Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) are plants or animals that have been produced using genetic insertion or deletion via technology (also called genetic engineering or GE). Merged DNA from different species creates combinations of plant, animal, bacteria and/or virus genes that cannot occur in nature or in traditional crossbreeding.
Our goal was to determine the presence or absence of GMO markers in USDA Organic Certified and in Non-GMO Project food products. We investigated only corn or soy-based products that were purchased from many types of retailers. Our study was limited to products that contained a label for USDA organic certification and/or Non-GMO Verified Project. DNA from each product was extracted, tested for purity, and examined for specific markers denoting the presence of genetic modification. Modified DNA was amplified using PCR techniques and tested against standards on electrophoretic agarose gel. Based on these results, we detected evidence of genetic modification in 75% of soy and 83.3% of corn claiming USDA Organic Certification and 0% of soy and 100% of corn claiming Non-GMO Verified Certification.
","abstract_html":"<p>Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) are plants or animals that have been produced using genetic insertion or deletion via technology (also called genetic engineering or GE). Merged DNA from different species creates combinations of plant, animal, bacteria and/or virus genes that cannot occur in nature or in traditional crossbreeding. <p>Our goal was to determine the presence or absence of GMO markers in USDA Organic Certified and in Non-GMO Project food products. We investigated only corn or soy-based products that were purchased from many types of retailers. Our study was limited to products that contained a label for USDA organic certification and/or Non-GMO Verified Project. DNA from each product was extracted, tested for purity, and examined for specific markers denoting the presence of genetic modification. Modified DNA was amplified using PCR techniques and tested against standards on electrophoretic agarose gel. Based on these results, we detected evidence of genetic modification in 75% of soy and 83.3% of corn claiming USDA Organic Certification and 0% of soy and 100% of corn claiming Non-GMO Verified Certification.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Phelps, Ryan Loren"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Science","degree_level":null,"degree_discipline":"Department of Agriculture","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Martin Stone (Director), Todd Willian, and Elmer Gray"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2015,"date_issued":"2015-10-01T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2015-10-01T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T06:08:52Z","subjects":["GMO","organic food","soybeans","corn","Agriculture","Food Science"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://digitalcommons.wku.edu/theses/1548","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Martin Stone (Director), Todd Willian, and Elmer Gray"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Phelps, Ryan Loren"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Department of Agriculture"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Science"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["GMO","organic food","soybeans","corn","Agriculture","Food Science"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://digitalcommons.wku.edu/theses/1548"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) are plants or animals that have been produced using genetic insertion or deletion via technology (also called genetic engineering or GE). Merged DNA from different species creates combinations of plant, animal, bacteria and/or virus genes that cannot occur in nature or in traditional crossbreeding.
Our goal was to determine the presence or absence of GMO markers in USDA Organic Certified and in Non-GMO Project food products. We investigated only corn or soy-based products that were purchased from many types of retailers. Our study was limited to products that contained a label for USDA organic certification and/or Non-GMO Verified Project. DNA from each product was extracted, tested for purity, and examined for specific markers denoting the presence of genetic modification. Modified DNA was amplified using PCR techniques and tested against standards on electrophoretic agarose gel. Based on these results, we detected evidence of genetic modification in 75% of soy and 83.3% of corn claiming USDA Organic Certification and 0% of soy and 100% of corn claiming Non-GMO Verified Certification.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Testing USDA Certified Organic and Non-GMO Verified Project Labeled Foods for the Presence of Genetic Modifications"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Martin Stone (Director), Todd Willian, and Elmer Gray"],"dc:creator":["Phelps, Ryan Loren"],"dc:description.abstract":["Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) are plants or animals that have been produced using genetic insertion or deletion via technology (also called genetic engineering or GE). Merged DNA from different species creates combinations of plant, animal, bacteria and/or virus genes that cannot occur in nature or in traditional crossbreeding.
Our goal was to determine the presence or absence of GMO markers in USDA Organic Certified and in Non-GMO Project food products. We investigated only corn or soy-based products that were purchased from many types of retailers. Our study was limited to products that contained a label for USDA organic certification and/or Non-GMO Verified Project. DNA from each product was extracted, tested for purity, and examined for specific markers denoting the presence of genetic modification. Modified DNA was amplified using PCR techniques and tested against standards on electrophoretic agarose gel. Based on these results, we detected evidence of genetic modification in 75% of soy and 83.3% of corn claiming USDA Organic Certification and 0% of soy and 100% of corn claiming Non-GMO Verified Certification.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://digitalcommons.wku.edu/theses/1548"],"dc:subject":["GMO","organic food","soybeans","corn","Agriculture","Food Science"],"dc:title":["Testing USDA Certified Organic and Non-GMO Verified Project Labeled Foods for the Presence of Genetic Modifications"],"dc:type":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Department of Agriculture"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Science"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T06:08:52Z"}