Debate rages over labeling genetically modified food

Inject a gene from a certain cold-water fish into a strawberry, and the strawberry can withstand colder temperatures. But would you still want to eat it?

Such advances in genetic engineering have implications for helping feed a growing, hungry world but a lot of people aren't too keen on eating those advances just yet.

Others wouldn't hesitate.

The difference reflects the "wild, messy debate" surrounding genetically modified food, with one of the more recent skirmishes centering on whether food labels should contain information about such ingredients, according to Nick George, president of the Midwest Food Processors Association, based in Madison.

Wisconsin's agriculture and food production industries find themselves smack in the middle of the debate.

"This is a big issue," George said. "It's not going away."

Neither, it seems, are genetically engineered crops in the American food chain.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates that 93% of soybean acres and 85% of corn acres in 2013 were planted with genetically modified, herbicide-tolerant crop varieties.

The percentage of insect-resistant corn planted in 2013 stood at 76%, according to the USDA. The insect-resistant corn contains a gene from the soil bacterium Bt Bacillus thuringiensis. The bacteria produce a protein that is toxic to specific insects.

Consider that there are nearly 1.3 million dairy cows in Wisconsin, and some of them are no doubt eating corn with genetically modified ingredients.

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Debate rages over labeling genetically modified food