Barbara Thomas continues the grassroots fight against genetic modifications to food.

Fragrant steam unfurls from stovetop pots of organic applesauce as volunteers chop carrots, scallions, and lotus root for a Korean condiment called

kimchi

.

It's a chilly afternoon, and the basement of St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church in Collingswood is cozy with the aromas of food and the convivial sounds of its communal preparation.

Who knew political advocacy could be so . . . appetizing?

"If it were just a matter of calling legislators and meeting with [politicians], we couldn't sustain our level of involvement," explains Kathleen McKenna, 40, a mother of five and a founder of GMO Free NJ (gmofreenj.com).

GMO is an abbreviation for genetically modified organisms, a decades-old biotechnology whose use by global food producers is increasingly common - and enduringly controversial.

Altering the DNA of agricultural plants and animals to boost yields and produce desirable characteristics supposedly makes greater quantities of more nutritious and potentially cheaper food for a hungry world.

But opponents like GMO Free NJ are skeptical of research findings and food company assurances that genetically modified foods are not harmful to people who eat them.

"It has not been shown to be safe," insists Barbara Thomas, who founded the group with McKenna following a chance conversation on the porch of Thomas' Collingswood home three years ago.

"We didn't know each other very well," Thomas recalls. "I really wanted to have a table about GMOs at the Collingswood Green Fair, and I thought, 'Is there anyone else in the world who cares this much about it?' "

Turned out there was, and then some.

The two founders note that GMO Free NJ also is concerned about contamination of non-GMO plants by windblown GMO crop seeds. And it wants GMO-involved foods, the production of which they oppose, to at least be labeled as such, so that consumers know what they're getting.

"The companies that use GMOs have spent millions to keep us from knowing whether there are GMOs in our food," says Thomas, 59, a former Shiatsu practitioner.

GMO Free NJ is lobbying the U.S. Senate to reject a recent House bill, which opponents have nicknamed the DARK (Denies Americans the Right to Know) Act. It would, in Thomas' estimation, preclude federal labeling of GMO products.

"For these companies, their worst enemy is an informed consumer," Thomas says. "They are terrified of informed consumers."

By design, GMO Free NJ does not have members; everyone is welcome. As many as 40 people attend its monthly meetings at the Collingswood Public Library, and the group also hosts events to educate and motivate.

"We wanted to be optimistic activists," McKenna says. "Because we're cooking and eating and developing real relationships within the community, it makes this far more sustainable."

Thomas, for whom anti-GMO work with several organizations has become the equivalent of a full-time job, said supporters include many gardeners who trade non-GMO seeds among each other.

"It's a community thing," she says. "We're helping each other. It's up to us to take charge of our food supply and that means taking charge of the seed supply, too."

Last Saturday, about 20 people gathered at St. Paul's for what was essentially a dual workshop in applesauce canning and kimchi fermentation.

Gwenne Baile, a well-known sustainability (and backyard chicken) advocate from Haddon Township, handled the applesauce; Keith Monahan, of Collingswood, guided the kimchi production.

Kimchi is a common condiment in Korea, and I make a mental note to try it someday as I watch volunteers like Shaman Moore spoon gloriously multihued mixes of veggies into mason jars.

"If you don't grow it yourself, you really don't know if it's non-GMO," says Moore, who raises "5,000 square feet" of vegetables in Cherry Hill.

"Food, water, and air should belong to everyone," notes Monahan, 39, who lives in Collingswood.

"It's difficult to do this with air and water. But you can reclaim sovereignty over your food," he says. "And we'll show you how."

Food can be a great unifier, says McKenna, adding that a "wide political spectrum" of people attend the group's meetings and activities.

And learning about, preparing, and preserving foods by using traditional methods such as canning and fermentation can be profoundly empowering, she says.

"We're bringing back old skills, and old recipes."

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