HOW TO AVOID FOODS MADE WITH GENETICALLY MODIFIED ORGANISMS (GMOs)

The True Food Network is CFS’s grassroots action network

where concerned citizens can voice their opinions about critical

food safety issues, and advocate for a socially just, democratic

and sustainable food system. To join the network and receive

free action alerts visit www.truefoodnow. org and stand up for

True Food!

To learn more about GMOs, consult the book

Your Right to

Know: Genetic Engineering and the Secret Changes in Your Food

by Andrew Kimbrell. Information on GMOs is also available at

www.centerforfoodsafety.org

SPECIAL NOTE:

This guide was compiled based on company

statements, not genetic testing. Any product labeled as Non-

GMO indicates that its manufacturing process is designed to

avoid GMOs, but consumers should be aware that GM contam-

ination is possible due to natural pollen movement, weather

events, seed contamination, or human error. Hence there is

no guarantee such products are 100% free of GMOs.

The Center for Food Safety works to protect human health and

the environment by curbing the proliferation of harmful food

production technologies and by promoting organic and other

forms of sustainable agriculture. CFS has offices in Washington,

DC and San Francisco, CA.

Copyright 2010 Center for Food Safety. No part of this booklet may be repro-

duced in any form without written permission. Contact: info@truefoodnow.org

660 Pennsylvania Avenue, SE, Suite 302, Washington, DC 20003

www.centerforfoodsafety.org

CONTENTS

 Introduction & Overview 2

Fruits & Vegetables 4

Fish 4

Eggs 4

Meats & Alternative Meat Products 5

Dairy Products 6

Alternative Dairy Products 7

Baby Foods & Infant Formula 8

Baked Goods 8

Cereals & Breakfast Bars 9

Energy Bars 9

Grains, Beans & Pasta 10

Canned Foods 10

Soups & Sauces 11

Frozen Foods 12

Condiments, Oils, Dressings & Spreads 13

Snack Foods 14

Sweeteners 15

Candy, Chocolate Products 16

Sodas, Juices & Other Beverages 17

INTRODUCTION & OVERVIEW

 How to avoid brands made with genetically modified organisms (GMOs) Genetic Engineering (GE) or Genetic Modification (GM) of

food involves the laboratory process of artificially inserting

genes into the DNA of food crops or animals. The result is

called a genetically modified organism or GMO. GMOs can be

engineered with genes from bacteria, viruses, insects, animals,

or even humans. Most Americans say they would not eat GMOs

if labeled, but unlike most other industrialized countries, the

U.S. does not require labeling.

This Non-GMO Shopping Guide is designed to help reclaim

your right to know about the foods you are buying, and help

you find and avoid GMO foods and ingredients.

Tips for avoiding GM crops

❧

TIP #1: BUY ORGANIC

 Certified organic products are not allowed to contain any

GMOs. Therefore, when you purchase products labeled “100%

organic,” “organic,” or “made with organic ingredients,” all

ingredients in these products are not allowed to be produced

from GMOs. For example, products labeled as “made with

organic ingredients” only require 70% of the ingredients to

be organic, but 100% must be non-GMO.

❧

TIP #2: LOOK FOR“NON-GMO” LABEL

Companies may voluntarily label products as “non-GMO.”

Some labels state “non-GMO” while others spell out “Made

Without Genetically Modified Ingredients.” Some products

limit their claim to only one particular “At-Risk” ingredient

such as soy lecithin, listing it as “non-GMO.”

TIP #3: AVOID AT-RISK INGREDIENTS

Avoid products made with any of the crops that are GM. Most

GM ingredients are products made from the “Big Four:” corn,

soybeans, canola, and cottonseed, used in processed foods.

Some of the most common genetically engineered Big Four

ingredients in processed foods are:

Corn

■

Corn flour, meal, oil, starch, gluten, and syrup

■

Sweeteners such as fructose, dextrose, and glucose

■

Modified food starch*

Soy

■

Soy flour, lecithin, protein, isolate, and isoflavone

■

Vegetable oil* and vegetable protein*

Canola

Canola oil (also called rapeseed oil)

Cotton

Cottonseed oil

*May be derived from other sources

Additionally, GM sugar beet sugar recently entered the food

supply. Look for organic and non-GMO sweeteners, candy and

chocolate products made with 100% cane sugar, evaporated

cane juice, agave, or organic sugar, to avoid GM beet sugar.

