This month, Whole Foods became the first retailer in the country
to announce that it would require its more than 300 stores to
label all food containing genetically modified ingredients. The
move, to be phased in over five years, marked the latest salvo
in a decades-long, global fight over the use of genetically
modified organisms (GMOs) such as corn, cotton and soybeans in
food. As the use of GMOs in a variety of products has
proliferated, so has the argument over whether they are safe for
humans and the environment, whether they deserve more scrutiny
from regulators and how they should be labeled. The biotech
industry has argued that GMO technologies are a safe way to
reduce plant disease, increase crop yields and create a more
efficient global food supply. The Food and Drug Administration
has said there is no meaningful difference between foods that
use organic ingredients and their genetically modified
counterparts. Meanwhile, consumer groups and public health
activists have continued to raise questions a