Effects Of Eating Or Drinking Genetically Modified Organisms

Most people in the United States don't realize that they've been eating genetically engineered foods since the mid-1990s. More than 60 percent of all processed foods on U.S. supermarket shelves—including pizza, chips, cookies, ice cream, salad dressing, corn syrup, and baking powder—contain ingredients from engineered soybeans, corn, or

According to National Agricultural Statistics Service (2010), over 80% of all soybeans and the majority of all corn produced in the United States is genetically modified, and we have been eating foods containing GMOs for at least a decade. About 75% of all processed foods (snack foods, crackers, breakfast cereals,

It was decided almost 20 years about by the Food and Drug Administration that GMOs do not need to be labeled, despite the consumers’ desire for GMO labeling. Consumers’ demanding to know what is in their food has lead to the proposed legislation of GMO labeling from more than twenty states. Health safety is a large part of the proponents’ argument for GMO labeling (Murray 2016). The consumers right to know, right to choose, and ethical rights are also all reasons for GMO labeling policy. The oppositions’ arguments against mandatory GMO labeling are that it could falsely alarm consumers, impose extra costs on consumers and lead to restricts on consumer choice (Hemphill 2015). There would be more harm than good to come from

No one can escape from genetically modified organism food in the United States. According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), up to the 2014, only 7% of corn, 6% of soybeans, and 4% of cotton were not genetically modified because sugar and oil can be refined with these three ingredients. As a result, the products that are made of sugar or oil contain such genetically modified ingredients because of how cheap it is. In fact, there are around 75% of the processed foods in grocery stores using either corn, soybeans, or cotton as one of the ingredients. For example, corn can be found in hamburgers, French fries, chicken nuggets, soda, ketchup, pudding,

Ever since the first agrochemical tomato was deemed fit for human consumption in 1994, there has been a surge of genetically engineered foods on supermarket shelves. Unlike most European countries, there is no mandate in the U.S. for food companies to label products that contain what are known as “Genetically Modified Organisms”. The foods that sit innocently on grocery shelves next to their organic

With new technology being utilized in the medical, agricultural, and economic aspects of daily living, numerous perilous concerns have risen against the proper usage and non-maleficence of these high-tech mechanics. For about a decade now, genetically modified foods have occupied the shelves of supermarkets and grocery stores across the nation. The ample amount of genetically modified organisms, or GMOs, have sparked many affairs regarding the impact they have on one’s health. The detonation of GMOs, according to the Institute for Responsible Technology, is “the result of a laboratory process where genes from the DNA of one species (bacteria, viruses, insects, animals, or humans) are extracted and artificially forced into the genes of an unrelated plant or animal (Smith).” The timeline of GMOs is rather short, with the DNA being first discovered by Russian scientist Andrei Nikolaevitch Belozersky in 1935. It wasn’t until 1982 that the extracted DNA was approved by the FDA. Hamlin, a form of insulin derived from E. coli, is now permitted to be genetically engineered into produce and meat products. GMO induced foods hit the grocery store in 1994, and the industry rapidly expanded and became the dominant crop by 1999 (Shireen, 2013). A vast majority of processed foods contain GMO-induced ingredients; there is no getting away from them and their harms unless new regulations are set to prevent their sale.

A new kind of foods called the genetically modified foods has been creating a quiet revolution in the American market for the past several years. Scientists are able to produce these new foods by transferring genes from one organism into another across species boundaries. This new technique has been developed to improve the shelf life, nutritional content, flavor, color, and texture of foods. Since 1994, about 45 genetically modified foods such as tomato, corn, soybeans, canola, and potatoes have been marketed in the United States. About two-thirds of foods that are processed in U.S. contain genetically modified ingredients. So, we the people are consuming these foods without realizing the fact that they are not produced naturally.

​Nowadays the majority of the foods that we eat contain genetically modified ingredients (GMO's). People who consume these foods think they are eating healthy but lack knowledge of what really is inside these foods. Consumers should have the right to know everything that's inside the food they're eating. Labeling Genetically Modified Foods is common sense, it should be presented to us just like we have calorie and cholesterol counters on the back of our food. Along with organic farmers, environmental groups, and other consumers, I believe that we should be aware of what foods that are Genetically Engineered by labeling them.

The year 2015 marks the twentieth anniversary of bioengineered crops and genetically modified organisms’ (GMO’s) being grown, harvested and sold across the entire world. The percentage of people who are actually aware of this frankenfoods existence, however, are small in numbers and for a very terrifying reason. Already, labeling laws exist in 64 countries, including Japan, Russia, Australia and Brazil, but are coincidentally nonexistent in North America as a whole. This lack of awareness is the exact reason as to why all genetically modified foods, such as the Flavr Savr tomato, should have mandatory labeling laws placed upon them, similar to those discussed in Proposition 37. To be educated of the negative effects modified foods have on the human body while at the same time being properly informed should be a basic right, not a choice. Hence why the mandating of proper labeling laws in North America is an extremely important subject of discussion for everyone who consumes any sort of food.

