An outpouring of email and social media concerns about a completely blatantly pro-GMO exercise in an eighth grade textbook has prompted the CEO of the book’s publishing company to apologize for the error and vow to make the exercise more balanced in future printings.

William E. Evans, CEO of the Evan-Moor company, offered the following apology on his company’s Facebook page:

A message from the CEO of Evan-Moor:

It has been brought to my attention that one of the activities in our Daily Six Traits Writing books contains a biased article about GMO foods. After reading the article, I must agree completely. I want to thank the parents and educators who brought this to my attention.

It was an error in our authoring and editing processes. The article was intended to present both sides of the issue and did not. Normally this would have been caught by our fact checking processes. Please accept my apology for the error.

I have directed our editorial staff to replace the article when the book is reprinted and to make the new article available on-line free of charge. Those of you who have e-mailed us will receive personal notification when the article is available. We will also post the availability on FaceBook.

On a personal note, my wife and I have contributed to a number of organizations that are campaigning for labeling of GMO foods: Organic Consumers Association, Food Democracy Now and Yes on 522 in Washington State. We do not allow GMO foods in our home, and we would certainly never do anything to promote them in our publications.

Sincerely,
Bill

William E. Evans, CEO
Evan-Moor Educational Publishers

A picture of the original pro-GMO e-book (and printed) exercise from the company Evan-Moor.

It’s definitely interesting to note that Mr. Evans said doesn’t allow GMOs in his own home, and also that he chalked the exercise up to an “authoring and editing error.” It seems like a mistake too large and too calculated to be a mere error, as many online activists and concerned parents have pointed out.

Regardless of how it happened, the important thing is that the situation will likely be remedied and at the very least a “balanced” version of the article will now appear. It’s important for everyone in the GMO Freedom movement to continue to monitor this situation to see what the new online (and printed) exercises look like going forward.

 Anti-GMO Propaganda Victory a “Textbook” Example to Follow

The quick, decisive action taken by the CEO was earned thanks to the work of a dedicated group of online activists and concerned parents, and can serve as a shining example of what can be achieved using targeted, swift social media action in the pursuit of GMO Freedom and Justice.

The credit for this one goes to activist Rachel Pachivas, who has been active on GMO Free USA’s Facebook as well as at marches and other demonstrations.

A subsequent post was made by Occupy Food on Facebook, a venerable and attentive page focused on creating awareness and change for food integrity.

If you haven’t had a chance yet, check out our article on the subject, which was shared to many tens of thousands of people on the More Trees Less Assholes Facebook page (a special thank you goes out to them as well).

Finally, if you helped bring about this achievement in any way, give yourself a big pat on the back and go grab something tasty (and GMO-free, of course) from the fridge: you deserve it!

-Nick Meyer

AltHealthWORKS.com Founder

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