The Strategist

Europe and the US: NanoFood vs Organic



05/19/2015 - 16:37



US Department of Agriculture (USDA) will provide approximately four million dollars to the federal program on the use of nanotechnology in the food processing and manufacturing. The corresponding decree was published on the site office.



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Representatives of the Center for the control of food safety stated that they are encouraging the progressive development, but noted that before presenting such a program in place, they need to assess how safe is artificial intervention capacities in the process of production and cultivation of crops, meat and dairy products, fish, fruits, vegetables and the like.

They recalled that the Canadian government tried such an idea, soon imposed restrictions on their use in the food industry, yet the US paid no attention to experience of their closest neighbors.

What is meant by nanotechnology? The USDA report notes that this is "items that could be produced naturally, but can also be by-products of human activity, obtained in the process of blending or milling." Furthermore, the chemical components may be involved during the manufacturing as well.

Ministry of Agriculture considers that the elements currently processed or artificially created can be used not only for food packaging, but also inside the food itself.

- Nano additives will increase the concentration of nutrients in the food, - says Jonathan Brown, of the University of Minnesota, who appears in a number of universities applying for grants to finance research and development in the framework of the federal program. It also includes the University of Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Rutgers University.

A lot of debate has already appeared around this initiative - representatives of the US health care and social activists remind that earlier, similar projects of this department resulted, on probation, on health problems and even deaths.

While the US seeks to make its high-tech food, Europe is gradually moving to a healthy and environmentally friendly food - the Swedish Environmental Research Institute (IVL) conducted an interesting experiment with a family of five.

The father of the family, 40, the mother, 39, and three children - three year old and two teenage girls, in two weeks were suggested eating only organic products and see the effect.

In the study, the whole family had to undergo urine tests on a regular basis and form a nutritious and healthy diet, without any additives and foods containing GMOs.

Children’s organisms have purified from pesticides more than any other - a common ratio was 9.5. In addition to organic food, the family used the biologically safe cleaning products, personal care products and even organic chewing tobacco, which the father used instead of cigarettes.

At the beginning of the study, parents and children were found the following items: herbicides, fungicides, insecticides, diuron, vinclozolin, boscalid, propamocarb, but during the diet, their contents significantly decreased.

Recall that these substances are widely used to control weeds or unwanted vegetation; irrigation and protection of crops, control harmful bacteria (in this case, they are resistant to antibiotics) and nematodes (ring worms); kill ticks, rodents and other pests.




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