When an internationally known powerhouse like Oprah Winfrey says she supports something, the entire world seems to sit up and listen. Over the years, Oprah has been an advocate for a number of causes including the importance of educational opportunities for young girls. In 2007 she started the Leadership Academy for Girls in South Africa. She also urged millions of people around the world to pick up books and read. Oprah’s Book Club is now a household phrase, with book club stickers on numerous best sellers.
At the end of 2012 her next project was revealed: organics. She received approval in 2013 to use the patented terms “Oprah´s Organics”, “Oprah´s Harvest” and “Oprah´s Farm”. Apparently, she will provide organic skin, hair care and cosmetic products as well as organic foods. Although Oprah’s website contains several supportive articles on buying organic, there are no announcements thus far on her products.
On the other end of the swinging pendulum, Bill Gates and Carlos Slim (the world’s richest man according to Forbes magazine) donated $25 million dollars to build biotechnology labs for genetic engineering of wheat in Mexico. With some GMO patent traits expiring, Gates noted that there is now some competition for distributing and selling seeds. Bill Gates will now have a part in distributing GMO seeds cheaply to poor farmers. However they may have trouble selling them if the awareness of GMO low crop yield reaches these farmers in time.
The definition of organic prohibits the use of “bioengineering” (another term for genetically modified foods). In other words, when you buy organic foods at the grocery store, you are buying foods that have not been genetically modified.
When influential figures like Oprah Winfrey and Bill Gates stand behind issues to the tune of millions of dollars or with patents and trademarks it is imperative that we pay attention. There are important things to consider such as the quality of the food that we eat. Do we want genetically engineered food with burgeoning evidence of health risks or do we want organic food, which has been proven to provide a variety of nutritional benefits?
This is not a mere discussion around the kitchen table anymore. This issue has exploded across the world. Ultimately, we still have the power of choice. No one is holding a gun to our head when we buy our groceries. So, despite the litany of money thrown at this issue we still pick our lemons and apples one at a time. One person still counts. Grassroots movements can still move mountains. One million people were mobilized to sign a petition demanding the labeling of GMOs in just ten weeks in 2012. Whether we have one million dollars or one dollar, we can all have our say. While the publicity is wonderful and the increased awareness is crucial to implementing change it still comes down to what we put in our cart. Will it be genetically modified wheat from Bill Gates’ funded projects, or perhaps organic produce from Oprah’s farm in Hawaii?
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