Eating in the Dark: America's Experiment with Genetically Engineered Food

(Paperback)

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America's Experiment with Genetically Engineered Food Most Americans eat genetically modified food on a daily basis, but few of us are aware we're eating something that has been altered. Meanwhile, consumers abroad refuse to buy our engineered crops; their groceries are labeled so that everyone knows if the contents have been modified. What's going on here Why does the U.S. government treat engineered foods so differently from the rest of the world Eating in the Dark tells the story of how these new foods quietly entered America's food supply. Kathleen Hart explores biotechnology's real potential to enhance nutrition and cut farmers' expenses. She also reveals the process by which American government agencies decided not to label genetically modified food, and not to require biotech companies to perform even basic safety tests on their products. Combining a balanced perspective with a sense of urgency, Eating in the Dark is a captivating and important story account of the science and politics propelling the genetic alteration of our food.

Reviews

Panoramic . . .evenhanded. . . .To read Hart's book is to experience a growing sense of alarm and outrage. The Washington Post Book World

This book lays bare a scandal bigger than Enron. Bill McKibben

Important . . . Incredibly timely . . . The surprise of this well-reported book is that so many genetically modified foods, with uncertain long-term effects, are already being loaded into Americas grocery carts every day. Seattle Post-Intelligencer

This in-depth look at genetically modified foods is fascinating. Natural Health

Chillingly evocative of Rachel Carsons Silent Spring. Kirkus

Author Bio

Kathleen Hart is a journalist who has been writing about health and the environment for more than sixteen years. She has covered agriculture and biotechnology for Food Chemical News and has reported on nuclear power and nonproliferation for McGraw-Hill's Nucleonics Week. Her articles have appeared in the Boston Globe and the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, and other publications. She has been a guest on numerous television and radio stations, including National Public Radio and C-SPAN. She lives in Washington, D.C.