Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1727431 in Books
• Published on: 2001-09-24
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 400 pages

From Amazon.co.uk
It may be true that we are what we eat; now, with a flood of genetically modified foods overtaking the market, it is possible to eat what we are. But the prospect of genetic cannibalism is the least of the worries of food activists, and journalist Bill Lambrecht's Dinner at the New Gene Café follows both sides of the genetically modified organism (GMO) debate with vigour. He's been covering the story since the mid-1980s, interviewing agricultural officials, bio-tech industry executives, family farmers, and protestors to build a comprehensive understanding of the issues. Clear and direct, Lambrecht's writing explains the science and politics plainly enough for those that failed Biology or Politics at school. He is equally sceptical about the claims of industry shills and activists, and often shakes his head in wonder at the incompetence of government agencies. From academic conferences to the Battle for Seattle, he's seen every aspect of the GMO wars as they ignited in Europe and slowly spread across the world and eventually penetrated the US. Peppered with short essays on his own illegal home experiments with GMO seeds, Dinner at the New Gene Café offers readers insight into a growing question that will likely define our menu choices for many years to come. --Rob Lightner

From Publishers Weekly
Lambrecht, a reporter with the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, has written an indispensable history of the political storm surrounding GMOs, or genetically modified organisms. Beginning before the Federal Government first approved genetically modified crops (in 1998) and taking us to the present, Lambrecht traces the struggle by Monsanto Company the industry leader referred to as "Monsatan" by the opposition to overcome the backlash to GMOs that has spread from Europe to other continents and to the United States. This book's greatest asset is the firsthand testimony it gives from every side of the debate. Lambrecht himself reported on everything from the Starlink controversy, in which genetically altered corn that had not been tested on humans turned up in Taco Bell products, to the World Trade Organization riots in Seattle, which he witnessed firsthand, to the conference on bio-safety in Montreal, where an international agreement to precautionary language on GMOs marked the first step toward a global compromise. He provides transcripts of interviews with players such as Monsanto chairman Robert B. Shapiro, anti-GMO guru Jeremy Rifkin and Iowa farmer Earl Sime, who tells why farming is in jeopardy and how GMOs can help. Lambrecht talks with farmers, activists and government leaders in Europe, India and Africa, and shows why Monsanto's long-term future lies in foreign markets and why the ultimate success or failure of GMOs rests with consumers. (Sept.)Forecast: If given due review attention and prominent displays following Lambrecht's author tour, this could be the breakout book on GMOs. The potential readership people who are concerned about what they eat is huge.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
Genetically engineered food, commonly referred to as genetically modified organisms (GMOs), is the subject of this study by Lambrecht, a reporter for the St. Louis Post Dispatch. He describes the issues raised by advocates and detractors, with reports from the United States, Canada, Ireland, France, Britain, Switzerland, India, Colombia, and other countries. Supporters believe that biotechnology is the answer to feeding the world with safe and nutritious foods that are resistant to insect and disease damage, profitable for farmers, and vital for developing sustainable farming systems. Opponents, on the other hand, claim that GMOs pose health and environmental threats and demand mandatory labeling. (Some have resorted to violence and crop destruction to gain recognition.) The role of Monsanto, the major player in launching the food biotechnology crusade worldwide, is stressed throughout. Those seeking a better understanding of food biotechnology and its ramifications should read this work. Recommended. Irwin Weintraub, Brooklyn Coll. Lib., NY
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.