[NOTE BY NANCY:  I reformatted this list in an attempt to render it easier to follow. If you question something you find, you can go to the link at the top of this page and check the item on the Food Safety Website.]

 TIP #4: BUY PRODUCTS LISTED IN THIS

SHOPPING GUIDE

Keep this Guide with you whenever you shop. Store it inside

your reusable shopping bag, put it into your coupon holder or

check book, or leave it in your car.

 FRUITS & VEGETABLES

Very few fresh fruits and vegetables for sale in the U.S. are

genetically modified. Novel products such as seedless water-

melons are NOT genetically modified. Small amounts of

zucchini, yellow crookneck squash, and sweet corn may be

GM. The only commercialized GM fruit is papaya from Hawaii—

about half of Hawaii’s papayas are GM.

 EGGS

Non-GMO

Egg Innovations Organic

Eggland’s Best Organic

Land O’Lakes Organic

Nest Fresh Organic

Organic Valley

Pete and Jerry’s Organic Eggs

Wilcox Farms Organic

FISH

FDA is currently considering approval of the first GE animal

intended for human consumption, a genetically engineered

Atlantic salmon. This approval is pending despite overwhelm-

ing consumer opposition and unacceptable risks to human

health, the marine environment, wild salmon populations

and fishing economies. There are several other GE fish in the

pipeline as well. To make matters worse, FDA argues that

these GE fish don’t even need to be labeled!

Check out our new campaign website at www.ge-fish.org to

learn more and find out what you can do to help stop GE fish.

MEAT & FOWL

No genetically modified fowl or livestock is yet approved for

human consumption. However, plenty of non-organic foods are

produced from animals raised on GM feed such as grains. Look

for 100% grass-fed animals.

ALTERNATIVE MEAT PRODUCTS

Many alternative meat products are processed and include

ingredients that can be genetically engineered, so give the

ingredient lists close attention to avoid the Big Four at-risk

ingredients, especially soy.

Non-GMO

365 Brand (Whole Foods)

Amy’s

Bountiful Bean

Small Planet Tofu

Sunshine Burger

The Simple Soyman

Vitasoy

Wildwood

White Wave

Woodstock Farms

 May contain GMO ingredients

Boca, unless labeled organic

(Kraft)

Gardenburger

Morningstar Farms, Natural

Touch, Worthington, Loma

Linda unless labeled

organic (Kellogg)

DAIRY PRODUCTS &

ALTERNATIVE DAIRY PRODUCTS

Some U.S. dairy farms inject the genetically engineered hor-

mone rBGH, also called rBST, into their cows to boost milk

production—so be sure to purchase products with a label that

indicates cows free of rBGH or rBST. Many alternative dairy prod-

ucts are made from soybeans and may contain GM materials.

Certified Organic

Alta Dena Organics

Butterworks Farm

Harmony Hills Dairy

Horizon Organic

Kirkland Organic

Lactaid Organic (Organic only)

Morningland Dairy

Nancy’s Organic Dairy

Natural by Nature

Noris Organic

Oregon Ice Cream Company

(Alden’s, Julie’s)

Organic Valley Dairy

Pacific Village

Radiance Dairy

Rogue Creamery

Safeway Organic Brand

Seven Stars Farm

Straus Family Creamery

Stremick’s Heritage organic

Stonyfield Farm

Trader Joe’s (organic line)

Wallaby

Whole Foods organic line

Wisconsin Organics

Woodstock Farms

Produced Without rBGH

National

Albertson’s

Alta Dena

Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream

Brown Cow Farm

Crowley Cheese of Vermont

Dannon

Darigold

Double Rainbow ice cream

Franklin County Cheese

Grafton Village Cheese

Great Hill Dairy

Lactaid milk (milk only)

Lifetime Dairy

Lochmead

Market Pantry (Target)

