The phrase “you are what you eat” applies to both the food and information that’s taken in. Concerns about whether genetically modified organisms — more commonly known as GMOs — are hazardous have people on both sides of the fence. Some believe they are dangerous, while others believe there is no risk.

What remains a scientifically proven fact is there is no such thing as GMO sugar. 

It does not matter if the sugar came from sugar cane, traditional sugar beets or sugar beets grown from GMO seeds — all of them are genetically identical once processed into sugar, and no lab could identify the processed sugar’s plant source.

But public demand for GMO-free food led to Hershey Co. recently switching from sugar beets to cane sugar even though there is no such thing as GMO sugar. This misconception cost billions of dollars in Minnesota.

According to Klodette Stroh, national sugar chairwoman for Women Involved in Farm Economics and Sen. Mike Enzi’s ag adviser for Park County, the sugar beet industry provides 3,500 jobs and holds a $4.4 million impact in Wyoming. Agriculture as a whole has a $108 million impact for just Park County. 

Considering the obstacles Wyoming and its counties face with the downturn in oil, natural gas and coal, the last thing we need is to have the agriculture industry in jeopardy — particularly over misguided fears of something that literally does not exist. 

Fortunately, no impacts from Hershey’s decision have been felt by our sugar beet farmers in the Big Horn Basin. But there is concern that other sugar customers may follow Hershey’s example for reasons that lack any scientific evidence. 

Powell farmer and vice-chairman of the Western Sugar Cooperative Board of Directors, Ric Rodriguez, called this GMO-free sugar deal a marketing ploy — and we agree. His comparison to labeling brown eggs as free range was a spot-on comparison to feeding on misconceptions. 

The process of turning sugar beets and sugar cane into refined sugar breaks down both plants to the point where all DNA and plant protein has been stripped off and all that remains is sucrose. This is similar to how a beer brat is safe to serve to children since cooking the brat removes all the alcohol. 

Even countries that have bans on GMOs recognize this and accept all sugar imports because they understand there is no such thing as GMO sugar.

In October 2014, Jimmy Kimmel Live went to a farmers’ market and asked people about GMOs, and most did not even know what the acronym stood for or what a GMO actually is.

GMO stands for genetically modified organisms and many crops have been genetically modified to make farming cheaper, more productive and require fewer chemicals. 

For sugar beet seed, the modification brings out a component that naturally occurs in all plants and allows the plant to tolerate glyphosate, which is essentially a type of salt used in Roundup, according to Stroh. 

Prior to GMO sugar beet seeds, several different chemicals were used. Now it’s just one. Meanwhile, little is known about what chemicals are used on imported cane sugar or how much of each chemical was used.

We recognize pesticides and herbicides as a necessity in crop production, but would prefer to go with the route that requires the least amount of chemical treatment in the growing process.