Say NO to Nanotech in Organic!
by Spence Cooper on 10/30/09 at 10:06 am
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Keep Organic ORGANIC
The USDA’s National Organic Standards Board is voting on whether nanotechnology should be banned from use in Organic products. The Board’s initial recommendation is to keep nanotech out of organic products entirely. Scientists use nanotechnology to manipulate atomic and molecular structures on the nanoscale level to maximize corporate profits. The properties of Nan particles are governed by quantum mechanics.
According to the Board, current uses include coatings for eye glasses, food packaging to improve gas barrier properties and ingredients in foods to improve nutritional benefits, anti-bacterial properties, and improved mouth-feel. They are also being used in personal health care and clothing as well as industrial settings as material coatings and ingredients in paint. Future uses of nanotechnology that are being explored include altering bioavailability of nutrients and targeted delivery of nutrients, nanosensors to provide improved sensitivity and speed for chemical and biological analysis, and packaging materials that detect and communicate changes in food quality and safety.
H.J. Heinz, Nestle, Hershey, Campbell, General Mills, PepsiCo, Sara Lee, Unilever, and Kraft, are among many huge corporations heavily invested in nanotechnology applications. Hundreds of new food and agriculture products are under development and many could be on the market soon.
Engineered nanoparticles are used in hundreds of products that are already on supermarket shelves, including transparent sunscreens, light-diffracting cosmetics, penetration enhanced moisturizers, stain and odor repellent fabrics, dirt repellent coatings, long lasting paints and furniture varnishes. Supermarkets currently stock an unknown amount of unlabeled nano food products, and thus far, there is no mandatory product labeling anywhere in the world. “The Helmut Kaiser Consultancy Group, a pro-nanotechnology analyst, suggests that there are now over 300 Nano food products available on the market worldwide. It estimates that the global Nano food market was worth US$5.3 billion in 2005 and will rise to US$20.4 billion by 2010. It predicts that nanotechnology will be used in 40% of the food industries by 2015.”
Kraft established the Nanotek Consortium, a collaboration of 15 universities and national research labs to focus their efforts on “interactive” foods and beverages on a Nano level. Both Kraft and Nestlé, for instance, are designing “Smart Foods” that are intended to interact with consumers. Kraft is developing a beverage that contains hundreds of flavors in latent nanocapsules in which a microwave oven is used to release various colors, flavors, and textures chosen by the consumer. Some of these so-called “Smart Foods” may sense when a consumer is allergic to a particular food ingredient and then subsequently block that ingredient. “Smart” packaging is being researched to release a dose of additional nutrients to consumers having special dietary needs. If for example, someone is suffering from osteoporosis, a food package would release calcium molecules.
But the long term effects to our bodies from using nanotechnology in our food are still unknown. Some studies have shown that nanomaterials can adversely affect our immune system. Nanotechnology was a new developing science when The Organic Food Production Act of 1990 (OFPA) was passed by Congress and signed into law by the President, and Nanotechnology is not mentioned in the OFPA.
The critical vote on the USDA’s National Organic Standards Board’s final recommendation will be held in Washington D.C. on Nov 3. The Materials Committee will recommend that the NOP implement rule changes to clarify that at present the use of all nanotechnology is excluded from all organic production, processing and packaging. To get involved and ensure the USDA follows through on this issue, visit the Center for Food Safety here.
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