We shouldn't treat every possible new food as having a significant risk of an effect 30 years later unless there's a specific reason (plausible mechanism).
Why? Especially when the discussion is not about banning the food but about people's right to know that they are eating a new food.
But even if that's true it's besides the point because GMOs aren't "a food" but a group of a large amount of different foods.
unless there's a specific reason (plausible mechanism).
Letting plants produce poisons to not get eaten by insects suggest to me a plausible mechanism that involves the poison also harming humans.
Why?
Because if we're too suspicious, we pay the opportunity cost of whatever makes it an attractive new food in the first place.
the discussion is not about banning the food but about people's right to know that they are eating a new food.
The problem is that this bakes in certain assumptions about what makes a food new in a potentially dangerous way and so requires mandatory labeling.
Agricultural technology is always changing. We don't require labeling for most of the changes, even though our prior for their potential danger might be much higher tha...
Basically: How does one pursue the truth when direct engagement with evidence is infeasible?
I came to this question while discussing GMO labeling. In this case I am obviously not in a position to experiment for myself, but furthermore: I do not have the time to build up the bank of background understanding to engage vigorously with the study results themselves. I can look at them with a decent secondary education's understanding of experimental method, genetics, and biology, but that is the extent of it.
In this situation I usually find myself reduced to weighing the proclamations of authorities: