To the editor,

I farm with my family in Howard County, growing corn, soybeans and sweet corn. As the fifth generation farming our land, we make decisions every day about the care of our crops and the health of our soil. These decisions determine our production practices and impact our yields. They also impact our income, because our farm is, after all, a family business.

One of the decisions we make each year is whether to plant genetically modified crops, also known as GMOs. This technology allows us to be better stewards of the environment. We can grow more crops on less land using fewer pesticides and less water and fuel. It also allows American farmers to safely and effectively feed a rapidly growing global population while keeping food prices relatively low.

According to the U.S. State Department, our farm families will need to produce as much food in the next 50 years as was produced in all previously recorded history to meet this demand.

The Internet is full of scare tactics and misinformation about GMO crops. Regardless of what you may see or hear, the safety and benefits of biotechnology are proven. The FDA, USDA, AMA, National Academy of Sciences, World Health Organization and dozens of other scientific organizations have confirmed that GMOs are as safe for human consumption as non-GMO products.

Farmers have intentionally changed the genetic makeup of all crops grown and livestock raised since domestic agriculture began 10,000 years ago. Every fruit, vegetable and grain that is commercially available today has been altered by human hands, including organic and heirloom seeds.

As a mom and consumer, I shop for food that is healthy and safe to feed my family. I have served my children seedless grapes, tangelos, broccoli and many other modified foods from the time they were ready for solid food.

As a mom and farmer, I am pleased that the U.S. House of Representatives recently passed H.R. 1599, the Safe and Accurate Food Labeling Act. This law creates a national, science-based labeling law that eliminates the confusion created by a patchwork of mandatory state labeling laws for GMOs.

Labeling mandates being pushed in states across the country will cause families to pay more for food.

One recent Cornell study concluded that mandated labeling could cost families as much as $500 a year.

Forcing food companies to produce their goods differently for each state will require an enormous investment and raise consumer prices in the supermarket.

Instead of passing policy that undermines our collective success, we should recognize the many benefits GM crops have provided all of us for more than 20 years.

I urge Senators Coats and Donnelly to stand up for both Hoosier consumers and farmers and support the common-sense approach to GMO labeling passed by the U.S. House of Representatives.

Isabella Chism

Second Vice President

Indiana Farm Bureau

Galveston, Ind.