But the company knows of no health or safety concerns associated with using the altered grains, she said. Genetic engineering actually reduces farmers' reliance on pesticides and helps to preserve grains, the spokesman added. The Maine chapter of the National Environmental Trust helped organize the event. Susan Sargent, the group's representative here, said genetically engineered food poses a risk to human health and the environment. That action will protect consumers since independent safety testing has been lacking and since there are no national or state labeling laws on the books to alert consumers to the relatively new wave of food products, said Sargent.
Scientists can engineer food by inserting genes into an organism's DNA in the cell's nucleus.
DNA transmits hereditary characteristics. McKee, who has sponsored legislation to require labeling in Maine, said Campbell's soups contain genetically engineered foods. McKee said food shoppers must start talking about the issue and must start asking tough questions of the industry. John Faulkner, a spokesman for Campbell, in Camden, N.J., said genetically engineered corn and soybean is used in soups made and distributed by the company. The percentage of those products varies with each specific soup, he added.