America uses 2.4 billions of acres to grow GMOs; by 2012, 28 countries across the world grew GMOs in 3.7 billion acres of land (ISAAA 1). The United States take up more than 50% of that land. Even though so much of America’s crops are genetically modified, the Food and Drug Administration and the United States Department of Agriculture do not require the labelling of genetically modified food products. Producers have the choice of including a GMO-containing label or a GMO-free one (Storrs 1). There is an increased accessibility of genetically modified, GM crop planting has increased from 1 million to 70 million hectares, one hectare equals 100 acres (GMO Compass). In America only one state, Vermont, out of the fifty states in the U.S. is planning to require labels on GMO-containing foods beginning July 2016 (Bailey 1). Act 120, an act delineating the labeling of foods produced by genetic engineering, has caused issues with Vermont and the federal government. The state is facing trials in order to pass this legislation. Labeling of foods in general is not strictly enforced by the government organizations who are accountable for food safety, such as the FDA. There are little regulations that must be met (Storrs 1). Due to the increasing availability of GMO-containing foods, the FDA should require all GM food producers to label their products because consumers need to be aware and GMO-containing foods and organically grown foods have extensive differences.

A popular debate in the United States that’s been ongoing since 1990, is the labeling on Genetically Modified or Engineered foods otherwise known as GMO’s. Genetically engineered food is an unnatural process of plant or meat products. These two products have had their DNA artificially altered in a laboratory by genes from other plants, animals, viruses, or bacteria to produce foreign genes in food. Monsanto, an agriculture company, claims the reason behind this experimental genetic alteration was said to produce a multiplying supply to feed the world. Nevertheless, Americans are in a debate with the government to label genetically engineered food due to several reasons. Labeling genetically engineered ingredients will help consumers determine which products they decide to consume. The FDA published a policy that states they do not require labeling of GMO foods. Americans and people all over the world feel that they should have the right to know what they are purchasing and consuming due to a list of health, environmental, ethical, and religious reasons.

Hence, even though American markets are full of foods containing GM ingredients, the use of labels will create a cleaner, safer, and healthier food industry that appeals to the public interest. While consumers’ ignorance to the production of their foods creates safety issues, these risks can be alleviated by implementing a mandate that will require labels on foods that have been genetically modified. Moreover, it is essential that American citizens begin to tackle the issue of labeling GMOs by spreading the word and raising awareness so that people are more equipped to deal with the problem; in addition, citizens must press the producers of natural foods to label their products as a “non-GMO” and press the government to create a federal, or

Genetically modified organisms, or GMOs, are plants and animals that have been genetically altered using DNA from bacteria, viruses, or other plants and animals. With the many possible benefits of producing GMOs, there are also many possible detriments; thus, the topic is extremely controversial. As of 2013, 26 countries have banned GMOs. On the other hand, 28 countries have commercialized them and another 21 have granted approval for them. One problem the production of GMOs poses is that in the absence of mandatory labeling, people are unaware if their food is genetically modified and therefore cannot make informed decisions on which products to purchase. Those who support GMOs insist that the risks are not scientifically

Over the past few decades the production of genetically modified organisms has become more and more commonplace. Genetically modified organisms, or GMOs, are created by artificially inserting the genes from one organism into another, in order to create a desired protein in the new organism. In the USA it is estimated that over 70% of processed foods found in grocery stores has been in some way genetically modified (Center For Food Safety). Due to limited experimentation and research however, many are unsure about how GMOs affect human health. While the long term effects of genetically modified organisms in humans are yet to be seen, most scientists agree that GMOs are generally safe for human consumption. Genetically modified foods and

Genetically modified organisms are received very differently based on the country in which they are sold. In Europe, consumers are more aware of how natural the food in which they consume is. Therefore, genetically modified foods are frowned down upon. The government has mandated the labeling of genetically modified foods in Europe. The current framework for genetically modified foods in Europe can be used as an example for what the framework should be in America for the labeling of genetically modified organisms (Bauer 2010). Even in China, a country with a notoriously strict government, consumers are weary of genetically modified foods. The Chinese people are so weary of the government’s involvement in the food that, “British supermarkets frequented by Chinese tourists have imposed limits on how many boxes a single customer can purchase”(Larson 2015). In the United States, the government has abstained from labeling genetically modified foods because the power that large food corporations, like Monsanto, have over the