the USA. America occupies a leading position in both the production and consumption of GMOs. Thus, up to 80% of food products in the United States contain GMOs. According to the National Association of Genetic Safety, about 30–40% of food products on the Russian food market contain GMOs. Over the past 3 years, the association has discovered GMOs in products from companies such as Nestle, Mikoyan, Campomos and others.

In our country, a significant negative effect of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) on the biological and physiological parameters of mammals has recently been confirmed.

On April 14, at the RIA Novosti press club, specialists from the National Association of Genetic Safety (NAGS) presented the results of an independent study examining the effect of food containing components of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) on the biological and physiological parameters of mammals.

The results of a study conducted by the OAGB jointly with the Institute of Ecology and Evolution named after. A.N. Severtsov RAS in the period 2008-2010, indicate a significant negative impact of feed containing GMOs on reproductive functions and laboratory animal health.

“Animals (taking GMOs) were found to have a lag in development and growth, a violation of the sex ratio in litters with an increase in the proportion of females, a decrease in the number of cubs in the litter, up to their complete absence in the second generation,” said Deputy Director of the Institute of Power Engineering and Ethics of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Doctor of Biological Sciences. Alexey Surov, “A significant decrease in the reproductive abilities of males was also noted.”

“The results of our study confirmed the data of those European scientists who declared negative effects health effects arising from the use of GMOs as food for laboratory animals,” says OAGB President Alexander Baranov. “We used soybean meal, which is widely used in Russia for fattening agricultural breeds. Soybean line 40-3-2 contained in the meal is approved in our country for use in human food.”

During the press conference, OAGB specialists stated the need to conduct new series experiments to once again verify the conclusions about the dangers of GMOs on human health. The OAGB made a proposal to introduce a temporary moratorium in Russia on 17 permitted GMO lines until their full check for biosafety.

Let us recall that in Russia the use of 17 types of genetically modified lines (GMOs) of five varieties of cultivated plants is permitted: soybeans, corn, potatoes, rice and sugar beets. For example, more than 90 percent of all soybeans produced in the world are genetically modified. Genetically modified soybeans and their by-products are widely used in the production of large number food for humans and feed for farm animals.

The experimental study was carried out on a laboratory population of Campbell's hamsters (Phodopus capbelli), selected because they have a rapid generational change, which makes it possible to track long-term consequences. The main negative fact of the influence of GMO food, which was discovered during the study, according to the president of the OAGB, Alexander Baranov, is the “ban on reproduction”, as a result of which it was not possible to obtain a third generation of individuals.

In Russia on at the moment There are about 5 million infertile couples. According to the speakers, if the negative impact of GMOs on human reproductive abilities is confirmed, there is a risk of a serious deterioration in the demographic situation in Russia.

OAGB Director Elena Sharoykina noted in her comments that in the recently signed by the President of Russia D.A. Medvedev’s “Doctrine of Food Security of the Russian Federation” states the need to “exclude the uncontrolled distribution of food products obtained from genetically modified plants.” At the same time, Elena Sharoykina stated that in Russian regions there is no sufficient technical equipment and a system for controlling the spread of GMOs is not developed; there is no comprehensive legislative framework and government support scientific research in the field of biological safety.

At the press conference, an open appeal to the head was voiced working group on the creation of an innovation center in Skolkovo, to the First Deputy Head of the Administration of the President of Russia Vladislav Surkov with a proposal to develop the “Safe Genetic Technologies” project within the Silicon Valley.

The project involves the development of a security system aimed at protecting Russian citizens from possible negative consequences of GMO influence.

List of products that may contain GMOs:

1. Soybean and its forms (beans, sprouts, concentrate, flour, milk, etc.).

2. Corn and its forms (flour, grits, canned food, popcorn, butter, chips, starch, syrups, etc.).

3. Potatoes and their forms (semi-finished products, dry mashed potatoes, chips, crackers, flour, etc.).

4. Tomatoes and its forms (paste, puree, sauces, ketchup, etc.).

5. Zucchini and products made using them.

6. Sugar beet, table beets, sugar produced from sugar beets.

7. Wheat and products produced using it, including bread and bakery products.

8. Sunflower oil.

9. Rice and products containing it (flour, granules, flakes, chips).

10. Carrots and products containing them.

11. Onions, shallots, leeks and other bulbous vegetables.

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Whose products contain GMOs:

Kelloggs (Kelloggs) - produces breakfast cereals, including corn flakes
Nestle (Nestlé) - produces chocolate, coffee, coffee drinks, baby food
Heinz Foods (Hayents Foods) - produces ketchups, sauces
Hersheys (Hersheys) - produces chocolate, soft drinks
Coca-Cola (Coca-Cola) - Coca-Cola, Sprite, Fanta, Kinley tonic
McDonalds (McDonald's) - a chain of fast food restaurants
Danon (Danone) - produces yogurts, kefir, cottage cheese, baby food
Similac (Similac) - produces baby food
Cadbury (Cadbury) - produces chocolate, cocoa
Mars (Mars) - produces chocolate Mars, Snickers, Twix
PepsiCo (Pepsi-Cola) - Pepsi, Mirinda, Seven-Up

Daria - produces meat products

Campamos - produces meat products

Korona - produces meat products

Mikoyanovsky - produces meat products

Tsaritsyno - produces meat products

Lianozovsky - produces meat and dairy products

Volzhsky PC - produces meat products.

GMO world

The film tells the story of the products produced by a transnational corporation and their harm to humans and the environment.

Transgenization is a genetic bomb

2007
Documentary
Director:
Galina Tsareva

One of the most pressing problems of our time is the problem of introducing and disseminating new biotechnologies associated with genetic changes in living organisms. Genetically modified (transgenic) organisms contain DNA fragments from any other living organisms in their genetic apparatus; for example, genes from an insect, animal, or even a person can be inserted into a plant. With the help of genetic engineering, hybrids of potatoes with tomatoes, soybeans with blue tobacco, and sunflowers with beans have already been obtained. There is also more discouraging data: a frost-resistant tomato variety with an integrated flounder gene, drought-resistant corn with a scorpion gene, a tomato with a toad gene. But does a person have enough knowledge to play the role of the Creator?