Feed The Greedy: Can Gmo's Help End World Hunger?

GMOs, (genetically modified organisms) have been a topic of interest in the social eyes for years. Since they’ve been created, many people have voiced and written about their opinions on GMOs, and whether they are dangerous or not. Created to expand the genetic diversity of crops and animals, many don’t know whether GMOs are good or bad, and neither do researchers. Though there hasn’t been any evidence claiming whether GMOs are good or bad, it has certainly not stopped the public from creating their own opinions. Since no one knows the truth behind GMO, it has opened a window of opportunities for companies including Monsanto to voice their support of GMO, while other companies like the Non-GMO Project voice their

Over the past few decades a new controversy has arisen in the scientific community: should Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO’s) be used in modern society. There are generally two sides to this debate: one being in favor of GMO use and the other against it. Pro GMO activists believe that GMOs can help address hunger issues and help reduce use of pesticides/insecticides while Anti-GMO activists state that it is a threat to the agriculture industry, and should be banned. Both sides have several valid points, however GMO’s are even more complicated from initial glance, and may not be as dangerous as some believe.

Genetically modified food’s, or GMOs, goal is to feed the world's malnourished and undernourished population. Exploring the positive side to GMOs paints a wondrous picture for our planet’s future, although careful steps must be taken to ensure that destruction of our ecosystems do not occur. When GMOs were first introduced into the consumer market they claimed that they would help eliminate the world’s food crisis by providing plants that produced more and were resistant to elemental impacts like droughts and bacterial contaminants, however, production isn’t the only cause for the world’s food crisis. Which is a cause for concern because the population on the earth is growing and our land and ways of agriculture will not be enough to feed

The last few years American’s have been the center of attention when it comes to an example of unhealthy living. In 2013 obesity became recognized as a disease in order to help aid the fight for a healthy future. Fingers are being pointed at every company and government branch possible on who is to blame for the current crisis. One thing people are able to agree on is that the food we are eating is the main cause of the health crisis in America. At the heart of this debate is the discussion on genetically modified organism, or GMO foods.

In an ever changing world, there are only a few things that are certain that all people need. It is said that a human can last three minutes without air, three hours without shelter, three days without water, and three weeks without food. The typical American farmer in 2017 feeds about 155 people compared to the 25.8 people in 1960. The thought of genetically modified organisms is nothing more than just a regulatory muddle. Agriculture is such a widely conversed topic however, through extensive research, international experiments, and general education, it is clear that genetically modified organisms (GMO’s) are safe on all aspects as well as necessary to continue to feed the people.

The world population is expected to increase by 38% in the next 35 years. That is an increase from 6.9 billion in 2010 to 9.6 billion in 2050. The U.S. population is projected to grow by 89 million residents from 2010 to 2050 and reach 401 million (Kochhar). This large increase in population will put a major strain on industries to keep up with rising demands for the basics of life; food, water, and shelter. Which industry will be hit the hardest? Agriculture. The agriculture industry is responsible for feeding the world. As the population grows they will have to maximize yields of their crops while continuing to produce top quality products desired by all citizens.

Genetically modified foods, known as GMFs, are an extremely controversial subject. By definition, GMO’s are, “organisms whose genome has been altered by the techniques of genetic engineering so that its DNA contains one or more genes not normally found there.” Scientists genetically engineer these foods to, for example, contain an additional vitamin or weather withstanding qualities. Relatively recently, Kevin O’Leary, who was in favor of GMFs, and Rachel Parent, who was against them, had a televised debate on O’Leary’s talk show. While both sides proved valid points, O’Leary’s argument seemed the most convincing, with multiple data points and references. While genetically modified foods have many obvious benefits and drawbacks, the good seem to outweigh the bad on a global scale. GMFs can increase nutrition in third world countries, stop the world wide issue of waste, and even slow global warming and deforestation in our environment.

