Someone mentioned that carrots were genetically modified to be orange at the behest of William of Orange. I don't think so. My history sources tell me that 'because' the carrot was orange, the House of Orange used it as its emblem.

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use of chemicals, and how is not posible for all of us to now the doses of pesticides used on them because we have no certified labs in Ecuador to do those analysis, so we have to send them to Chile and not all farmers do that.

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Hi Nona this is something I have to deal with everyday, I don't say it's ok to use pesticides but for most people in our planet it's not an option to go organic!

For example in my country, Ecuador, most farms are small and people who grow their own food are not well educated, they just want to produce and to harvest as quick as posible. They're very poor people you know.

Once a teacher in one of my classes said that he went to dine in the house of one of this tipe of farmers, he said that the farmer told his wife that she musn't serve the tomatoes of their house and my teacher said why? and he said because of the many pesticides his tomatoes had.

So they grow tomatoes but they don't eat what they grow, and the regulations in our country and the law are not as hard as in yours.

That's why I said that the use of pesticides is not going to be over, but we can make us sure that the pesticides other people use are the ones that are allowed and the doses are the stablished.

I said before I only buy organic, but I don't cook all that I eat, I'm a student, I have 2 carreers, so believe me I don't have enough time and most of the time I have to buy my lunch and so I'm vegetarian, vegetables is all that I eat, and I want to make sure that even if they're not organic they're not going to cause any harm to my health.

It's sad you don't speak spanish, I saw the other day a documentary on national television that you would enjoy to watch. It's about our vegetables and the

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Pesticides became 'acceptable' as the 'norm' for American consumers. Why? Because the majority want "pretty" produce instead of healthy organic produce that might have a few blemishes. RE: genetically altered produce or genetic modification--- the seeds from such produce are usually sterile, which makes it impossible for us to grow our own produce from saved seeds, like my Grandparents did.

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Valeria, here is a link to a recent article about GM foods and warnings about consuming them: http://blogs.healthfreedomalliance.org/blog/2009/07/01/doctors-warn-avoid-genetically-modified-food-2/
This may shed some light on GM foods for you.

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Say, I have something to say on this. genetically modified, or persistently pesticied.......I still say eating a strawberry or an apple is better than jalapeno potato chips or a big mac. You are spinning in circles on this one. In this economy we can't afford to eat all organic. Take what you can, eat healthy when possible and grow what you can to supplement your diet

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Hi Sonja, the chemicals do get into the flesh of vegetables and fruits that's why water isn't safe at all at the moment we wash them. It's better if you wash your vegetables when you first arribe with them at home, do not keep them unwashed until the moment you're going to use them!
H2O2 might help but sometimes when the level of chemical used is too big this is useless so you gotta be careful where you buy your fruits and vegetables.

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@Valerie Theres a big difference between cross-pollinating and creating a transgenic organism. Transgenic organisms (A tomato with frog genes for example) are a physical impossibility in nature, but if its done in a lab, and put on a supermarket shelf, I want to know about it. Its just scientists spending LOTS of public money in bogus research to satisfy their curious perversions. And it stands to ruin agriculture the world over. Big difference. I think you need to study the topic in detail a little more. For example in New Zealand scientists are applying to mix cow and sheet and goat and pig and also human genes together to make milk that will make more money. Whats happening so far is many calves are being born with hideous birth defects. Its sick.

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What is wrong with genetically modified fruits and vegetables? most of what we eat has been genetically modified - what about carrots? originally they were white, but they were genetically changed to "please" William of Orange/ I agree that there is too much pesticides being used and that we need to buy local, but I think people need to study genetic changes before they set up scare tactics.

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Do the toxic chemicals get into the flesh of the fruit & vegetables or are they only on the skin? Is it possible to reduce the risk of contamination by washing the produce with hydrogen peroxide? Any thoughts on this gratefully accepted! Earth Mumma

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