For related articles and more information, please visit OCA’s Genetic Engineering page, Millions Against Monsanto page and our Myth of Natural page.

Would some of their labels say, “Brewed with pure Rocky Mountain spring water, GMO corn syrup, and fish bladder”?

If you like to kick back now and then with a cold one, you may not have given much thought to what’s in the bottle or can. Perhaps you were reassured by ads with wholesome images of sparkling mountain streams and barley rippling in the breeze, or by slogans like “Budweiser: The Genuine Article.”

The reality is far less appetizing. The list of legal additives to beer includes:

●MSG 
●Propylene glycol (it helps stabilize a beer’s head of foam, though in high quantities it can cause health problems) 
●High-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) 
●Calcium disodium EDTA 
●Caramel coloring  FD&C blue 1, red 40, and yellow 5 
●Insect-based dyes 
●Glyceryl monostearate 
●Isinglass (see below)

You’re unlikely to see any of these industrial-sounding ingredients on a label, because listing ingredients in beer is voluntary. And when ingredients are listed, it may be a partial list-which is even more deceptive than having no list at all.

Several beers, for example, contain HFCS, most of which is genetically modified (GMO), and isinglass, a clarifying agent made from the swim bladder of fish. But check most beer websites and they’ll tell you their “key ingredients” are “roasted, malted barley, hops, yeast, and water.” Perhaps the HFCS and isinglass were not “key” enough to merit inclusion on this list?