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Biological Basis. There Are Few Topics That Are More Controversial

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Biological Basis There are few topics that are more controversial in our country than the production of genetically modified plants for human consumption. Genetically modified plants are created through transgenic processes that rely on recombinant DNA technology. This is a process in which farmers and crop growers are able to incorporate genetic material that would not normally be innate to the composition of the plant. There are several reasons that this represents a valuable process for farmers. A crop could be made to be grow more resistant to bad weather, destructive illnesses, or bugs and other natural phenomena that hinder the harvest each year. By using recombinant DNA, farmers are able to disrupt natural processes in order to …show more content…

In electroporation, microscopic pores of the cell walls of the plant are utilized to introduce new cell tissue. Scientists have other processes at their avail, including the systematic deactivation of native genetic material that is unattractive to crop growers. These are all ways that genetic modification is used as a tool for building crop harvests that are more attractive to farmers, marketers, and consumers.
Social and Ethical Implications The fact is that the vast majority of people in the U.S. have eaten genetically modified foods, or foods that have ingredients that have been genetically modified. The U.S. is the largest producer of genetically modified plants, with countries in Europe and Asia showing more reticence to rely on this type of food processing (Ronald, 2010). Researchers have shown the roughly 10% of all crops in the world have been genetically modified in some way. This may seem difficult to believe, but genetic modification in some form is an art that dates back thousands of years. In ancient times, crop growers extracted seeds from plants that grew well or which were particularly robust, and abandoned the plants that failed to grow properly in harsh conditions. When conducted over the course of countless generations, this creates a version of genetic modification that has improved agricultural processes and improved the lives of farmers around the world. By relying on genetic modification, crop

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