Nancy’s Natural Dairy

Safeway (Dairy Glen and Lucerne)

Trader Joe’s store brand

Walmart Great Value store brand

Whole Foods and 365 brands

Yoplait

West Coast

Alpenrose Dairy

Beecher’s butter

ALTERNATIVE DIARY PRODUCTS

 May Contain GMO ingredients

Colombo (General Mills)

Dannon

Kemps (aside from

“Select” brand)

Kraft

Land O’ Lakes

Lucerne

Parmalat

Sorrento

Yoplait (General Mills)

Non-GMO

Belsoy

EdenSoy

Imagine Foods/Soy Dream

Nancy’s Cultured Soy

Organic Valley Soy

Pacific Soy

Silk

Soy Delicious

Sun Soy

Stonyfield Farm O’Soy

Tofutti

Trader Joe’s brand

VitaSoy/Nasoya

WestSoy

WholeSoy

Yves The Good Slice

Zen Don

May contain GMO ingredients

8th Continent

Berkeley Farms

Bravo Farms cheese

Clover Stornetta Farms

Cowgirl creamery

Eberhard

Fred Meyer /

Mountain Dairy

Joseph Farms Cheese

Mallories

Market of Choice

Oregon Gourmet cheese

Rogue Creamery

Rose Valley butter

Sunshine Dairy Foods

Tillamook Cheese

Trader Joe’s store brand

Umpqua

Western Family

Wilcox Family Farms

Willamette Valley cheese

Yami

Midwest and Gulf States

Chippewa Valley Cheese

Erivan Dairy Yogurt

Promised Land Dairy

Westby Cooperative Creamery

East Coast

Blythedale Farm Cheese

Crescent Creamery

Derle Farms (milk with “no rBST”

label only)

Erivan Dairy Yogurt

Farmland Dairies

Oakhurst Dairy

Trader Joe’s store brand

Wilcox Dairy (rBST-free dairy

line only)

BABY FOODS  & INFANT FORMULA

Milk or soy protein is the basis of most infant formulas. The

secret ingredients in these products are often soy or milk from

cows injected with rBGH. Many brands also add GMO-derived

corn syrup, corn syrup solids, or soy lecithin.

Non-GMO

Baby’s Only

(certified organic products)

Earth’s Best

Gerber products

HAPPYBABY

Mom Made Meals

Organic Baby

Plum Organics

Tastybaby

May contain GMO

ingredients

Enfamil (Mead Johnson)

Good Start (Gerber/Nestle)

Nestle brands (Gerber/Nestle)

Similac/Isomil – except Similac

Organic (Abbott Labs/Abbott

Nutrition)

BAKED GOODS

While baking ingredients such as wheat flour, rice, kamut, and

oats are not genetically modified, many packaged breads and

bakery items contain other GMO ingredients such as corn syrup.

Non-GMO

Alvarado Street Bakery

Arrowhead Mills (organic line)

Bakery on Main

Berlin Natural Bakery

Bob’s Red Mill (organic line)

Dr. McDougall’s Right Foods

Dr Oetker Organics

Eden

French Meadow

Natural Ovens Bakery

(organic line)

Nature’s Path

Rudi’s Organic Bakery

Rumford Baking Powder

Safeway O brand (organic)

Trader Joe’s brand

May Contain GMO

Ingredients

Aunt Jemima

(Quaker Oats/Pepsico)

Betty Crocker (General Mills)

Bisquick (General Mills)

Calumet Baking Powder (Kraft)

Duncan Hines (Pinnacle Foods)

Hungry Jack (Smucker’s)

Pillsbury (Smucker’s)

Non-GMO:

Ambrosial Granola

Barbara’s (organic line)

Cascadian Farms

Eden

EnviroKidz

Golden Temple

Grandy Oats

Health Valley (organic line)

Lundberg® Purely Organic

Rice Cereal

Nature’s Path

Nonuttin’

Omega Smart Bars

Peace Cereal Organic

Ruth’s

Safeway O brand (organic)

Simple Sweets

Sunridge Farms

Trader Joe’s brand

Whole Foods 365

May Contain GMO

Ingredients

General Mills

Kellogg

Post (Kraft)

Quaker

CEREALS & BREAKFAST BARS

Cereals and breakfast bars are very likely to include GMO ingre-

dients, because they are often made with corn and soy products.

