What are sugar beets?

I'd never heard of sugar beets until a few months ago but apparently they are genetically modified and already on the market.  I came across this story today...which is quite shocking...

Federal Court Finds USDA Broke The Law In Allowing Planting Of Genetically Engineered Sugar Beets

The USDA, according to the article, allowed the planting of GM sugar beets without running the appropriate testing for them to prove that they are safe for humans to eat and that they won't damage the environment.  These sugar beets have already been introduced commercially and Americans have been eating this "sugar" without knowing it.  Since GM foods are not required to be labeled, how can we avoid eating them?  Buy pure cane sugar, but make it Fair Trade cane sugar.  It's so amazing to me that yes we can avoid gmo's but if it's not Fair Trade Certified it is most likely harvested by slaves!  Did you know that gmo's are banned in Europe?  Most Americans don't even know what a GMO is!  Crazy!