You Are What You Eat

What is small, sticky and found at the grocery store on your fresh produce?

If you guessed the PLU code then you are correct! But what exactly is the PLU code anyway? Besides an easy way for the checkout computer to identify your purchase, the PLU code has so much more meaning that you should be  of. The PLU code is found in grocery stores on produce that is sold in bulk. It stands for the Price Look Up Code and is determined by the International Federation for Produce Standards. The produce either has a 4 or 5 digit code printed on a little sticker and then is applied directly to the produce.

Next time you’re at the store, pay close attention to the PLU code. Here’s why, all organic produce will have a 5 digit code beginning with the number 9 while the conventional produce will have a 4 digit code which begins with the number 4. Genetically Modified Produce (GMO) has a 5 digit PLU number that begins with the number 8.

Most people know the difference between buying organic or not. However, do you know and understand what GMO produce is and where it comes from?

Long story short, in 1992 bio tech companies thought consumers would buy more genetically altered food and since they believed that’s what we wanted, they put a label on it so it can be found easily. The number 8 was added to the beginning of their code, which is perfect for us to now know what NOT to buy! Anything beginning with the number 8! The industry soon realized that we weren’t biting the GMO bait and quickly and decided to remove the number 8 as a part of their code, making it hard to distinguish genetically modified produce.

Ironically, organic producers must follow strict rules to be able to label their foods as “organic”. The most interesting and shocking part of all of this, is companies producing GMO (and let me remind you that means genetically altered foods) do not have labeling restrictions. Now, does that make sense to you?

President Obama has recently stated that he supports mandatory labeling of GMO foods. If you would like to sign the petition, visit www.responsibletechnology.org