5 GMO Documentaries You Should Watch
Dispel any images you may have in your mind about sturdy, independent small farmers nurturing crops by hand and with care; agriculture in the United States today is big business. While this has undoubtedly had some beneficial impacts in the form of increased productivity and standardization of foodstuffs, corporate America tends to look out for its own interests first.
This is perhaps most evident in the DARK Act legislation pending in Congress which:
- Would implement a voluntary labeling scheme for food containing genetically modified organisms (GMOs).
- This would counteract the mandatory-labeling laws in force in more than 30 states and would essentially allow companies to regulate themselves.
- A clear conflict of interest and selling out of the American public.
There are a number of excellent documentaries that explore this and related issues, and they’re recommended viewing for anyone looking to gain a broader perspective on the subject.
GMOs, seed patents, and the corporatization of food production in the Unites States are some of the topics tackled by Deborah Koons Garcia’s 2004 documentary. The consequences of the new, industrial ways of doing farming include driving farmers off their land, creating a dependency in Western society on a few large agricultural enterprises and increasing the susceptibility of food crops to diseases and pests. Similar factors are at play in our neighbors, Canada and Mexico. This documentary can be seen a number of different ways and it’s encouraged that all viewers share the experience.
2. Food, Inc.
Emmy Award winner Robert Kenner made this documentary about agribusiness in the United States in 2008, and it is still currently available on Netflix and DirecTV. Kenner examines the production of meat and grains along with the use of pesticides and other hazardous chemicals. He finds that the food delivered to our supermarkets and restaurants is often unhealthy and produced using inhumane techniques. Many large companies, like Monsanto and Tyson Foods, were invited to rebut the allegations contained in Food, Inc. but they have all declined to do so.
3. FRESH
Directed by Ana Sofia Joanes and released in 2009, FRESH documents the lifestyles of farmers who are rebelling against the standard ways of doing things by eschewing the use of fertilizers and other products pushed by multinationals. The focus is on sustainable farming practices and the growing of fresh produce in contradistinction to the environmental harm and chemically altered foods created through industrial processes. In addition to farmers, the film features the stories of supermarket owners, intellectuals and businesspeople who are trying to make a difference. The official website offers the various screening materials.
Now that greedy corporations are patenting seeds, the future of agriculture lies in the hands of the patent holders. As explored in Seeds of Freedom, co-produced by The Gaia Foundation and the African Biodiversity Network in 2012, large firms can introduce genetic modifications into crops, and farmers have little choice but to use these new seeds. The movie, available on Vimeo, contains interviews from people at various advocacy groups around the world as well as individual small farmers who have been affected by the actions of profit-seeking companies.
5. GMO OMG
Filmmaker and father of three Jeremy Seifert documents his quest for answers regarding genetically modified organisms in this 2013 film, which you can buy through his site. He found that the risks and benefits of these crops are unknown despite the fact that they’re widely available on the marketplace. Most of the studies that purport to demonstrate their safety were actually conducted by the manufacturers of GMO foods themselves. At the same time, evidence is mounting that they may in fact be quite harmful indeed.
If enough people familiarize themselves with the issues raised by these documentaries, we can bring political pressure to bear to force agricultural businesses to conduct themselves in a more honest, open and ecologically friendly way. While it may seem hopeless to pit small producers against billion-dollar companies with armies of lawyers, remember that grassroots action has led to change in the past, such as mandatory testing of pharmaceuticals before release and the creation of the FDA. With the future of our planet and our progeny at stake, we ought to at least get as much information as we possibly can about GMOs and other possibly harmful activities of large business conglomerates.
It’s time to take a stand – learn all you can! Help to make a safer, healthy future for our children! ?Ask yourself what are doing today to stop the poisoning of our food and the big corporations from taking away our right to know?
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GMO Foods are the best for the environment. Its true there are several things about the food industry that is inhumane, but it dose not stop when you pick organic food. First and fore most are Organic food sprayed with Organic sprays. The spray is basicly poison for human. With GMO foods you are able to eat more healthy plants, you are able to help farms with surving, infrastructure to grow, and less unhealty and poisonous sprays on the plants. And the most important thing to do for the enviroment is to eat food that is close to you. over 60% of all co2 polution comes from the biggest transport ships in the world. Boikott food that have traveld over the ocean!
Hi Andreas,
First do you work for Monsanto or Bayer or who pays you to put these comments on? You have 2 things that I can agree on — that is it is a good idea to eat local foods and that since a lot of pollution comes from transporting any item food or otherwise does cause pollution. But I have to ask myself when reading this do your really believe what you are saying? Can you possibly believe that organics are poison to people. I think you need to check out what organic is – they are pesticide free – grown the way God meant foods to be grown. No glyphosate that has been now proven to cause cancer and many other health problems. Organic are not the poison – GMO are the poison- cancer is rampant in our society. WHy do most European countries do not allow GMO to be imported or sold in their countries??? What is poison is the GMO’s that have pesticides in the seeds and have tried to change Nature which will cause serious issues in many ways. WHat about the super weeds that GMO’s and Monsanto has caused? What about the many lawsuits that are now in the courts against Monsanto and the poisons that genetically modified foods has caused to organic farmers that have polluted to ruin their crops from cross contamination and caused many death form eating your GMO so called safe food? The truth is finally come out and many of the scientist that were paid, threaten or bribed to report fake reports – called Fake science are now recanting their original lies. Plus GMO are transported for many miles so that is even a valid point. Need I say any more????
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What a great list! It seems like it’s really hard to educate ourselves, that we really have to search out the information, and then even question our sources. The more you dive into the world of real food, the more you realize how few you can trust. Thanks for sharing this list, it makes it a little easier to educate ourselves! And thanks for sharing on the Homestead Blog Hop!
Hi Jennifer,
It takes researching constantly to make sure your food is safe and healthy. I hope this information will help you. Glad to be part of Homestead Blog Hop. Marla
Hi Marla,
Information is power, especially when it comes to GMOs! Thank you for sharing these 5 GMO Documentaries with us on the Healthy Happy Green and Natural Party Blog Hop. I’m pinning and sharing.
Hi Deborah,
Thanks so much for featuring my article this week and I totally agree that information is power. Thanks for sharing my article and hosting your wonderful blog hop. Marla
Thank you for sharing my article and hosting Lou Lou Girls party!
Hi Marla, thanks for sharing; I’ve seen Food Inc. but not the rest. I try to avoid GMOs, but I’m sure after I watch the rest of these I’ll be even more motivated. Adding them to my list on Netflix!
Hi Lee,
I wish everyone would at least watch one of these documentaries and I believe that many people’s eyes would be opened to a world they were not aware and really push to stop the Dark Act from becoming a law. Thanks for reading my article and commenting.
Thanks for this post. Education is the key. Individuals can make the changes happen by demanding organic and/or GMO free foods in our stores and restaurants. Support businesses and, above all, local farmers, by letting them know this is important to you as a consumer. Money talks, and it should be your money as a consumer talking, not the money of giant companies, like Monsanto, swaying the politics, public opinion and science of food, as they have with their lies, omission of facts, and personal attacks on persons daring to question GMO’s and products like glyphosate (Roundup).
Hi Nancy,
Right on Nancy. Money does talk and we need to put our money where it really counts – local and where the goal is not politics or big companies. Thanks for reading my article and commenting. Believe me I am with you! Marla