Concerned about the recent recalls of many foods that contain corn, TeenSpeak was curious to understand how the FDA could have allowed food that was not approved for human consumption, (unsafe) to appear on our supermarket shelves. Dr. Maryanski indicated that the FDA is involved in an investigation as to how contamination occured, adding, however, "We don't think it's possible to have zero bioengineered material in a corn or soybean, or other crops that are nature crops simply because of pollen flow. There is also the issue of cross contamination in train cars and silos. The system is not set up in a way that would prevent any kind of minor cross contamination. I think that this is a difficult issue, and not really an FDA issue."

The only safeguard consumers have, TeenSpeak learned, was that the FDA encourages companies to notify them prior to introducing a food into the grocery store. There is, in fact, no law or requirement for them to do so. "Companies have to sell their product. Food companies are very conservative, they are not going to put a product out there if they think FDA will have any question about it," Dr. Maryanski expressed confidently. The FDA provides "guidance" for companies with flow charts that recommend "issues that should be taken into account, such as what substances are likely to be allergens, or the safety of new substances in plants." Dr. Maryanski refers to the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act which was drafted in 1938 and amended in 1992 as the latest scientific way to address these questions.

It wasn't, however, until the European community adamantly refused to purchase foods grown in this country containing any genetic modification that the FDA began to reconsider its position on this issue. Recognizing the impact of lost profits, coupled with a public that was becoming more aware and concerned about bioengineering and the affects that these foods might have on their health, prompted the FDA to reconsider its position. They are now thinking about requiring companies to notify them 120 days prior to the introduction of genetically modified foods into the market.

Mary Howell Martens has a unique background which has planted her a position on the USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) Committee to examine the ethics of biotechnology. An organic farmer in upstate New York with an 1100 acre farm, Ms. Martens has a Masters in Plant Breeding and 12 years of experience with genetic engineering and the use of the gene gun at Cornell University. Admitting that the science of bioengineering offered wonderful opportunities to expand our knowledge and make more things possible, Ms. Martens stated that, "Unfortunately, certain companies have seen this as a way of making a lot more money." Without testing the new science in a smaller controlled area, Martens told TeenSpeak that companies have planted millions of acres of genetically modified crops without a concrete understanding of their affect on both the environment and human health. "Profit motivation has really driven what is commercially on the market."

Martens stated, "The impression we got was that there is no oversight, no real good oversight of all the tests required for safety of the genetically modified product itself, and also of its possible impact on the environment and on other organisms." She went on to add, "There is no regulatory system in place that is OBJECTIVE."