by Paula Jacobs

Created on: June 30, 2010

Genetically-modified food (GM Food) is more common in the United States and Canada than in other countries. Argentina, China and Brazil also distribute food that has been genetically altered. Agricultural biotechnology has resulted in genetically modified food and it refers to the technique of using living organisms and parts of these organisms to modify crops, seeds and food.

Modern medical treatments, agriculture and other industries use biotechnology on a grand scale. Yeast, used to make bread or wine have been around for thousands of years and this is considered a simple form of biotechnology. Since the late 1800s, farmers have been selecting individual living organisms with the best characteristics and they developed better crops by combining different species of plants and animals. This practice has led to widespread production of altered food which is the topic of many debates.

There are a lot of people who are concerned about the dangers of eating food that has essentially been created in a laboratory. Eating genetically modified food can be avoided by shopping smart and there are several ways to recognize the altered fruit, vegetables and meat in retail stores. Listed below are seven easy ways to bypass the genetically modified items on the grocery store shelves.

1) Look at the PLU number on fruit. If there are five numbers starting with an '8' - the food is genetically engineered, five numbers beginning with '9' mean the item was organically grown.

2) Avoid anything made with soy beans, corn, cottonseed oil and canola oil. These are the top four genetically engineered foods that people consume.

3) Talk to local farmers and buy home-grown food as often as possible. Studies report that almost 85 percent of pre-packaged and processed food is altered in some way.

4) Read all labels on the food you purchase. The more ingredients, the more likely there are artificial ingredients and the food has been altered.

5) Speak out to manufacturers and let them know you are against genetic engineering and ask them to properly label their products.

6) If you are vegetarian, always purchase 100 percent organic soy products.

7) Look for meat that is 100 percent grass fed and kept in an open pasture.

The first genetically altered food in the United States was the commercially grown Flavr Savr Tomato in the mid-1990s. The latest report on the dangers of eating food that has been genetically altered was released in 2007 and no major health concerns have been linked to the GM foods sold and consumed.

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