Residents of Rogue Valley, which is known for heavily investing in produce and agriculture in Southern Oregon, recently voted to ban genetically modified crops from the area. This is a monumental achievement for groups who are against genetically modifying crops as they have now gained widespread attention with their victory.

Biotech giants, such as Monsanto, Syngenta and DuPont Pioneer, which all genetically engineer crop seeds, have spent around $900,000 in a campaign to protect their interests, a campaign which eventually failed. On the other hand, companies against GMOs, including organic farmers and environmentally friendly producers, spent less than half of what the large companies did, around $400,000.

Genetically modifying organisms involves a process of inserting genes copied from other animals or plants into the DNA of the crop to be grown. This procedure takes place in a laboratory before the crop is planted in the fields. It is usually done to crops resistant to herbicides and pests, decreasing the possibility of the crops being destroyed before harvest. GMOs have not been shown to be unsafe by any mainstream study. However, those who are against GMOs say that there has not been enough testing to sufficiently prove GMOs are safe.

As far as the legality of genetically modified crops is concerned, the United States generally allows the procedure, except in a dozen or so places around the country where GMOs are limited, including California, Maine, Washington and Hawaii. However, unlike the Rogue Valley in Oregon, most of these areas did not grow genetically modified crops before imposing bans or limitations.

Organic farmers in this case demanded a halt in the production of GMO crops because their organic produce was being contaminated by cross-pollination from the nearby GMO crops. After failing to reach an agreement with the companies, the producers decided to pursue a ballot, which now has resulted in a vote to completely ban GMOs in the county.