ENERGY BARS

Non-GMO

Clif Bar

Divine Foods

Genisoy Bars

GoodOnYa Bar

Lara Bar

Luna Bar

Macrobars

MacroLife Naturals

Mojo (Clif Bar)

Nature’s Path

Nutiva

Odwalla

Organic Food Bar

Optimum Energy Bar

Organic Food Bar

Ruth’s

Weil by Nature’s Path Organic

Z Bars (Clif Bar)

May Contain GMO

Ingredients

Balance Bar

Nature Valley snack bars and

granola bars (General Mills)

Nabisco Bars (Kraft)

PowerBar (Nestle)

Quaker Granola Bars

Non-GMO

Amy’s

Annie’s

Bob’s Red Mill, organic line

Casbah (Hain-Celestial)

Dr. McDougall’s Right Foods

Eden certified organic grains

Fantastic Foods

Field Day

Ian’s Natural Foods

Kamut

Lotus Foods

Lundberg Family Farms

Organic Planet

Rising Moon

Seeds of Change (organic meals)

Sensations

Sunridge Farms

Trader Joe’s store brand

Vita-Spelt pasta

Whole Foods 365

May Contain GMO

Ingredients

Betty Crocker meals (General Mills)

Knorr (Unilever)

Kraft Macaroni & Cheese meals

Near East (Quaker Oats

Company / Pepsico)

Pasta Roni and Rice-A-Roni meals

(Quaker Oats Company/Pepsico)

GRAINS, BEANS & PASTA

Other than corn, no GM grains are sold on the market. Look for

100-percent wheat pasta, couscous, rice, quinoa, oats, barley,

sorghum, and dried beans (except soybeans).

Non-GMO

Amy’s

Annie’s

Eden

ShariAnn’s certified organic beans

Trader Joe’s store brands

Westbrae certified organic beans

Whole Foods 365

Woodstock Farms

Yves Veggie Cuisine (Hain Celestial)

May Contain GMO

Ingredients

Chef Boyardee

Dinty Moore, Stagg, Hormel

Franco-American (Campbell’s)

CANNED FOODS

Non-GMO

Amy’s

Annie’s

Eden

Emerald Valley Kitchen

Fantastic Foods

Field Day

Green Mountain Gringo

Hain

Health Valley/Westbrae

Imagine Natural

Muir Glen Organic

Rising Moon

ShariAnn’s Organics

Seeds of Change

Trader Joe’s store brands

(Trader Joe’s, Trader Jose’s,

Trader Giotto’s)

Walnut Acres

Whole Foods 365

May Contain GMO

Ingredients

Bertolli (Unilever)

Campbell products (including

Healthy Request, Chunky,

Simply Home, and

Pepperidge Farm)

Chef Boyardee (Con Agra)

Chi-Chi’s (Hormel)

Classico (Heinz)

Del Monte

Healthy Choice (ConAgra)

Hormel products

Hunt’s (ConAgra)

Old El Paso (General Mills)

Pace (Campbell ‘s)

Prego ( Campbell’s )

Progresso products

(General Mills)

Ragu (Unilever)

SOUPS & SAUCES

Many soups and sauces are highly processed, so give the

ingredient lists close attention to avoid the Big Four at-risk

ingredients. Canned foods can be simply vegetables or fruits

packed in water, but many canned foods also contain corn

syrup or sugar which could be derived from GM crops. Look for

less processed canned foods and foods packed only in water

or olive oil (not corn, soybean, canola or cottonseed), and

avoid canned foods containing corn syrup, sugar not labeled

as “cane sugar” and soy ingredients.

 FROZEN FOODS

Many frozen foods are highly processed. Keep an eye out for the

Big Four at-risk ingredients and stay away from frozen foods

that contain them, unless they are marked organic or non-GM.

