Are Gmo Foods Safe?

“Should We Care About Genetically Modified Foods?” by John N. Shaw appeared in Food Safety News issue of February 1, 2010, as a feature under the health section on the controversy between the pros and cons of genetically modified foods (Also known as GMO, genetically modified organisms). The main idea of this article is to inform people of the benefits of GMOs . The author, John Shaw received his Bachelor of Science degree in Finance with a minor in Marketing from the University of Arkansas in 2007, where he was a “leadership scholar.” In addition to his studies, he has worked as a research assistant with Food Law LL.M. Director Susan Schneider, interned with Wal-Mart Government and Corporate Affairs division, the Arkansas Attorney General Public Protection Division, and with United States Senator Blanche Lincoln. John has a passion for Food Law, sports, and outdoors. In the article, he states, “ I submit that I am no scientist; merely an interested student.” According to the article, he is passionate and has done sufficient research about the topic to support his argument.

GMO’s are living organisms whose genetic material has been artificially manipulated or changed in a laboratory. GMO stands for Genetically Modified Organism, most GMO’s are common in foods today. The process of creating a genetically modified organism is fairly new, but it is now commonly used, and becoming more frequent in America's everyday meals. When scientist create a GMO, they are creating a hybrid or a modified version of an organism that would not naturally occur in nature. The reasoning behind this is to create a new organism that can withstand diseases, have drought tolerance, or bring more benefits to the consumer. One major question most people have is; “Are GMO’s safe?” The answer to that is NO. Most developed nations consider

In the past few years, farmers in the Midwest have produced Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs), which are found in soils to grow their own crops. Farmers infuse these pesticides and herbicides in food to last longer. Within the majority of biodiversity in GMO’s, farmers incorporate GMO ingredients found in food packages at supermarkets. There has been an intense debate about farmers growing GMO that could potentially endanger consumer health. Farmers invest their time and energy, convincing consumers that GMO foods are safe but still might be hazarded risk. Consumers are anxious as to whether they should consume or not. I realize that consumers are buying healthy foods and that is where Non-GMOs comes into play. In my potential bias, I find that GMOs are unsafe because the foods contains more pesticides found in food products, which causes adverse health effects in consumers.

As humans advanced into an agricultural based society, they started to breed different strains of plants in hoping to get the best possible vegetation for food (Monsanto). You will even notice that an average ordinary gardener will do the same thing by taking the best seeds from the healthiest plants. These practices have continued throughout history, but as science expanded, the understanding of breeding and technology of going about altering plants have changed. Now, rather than breeding two similar types of plants together, scientists can directly alter the genetic

How well do people know what they are consuming? Usually, the ordinary American does not think about, let alone research the foods they eat. Previous to all the technological advancements known of today, production of food only consisted of farming, hunting, and harvesting. Today, because of technology, the mass production of food was introduced, letting people have any kind of food, any time of the year. These advancements in the food industry led to the development of Genetically Modified Organisms, also knows as GMO’s. Although this may seem appealing, many researchers, and doctors believe that GMO’s carry a big health risk. Exhausting amounts of evidence show they are not as safe as the producers claim it to be. Aside from the health risks, there is also evidence connecting GMO’s with environmental damage.

In my paper, I will be addressing the ethics of genetically modified (GM) foods. I will be exploring the opinions and beliefs on GM foods from multiple perspectives. This will include perspectives from the U.S.A. and other countries that have employed them. With this, I will use experimental data and surveys to analyze how certain groups of people view GM foods. This will include how income status, gender, college education, and knowledge of public safety and nutrition affect the people’s opinions of this subject. If these individuals view them as ethical will be addressed, and how different methods to improve them will also be discussed. In addition, how the legal system has addressed this issue currently and in the past will be examined,

There is much controversy when discussing the topic of Genetically Modified Organisms. Whether it may concern moral or ethical factors, there always seems to be considerable arguments either defending or arguing against GMOs. Based on research, GMOs prove to be extremely present in our food supply worldwide. Chemical engineering, fertilization, as well as other methods of manufacturing come into question when formulating an opinion on GMOs. Due to the manipulation of biotechnology that effectively yields products like GMOs, the public is not only susceptible to whatever side effects that may come with chemically altered produce but also the mind boggling conscience of consuming food that isn’t necessarily “all natural” or “natural”.

