The Early Years of Soy Debate

On the Chapter Leaders list, a reader of the recent book, "The Whole Soy Story: The Dark Side of Americas Favorite Health Food," asked how the Weston A. Price Foundation (WAPF) came to their position against soybeans and soy food products. Sally Fallon, one of the founders of the WAPF, replied that her concerns with soy actually predated the founding of the WAPF. Interestingly, she mentions that much of the damning evidence against soy was found in research that was funded by the soy industry!

... I found reports written by the soy industry in the 1970s on how they were trying to get phytic acid and also enzyme inhibitors out of the soy by processing, and how difficult this was to do. I found the Rackis studies showing the damage to the pancreas of rats consuming processed soy protein--these were industry-sponsored studies. I also found the great quote on how they were going to market soy as a health product to the upscale market, in order to then have it accepted by the general public.

For more information on the WAPF's stance on soy, see their introductory Soy Alert! page.