Non-GMO

A.C. LaRocco

Amy’s Kitchen

Cascadian Farms Organic frozen

meals and vegetables

Cedarlane

Helen’s Kitchen

Ian’s Natural Foods

Linda McCartney frozen meals

Mom Made Meals

Morningstar Farms

(Organic line ONLY)

Rising Moon

The Simple Soyman

Trader Joe’s store brands

Woodstock Farms

May Contain GMO

Ingredients

Banquet (ConAgra)

Bertolli (Unilever)

Boca, unless labeled organic

(Kraft)

Celeste (Pinnacle Foods)

Eggo Waffles (Kellogg)

Gardenburger

Green Giant frozen meals

(General Mills)

Healthy Choice (ConAgra)

Kid’s Cuisine (ConAgra)

Lean Cuisine (Nestle)

Marie Callender’s (ConAgra)

Morningstar Farms, Morningstar

Farms Natural Touch, unless

labeled organic (Kellogg)

Rosetto Frozen Pasta (Nestle)

Stouffer’s (Nestle)

Swanson (Campbell’s)

Tombstone (Kraft)

Totino’s (Smucker’s)

Voila! (Birds Eye/Unilever)

CONDIMENTS, OILS, DRESSINGS & SPREADS

Unless labeled explicitly, corn, soybean, cottonseed, and

canola oils probably contain genetically modified products.

Choose pure olive, coconut, sesame, sunflower, safflower,

almond, grapeseed, and peanut oils. Also choose preserves,

jams, and jellies with cane sugar, not corn syrup.

Non-GMO

Annie’s

Bountiful Bean

Bragg’s liquid amino

Carrington Farms Flax Seed

Crofter’s Organic

Drew’s salad dressing

Eden

Emerald Cove

Emperor’s Kitchen

Emerald Valley Kitchen

Field Day

Follow Your Heart

Harvest Moon Mushrooms

I.M. Health SoyNut Butters

Ian’s Natural Foods

Krazy Ketchup

Maranatha Nut Butters

Miso Master

Muir Glen organic

tomato ketchup

Nasoya

Newmans Own Organic

Ruth’s

The Simple Soyman

Spectrum oils and dressings

SushiSonic Asian Condiments

Trader Joe’s store brands

Tropical Traditions

Vegan by Nature Buttery Spreads

Vigoa Cuisine

Whole Foods 365

Wholemato

Woodstock Farms

May Contain GMO

Ingredients

Crisco (Smucker’s)

Del Monte

Heinz

Hellman’s (Unilever)

Kraft condiments and dressings

Mazola

Pam (ConAgra)

Peter Pan (ConAgra)

Skippy (Unilever)

Smucker’s (except their “Simply

100% Fruit” line of preserves)

Wesson (ConAgra)

Wish-Bone (Unilever)

SNACK FOODS

Look for snacks made from wheat, rice, or oats, and ones that

use sunflower or safflower oils. There is no GM popcorn on the

market, nor is there blue or white GM corn.

Non-GMO

Barbara’s (organic line)

Bearitos/Little Bear Organics

(Hain Celestial)

Earthly Treats

Eco-Planet

Eden

Field Day

FritoLay Lay’s Naturals

potato chips (“Naturals”

potato chips ONLY)

Garden of Eatin’

Grandy Oats

Hain Pure Snax/Hain Pure Foods

Health Valley

Ian’s Natural Foods

Kettle Foods

Kopali Organics

Late July Organic Snacks

Mary’s Gone Crackers

Namaste Foods

Nature’s Path Organic

Newman’s Own Organics

& Newman’s Own

(except salad dressing)

Peeled Snacks

Plum Organics Tots

Revolution Foods

Tasty Brand

Ruth’s

Simple Sweets

Sunridge Farms

Safeway O organic brand

Trader Joe’s store brand

Woodstock Farms, organic

May Contain GMO

Ingredients

FritoLay (Lay’s, Ruffles, Doritos,

Cheetos, Tostitos)

Hostess Products

(Interstate Brands)

Keebler (Kellogg’s)

Kraft (Nabisco, Nilla Wafers,

Oreos, Ritz, Nutter Butter,

Honey Maid, SnackWells,

Teddy Grahams, Wheat

Thins, Triscuit)

Pepperidge Farm (Campbell’s)

Pringles

Quaker Oats Company

SWEETNERS

Many sweeteners, and products like candy and chocolate that

contain them, can come from GMO sources. Look for organic

and non-GMO sweeteners, candy and chocolate products

made with 100% cane sugar, evaporated cane juice or organic

sugar to avoid GM beet sugar, and watch out for soy lecithin in

chocolates and corn syrup in candies.

