From Sue Dengate
Darwin, Australia
You write about a genetically engineered yeast which oozes “six times as much
sulphite into beer as normal yeast” (Technology, 9 November, p 22). This
illustrates my worst fears about food technology. People in whom exposure to
sulphites provokes an asthma attack will react whether the sulphite is there by
genetically engineered means or as an added preservative.
Natural and artificial food chemicals which can cause health and behavioural
problems are increasingly added (or, in the case of genetic engineering,
encouraged) in even the most basic foods. Regulatory bodies assure us that if
our food is labelled correctly, consumers will be able to choose.
Their reasoning does not take into account unlabelled food such as restaurant
meals; foods for which there is no alternative (such as preservative-free bread,
unobtainable in many Australian supermarkets); and consumers who can’t read (a
recent nationwide survey showed 30 per cent functional illiteracy in year 9
students).
Advertisement
