For many years it seemed like mankind was doomed to eat “franken-food” made from genetically modified organisms. The United States government and mega international agricultural companies (DuPont and Monsanto to name a few), have been long time supporters of this experimental food.

The risks of food containing GMO have been thoroughly discussed in prior articles and you are encouraged to read those prior to this article.

1. The unnatural state of natural food in the US
2. World unites against Monsanto and GM food
3. NutraSweet: introduces a new poison to the world
4. Will Mexico join the movement against GMO food?
5. Peru takes a major step in the GMO battle

These prior articles will show the battles that have already taken place in this ongoing struggle for the preservation of “real food”.

Until recently, much of the progress in resisting and standing up to the GMO onslaught, has been waged in other countries, with a continued apathy by most American consumers; who for the most part appeared more than willing to give little or no thought to what they were actually eating. With only a minor pause for reflecting on … “if fries come with that”.

It was with great surprise to discover over the last few weeks that two major “Fast Food” chains have decided to take a stand against unhealthy and dangerous food additives, namely GMO ingredients and chemical additives.

Chipotle Mexican Grill announced in April 2015 that they were now 100% GMO free. They even published a nice list on their website to help educate the public on the dangers of GMO and why they chose to remove them:

1. Scientists are still studying the long term implications of GMOs.
2. The cultivation of GMOs can damage the environment.
3. Chipotle should be a place where people can eat food made with non-GMO ingredients.

Panera Bread also recently announced that by 2016 they will remove all “artificial preservatives, colorings, sweeteners or flavors” and that all of their food will be free of any artificial or synthetic ingredients.

Now one could reasonably ask, why is it going to take them 1-2 years to switch when Chipotle, Trader Joes and others have already made the switch, that is for the consumer to decide, however, at least they have committed to the transition.

These recent decisions are evidence of what is possible when an educated populace begins to make informed decisions that affect the bottom lines of companies. It is highly unlikely, that many of these companies would have, or plan to, made the switch to healthier ingredients, if not for the fear of losing money. McDonalds, a long time advocate of GMO food, with their famous franken-chicken and mystery meat compounds, has lost a lot of business to the likes of Chipotle and Panera Bread.

Two concluding thoughts:

• We all need to make sure we keep up the pressure and insist on natural or organic ingredients and absolutely no GMOs.
• Also, what method is their to ensure that these companies are actually making the changes they are claiming? What guarantee do we have that your next burrito at Chipotle actually is GMO free and not just an elaborate marketing ploy?

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