Download THE RIGHT-TO-KNOW ACTIVIST RACHEL PARENT Founder, The

Environmental Heroes | NOW Magazine
THE RIGHT-TO-KNOW ACTIVIST
RACHEL PARENT Founder, The Kids Right To Know: GMOs, Just Label It! Campaign
The Grade 8 student, who has travelled to Brazil’s Amazon to witness forest devastation by GM soy, is one of the anti-GM
movement’s most serious campaigners, and gives new meaning to the term “youth activism.” The Monsanto crowd’s gotta be having a
bird over a self-possessed 13-year-old raising the spectre that laboratory eats can’t be healthy for children and other living things.
Parent’s biotech takedown features costumed rallies, sassy online videos and a packed speaking schedule. She once baked a 48-inch
GM-free apple pie, the Occu Pie, for street people in St. James Park. And while she likes to sport honey bee garb at protests, don’t let
the fun throw you off – this animal lover/baking buff has set herself the awesome mission of freeing her whole generation from the
clutches of Kellogg, Kraft, Sara Lee, McCain, Nestle and Frito-Lay. Now, that’s ambition.
Rachel Parent ~ Is our food safe to eat?
With the growing concerns of increased use of GMOs, Herbicides and Pesticides, one of the best
ways to make sure our food is safe is to have labels that fully disclose what’s in them. Labels
currently have to disclose the ingredients, fat content, calories, vitamins and minerals, and even if it
was made in a manufacturing plant that makes products that may contain peanuts, but nothing
about whether the food was made from genetically modified (GM) ingredients.”
There have been several animal feeding trials that have raised concerns about the health risks of Genetically Modified Organisms
(GMOs). Over 60 countries around the world label genetically modified food, including the European Union, Japan, Russia and
China.
The biotech industry is quick to brag about how genetically modified crops are the food of tomorrow and are needed to feed the world,
but would rather not mention it to us, the people who have to eat it. What I mean is, if they’re so proud of it, and GMOs are so good
for us, why not put it on the label?
I believe that mandatory GMO labeling is the first step, but I feel it’s very important that Canada conducts an immediate study on
Genetically Modified Organisms by an independent labs, with no connection to Monsanto. Studies like the two year study recently
done by French scientists at the University of Caen, that showed rats fed GMO corn were much more likely to die and at an earlier
age, in addition to other serious health problems, including organ damage and the growth of massive tumors. If further testing
supports these health risks, GMOs should be removed from the shelves altogether. Until then, it should be mandatory to have labels
on GMO ingredients in our foods, allowing consumers can make informed choices, and to decide whether or not to buy them.
It would be ideal if we had a government that cared more about the health of its citizens and the
environment, than supporting large multi-national companies like Monsanto, and relying on them
for our food safety. Unfortunately, this is making us all part of the GMO science experiment.”
Until labeling is required, the best way to avoid GMOs is to read the ingredients on labels and stay away from products that contain
corn, soy, canola, and vegetable oil, as there’s a 90% chance they’ll be GMO, at the moment buying true local certified Organic foods
offers the best safety option.
Some people argue that Organic food is more expensive, in my opinion, eating fresh Organic non GMO food, is very nourishing
decreasing cravings and the need for costly snacking, giving us more energy , clear thinking, improving our health and decreasing the
need for constant expensive prescription drugs.
To take ACTION:

Write to the Minister of Agriculture instantly and let them know your thoughts about GMO Alfalfa
here: www.cban.ca/content/view/full/997

Visit: www.facebook.com/MillionsAgainstMonsantoToronto

Ask Rachel to speak at your school or environmental event

Look for and buy ‘Non-GMO project’ labeled grocery items

Ask your supermarket if they sell GMO sweet corn and tell the supermarket manager your concerns as they report back to upper
management!

In Canada there is currently a private member’s bill C-257 introduced by the NDP (recently read at Parliament) to require
mandatory GMO labeling. Click here to Demand GMO Labelling in Canada!
GMO Fact Sheet
What’s a GMO?
A GMO (Genetically Modified Organism) is a laboratory process of taking genes from one species and inserting them into another in
an attempt to obtain a desired trait or characteristic.
What kinds of traits have been added to food crops?

herbicide tolerance crops, which lets the farmer spray weed-killer directly on the crop without killing it

pesticide-producing crops, where the plant becomes a pesticide
Why should you be concerned about GMOs?

Various feeding studies in animals have resulted in tumors, damaged immune systems, smaller brains, livers, birth defects,
reproductive problems and infertility

GMOs have also been linked with allergies, various digestive and bowel syndromes and even autism in humans
What foods are GM?

soy (94%), cotton (90%), canola (90%), sugar beets (95%), corn (88%), Hawaiian papaya (more than 50%), zucchini and yellow
squash (over 24,000 acres)

Products derived from the above, including oils from all four, soy protein, soy lecithin, cornstarch, corn syrup and high fructose
corn syrup

Approximately 90% of all products on supermarket shelves contain GMO ingredients
How do GMOs impact the environment?

Crops are being genetically engineered as “Roundup Ready” so they can withstand massive spraying with the toxic pesticide,
doesn’t readily break down in the environment, and ends up in our streams

New super weeds and super bugs are becoming Roundup resistant, so more an stronger pesticides are being used

The built-in pesticides found in genetically engineered crops may be largely responsible for the dying off of many insects,
including honey bees and Monarch butterflies
What can you do to avoid GMOs?

Read labels and avoid buying processed food products containing corn, soy, canola, and vegetable oil

Look for the NON-GMO Project Label

Get a copy of the Non-GMO Shopping Guide

Buy organic when possible
What can you do about GMOs?

Tell everyone you know

Write letters to your Member of Parliament and Demand GMO Labeling

Attend the GMO – Kids Right to Know Walk on November 3rd
Want more information?

Follow me on Twitter @RachelsNew.com and on my Blog at www.gmo-news.com