Well over 80 percent of crops and foods that people eat everyday are genetically modified, many people do not know this. Genetically modified foods (GMO’s) can ruin the world and more importantly the physical and mental health of humans. This problem can ultimately lead to the end of the world, the only way to fix the problem is to stop producing GMO foods. The world struggles on whether or not GMO foods are good to eat, or if the need to find a way to stop making these types of foods. People need to know that GMO’s are not good for their bodies and that they can cause environmental damage, also a lot of health problems. Everyone needs to come together and get rid of GMO's, so they world will not come to an end.

The human population is growing rapidly. With the growth in the human population, the demand for food is also growing at an unprecedented rate. Arguably, farms are unable to naturally provide the world’s population the food needed by natural means. This may seem like a big issue, but humans came up with an ingenious solution: genetically modified organisms, commonly known as GMO’s. Genetically modified food has been able to offset the worlds growing demand for food, and all our food problems seem to be solved. Or have they? I will use information from: Wendell Berry’s, The Pleasures of Eating, Jon Entine and JoAnna Wendel’s, 2000+ reasons Why GMO’s Are Safe to Eat, Robin Mather’s, The Threats from Genetically Modified Foods, along with references from Food Inc., to explain how genetically modified food is being used in a way that negatively affects the livestock, our health, the ecosystem, and the potential threats genetically modified crops have on our future.

Page’s article starts by describing an ideal world, where in which people could always choose if they wanted to consume genetically modified food products or not. He then argues that this is not a perfect and ideal world, where billions of people are starving because there is not enough food. He also says that this number will continue to grow as the earth’s population continues to grow and farming becomes more expensive. He then claims that farming is contributing to global warming and the world needs a more efficient production of food.

As a society we tend to disagree with each other on many topics especially social issues and on the importance of them, but we can all agree that world hunger is one of the main problems. World hunger is led by death, poverty, and so much more, and for years we have tried to find ways to stop it, but it’s hard since our world is expanding. The greater our population, the more mouths we need feed, and since we already have more than half of our population starving the fear is that we will run out of food. This is where the idea of genetically modified foods is presented as a solution to help and fix these age long question about hunger. Genetically modified foods have been proven to have some good benefits in helping out the world;

In the documentary Food Inc, directed by Robert Kenner, it highlights the perspective of those who oppose Monsanto and other companies that are modifying the food production industry by implementing GMO’s into their seeds. GMO’s, or genetically modified organisms, are living organisms that scientists have in some way changed the genome of to have the resulting organism, such as a seed or crop in the case of Monsanto, express a desired trait. Many think that genetically modifying a seed alters the genes of the plant to the point that it should no longer even be classified as the same plant. Also, many fear the adverse repercussions of consuming GMO’s and the effects that they have on human health. As said previously, one main contributor to

Genetically modified organisms are created through high tech transfers of selected genetic material from one organism to another. The goal of this genetic engineering process is to create new varieties of plants and animals with chosen characteristics. Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are becoming more and more prominent in today’s marketplace, so it is important to understand what they are and some of the issues they raise. The question facing society, therefore, is “how” biotechnology and genetic engineering will be used. Observers continue to ask whether biotechnology will ease human suffering by curing diseases and eradicating hunger, or whether it will unleash a storm of moral and ethical transgressions.

Based on the projected benefits of GMOs, it is reasonable to ask and address the question of whether GMOs are capable of alleviating the societal issues of world hunger and poverty.

Genetically modified crops have been held up against several ethical and scientific scales of measurement. The outcome has been the discovery of several benefits and drawbacks, or at least the speculation of said benefits and drawbacks. The purpose of those papers is to weigh evidence, arguments, judgments and the like. To find out whether the benefits of the benefits of genetically modified crops outweigh the disadvantages. Much of the opposition for genetically modified like W.H.O apply an arsenal of approaches to world hunger yet refuse to apply these genetically modified to world hunger based on unfounded speculations about possible long term problems whilst ignoring the great benefits which to be derived from genetically modified crops. For example, genetically modified crops have been used to target specific nutrient deficiencies in Africa. Judging from the