The sweetener aspartame is derived from GM microorganisms.

It is also referred to as NutraSweet® and Equal® and is found

in over 6,000 products, including soft drinks, gum, candy,

desserts, yogurt, tabletop sweeteners, and some pharmaceu-

ticals such as vitamins and sugar-free cough drops.

Non-GMO

C&H Pure Cane Sugar

Brer Rabbit molasses

Eden

Florida Crystals (organic,

natural and demerara)

Grandma’s Best Molasses

Sweet Cloud

Tropical Traditions

Trader Joe’s brand

(Pure cane sugar, raw sugar,

brown sugar, organic sugars)

Wholesome Sweetners (organic

sugars, molasses, blue agave

syrups, Organic Zero)

Woodstock Farms (organic)

May Contain GMO

Ingredients

Crystal Sugar

(American Crystal)

Big Chief sugar

(Michigan Sugar Company)

Equal

GW sugar (Western Sugar)

Nutrasweet

Pioneer sugar

(Michigan Sugar Company)

White Satin sugar (Snake

River/Amalgamated Sugar)

CANDY & CHOCOLATE PRODUCTS

Non-GMO

Chocolove

Endangered Species Chocolate

Ghirardelli Chocolate

Green & Black’s Organic Chocolate

Kopali Organics

Lindt Chocolate

Newman’s Own

Nonuttin’

Woodstock Farms (organic)

May Contain GMO

Ingredients

Hershey’s

Mars, Inc.

Nestlé

(Crunch, Kit Kat, Smarties)

Toblerone (Kraft)

Candy

 Non-GMO

Jelly Belly

Pure Fun Confections

Reed’s Crystallized Ginger

candy (certified organic)

St. Claire Organic

Sunridge Farms

May Contain GMO

Ingredients

Hershey’s

Lifesaver (Kraft)

Mars (Wrigley’s, Skittles,

Starburst)

Nestlé

SODAS, JUICES

& OTHER BEVERAGES

Most juices are made from GMO-free fruit (avoid papaya

though, as it could be GMO), but the prevalence of corn-based

sweeteners—e.g. high-fructose corn syrup—in fruit juices is

cause for concern. Many sodas are primarily comprised of

water and corn syrup. Look for 100-percent juice blends.

 Non-GMO

After the Fall organic juices

Big Island Organics

Blue Sky

Cascadian Farm

Crofters Organic

Eden

Odwalla

Quinoa Gold

R.W. Knudsen organic juices

and spritzers (Smucker’s)

Santa Cruz Organic (Smucker’s)

Sea20 Organic Energy Drink

Teeccino Herbal Caffe

Walnut Acres Organic Juices

May Contain GMO

Ingredients

Coca-Cola (Fruitopia, Minute

Maid, Hi-C, NESTEA)

Dr. Pepper Snapple Group

(Dr. Pepper, 7Up, A&W,

Snapple, Hawaiian Punch,

Sunkist, Crush, Canada Dry,

Mott’s juice, Squirt, Sun Drop,

Schweppes ginger ale,

Vernors, Country Time,

Clamato, IBC root beer,

Nantucket Nectors, Stewart’s,

Orangina, Diet Rite,

Hires root beer)

Hansen Beverage Company

Hawaiian Punch

(Procter and Gamble)

Kraft (Country Time, Kool-Aid,

Crystal Light, Capri Sun, Tang)

Libby’s (Nestlé)

Ocean Spray

Pepsi (Tropicana, Frappuccino,

Gatorade, SoBe, Dole)

Sunny Delight (Procter and

Gamble)

Swiss Miss (Con Agra)

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