There is more than one side of the debate about whether the usage of genetically modified foods (GMO’s) is good or bad for you. One claim is that GMO’s are bad for you. To begin with, GMO’s are not safe for humans. According to nongmoproject.org, they state that “more than 60 countries around the world, including Japan, Australia, and all of the countries of the European Union, all have restrictions and bans on GMO’s being produced and sold” mainly because they are causing health problems in those countries. Another reason that GMO’s are not beneficial is because they are causing environmental damage to countries that rely on them. According to nongmoproject.org, they claim that, “Over 80% of all GMO’s

Lately, regardless of where anyone looks whether at their local market or in their local grocery store, there is someone selling GMO/GE foods. Numerous individuals do not think twice about what they buy, but as the trend of GMO’s/GE’s continue, these individuals might have to think twice about the effects. However, depending on how they use the GMO’s/GE’s, they have been shown to have both beneficial and damaging effects. Scientists though, continue to look towards the future of food where one day they believe the benefits will out way the dangers and these individuals will not have to fear GMO/GE crops. Nevertheless, the opinion on whether GMO’s/GE’s hold the keys to a truly beneficial or truly dangerous future, remains split.

When it comes to the topic of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs), most of us will readily agree that consumption of GMOs will cause long-term health concerns. A number of people who have been consuming GMOs have recently suggested, that GMOs are safe to consume because they have better nutrition’s than organic foods do. Where this agreement usually ends, however, is on the question of are GMOs beneficial for human consumption?

Genetically modified organisms (GMO) refers to organisms that have undergone a recombinant DNA procedure. The creation of GMO requires three components which include gene to be transferred, vector to carry the gene, and an organism where the gene is introduced. The creation of GMO involves four key steps. The first stage involves the identification of the desired trait from an organism. The Second step is the removal of the desired quality of the original organism which is done by restriction enzymes that recognize specific DNA sequences and cleaves them at particular points. One of the restriction enzymes is restriction endonuclease, and it is mostly isolated from bacteria. In bacteria, this enzyme is used as a defense mechanism due to its ability to recognize and cut foreign DNA. The third step is the insertion of the transgene into another organism. Genetic engineers utilize bacteria and viruses to implant the desired gene or trait to

Genetically modified organism (GMO), are also known as transgenic crops or genetically modified crops. These transgenic crops has a novel combination of genetic material via the use of the modern biotechnology. The sole purpose of creating genetically modified crops is to introduce new attributes that do not exist in plants or to enhance the present trait for better production, more yield and crop quality. In transgenic plants, genes or a gene is inserted via artificial method instead of traditional method of pollination. The inserted gene sequence (known as the transgene) may come from another unrelated plant, or from a completely different species: transgenic Bt corn, for example, which produces its own insecticide, contains a gene from

Are Genetically Engineered Foods (GM foods) harmful? Can we trust the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to make a safe call on rather these foods should be offered to the general public? Should a consumer be knowledgeable of their purchase? I believe so. In my opinion, we have a right to know what we are putting into our bodies. Genetically Engineered Foods should be labeled considering the potential risk to the consumer, the risk to our wild life, and the permanent affects that are sure to follow the development of future generations. GM foods have actually been around quite a long time. The history can be traced back to the 19th century when Gregor Mendel - an Austrian monk and botanist, carried out an experiment wherein he crossbred tall pea species with short pea species to show that certain traits in one species were inherited by other in this process (Nodoushani, Sintay, and Stewart 136). Therefore, the evolution of GM foods was bound to happen; we just need to determine if it is really worth the potential harm it could cause.

In today’s world, there are many topics of high significance for us to discuss and learn about. I believe genetically modified (GM) foods and organisms (GMOs) is one of those topics. Do you know what they are? If you do, do you know if they are good or bad for us and do they affect the environment? When it comes GM foods the public has very strong views and it is in part due to the unanswered questions, or because the answers are not the ones one hoped for. Having enough information about a subject becomes crucial for us to make certain decisions, in particular if it involves our health and environment. In this global debate, one part of the public argues GM foods have not been studied long enough for us to decide if they are harmful to our health, and in the long run if it might also affect our environment.

Genetically modified organisms are living things that have had their DNA modified in some way – either removed, manipulated, or added from another organism. Before the technology was created and explored, trait selection by humans had been accomplished through breeding plants and animals with the desired characteristic. This process is difficult to control, because one specific gene is not being targeted, but an entire genome. The development of the technology increased the level of specificity when creating the desired trait, and is easier to control. Genetic modification also allows genes from different species to be combined. Most commonly, plants are modified to add resistance to pesticides, herbicides, climate changes, and even add nutritional value.