GM Foods — No Risk, No Evidence of Harm

At a briefing from the EU’s Joint Research Centre (JRC, http://ec.europa.eu/dgs/jrc/index.cfm) on Sept 10th, I heard about their work on GM foods.  The JRC is a very highly-regarded research organisation, engaged on a wide range of projects.  It is just publishing a report called the GMO Health Study (actually the name is much longer, but that will do for now).  I was impressed by their rigour and professionalism, and by the huge effort that goes into monitoring GM foods.
 
I asked if there was any prima facie scientific reason to be concerned about the safety of GM foods.  They said No.  I asked if they had ever identified negative health consequences from GMO consumption.  No again.  I asked if they had ever declined to approve any GMO product.  They said No.  Unapproved products were merely in the pipeline waiting assessment.  They were not in any sense “dis-approved”.
 
Given the lack of any apparent risk, you might well ask why we expend enormous effort and a great deal of money doing all the tests.  But that’s the price we pay for media hysteria over “Frankenstein Foods”.