Genetically Modified Organisms: Annotated Bibliography

These concerns are about the potential of illnesses GMOs could cause. An article observes, “In the 20-plus years on the market, GMOs have not caused or contributed to a single illness or death” (“GMO Myths Vs. Facts”). There have not been any traces of illnesses after multiple testing of GMO products. Since there are only ten commercially farmed genetically modified crops in the United States, the possibility of people getting a disease from them is rare; especially because three of the crops are mainly for feeding livestock. People have believed multiple problems are linked to GMOs. For instance, “in 2013, the journal food and chemical toxicology retracted a paper linked to herbicide roundup and round up-tolerant GM corn to cancer and premature death in rats… they found researchers had used too few rats… and the results were inconclusive” (Colbert, par. 16). Since the researchers did not have enough evidence, the possibility of the problem being GMOs are

This article supplies a general overview about genetically modified crops in the United States. I will use the information in my research essay to provide context about the science of GMOs. The source explains how “GM crops were introduced in the U.S. in the mid-1990s.” It details how “the term genetically modified… refers to the transfer of genes between organisms using a series of laboratory techniques for cloning genes, splicing DNA segments together, and inserting genes into cells.” The author comments that “genetically modified is an imprecise term and a potentially confusing one, in that virtually everything we eat has been modified genetically through domestication from wild species and many generations of selection by humans for desirable traits.” In the United States,

Antoniou, M., Robinson, C., & Fagan, J. (2012, June). GMO Myths and Truths. In Institute of Responsible Technology. Retrieved from http://responsibletechnology.org/media/docs/GMO_Myths_and_Truths_1.3b.pdf

Upwards of 75% of food grown in the United States is genetically modified. Meaning that there DNA has been changed to help a specific purpose. There has been a lot of controversy over GMO production. In Europe, GMOs have heavy restrictions or outright bans depending on the country; as of October 3rd, 19 countries have out right banned the cultivation of GMO products. GMO productions should have stricter restrictions with the U.S. government because the health consequences are largely unknown, GMO products are unlabeled and they pose a threat to farmers in their fight against large companies.

Gary Hirshberg (2013), Chairman of Stonyfield Farm, stated that GMOs are genetically modified organism that have been altered with other species that wouldn 't be found in nature. The U.S. Commerce Department and the U.S. Patent Office, both see this to be a new, unique organism, can be equivalent to a non-GMO products. FDA (U.S. Food and Drug Administration) declared that GMOs can be modified to have the same amount of calories, carbohydrates, fiber, and protein, therefore they do not need a label to warning costumers (para. 3). GMOs were first discovered in 1996, and are very common now, most of our soy and corn produces are roughly 90% GMOs in all of US markets. USA is one of the few nations that don 't need to label on GMOs, 64 other countries need an approval label and have not risen food prices (para. 6). Hirshberg announced, as of right now its too early to see the impact that GMOs have on our generation, so no one can yet claim if this is a safe or harmful product to use (para. 7). Hirshberg firmly stated,

Although new label regulations, should relieve some fears, by year 2020, most GMOs will have appropriate labeling. There are institutions within the agricultural community that can help resolve the anxiety that oversees the mandatory regulations, which adhere to the reproduction and distribution of GMOs. The Department of Agriculture (DOA), inspects and normalizes safety concerns of growing of crops, whereas the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), lets us know if foods are safe to consume. One of the most controversial institutions is the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), The EPA protects the environment. Propaganda or misinformation continues to effect the small farmer, allowing the Big Corporations to slip through the cracks on globally- agreed mandatory regulations, testing, and exporting. These processes are critical, and must have approval, whereas the monitoring and data, is preserved for future reference, clarifying “its main objective is to determine whether the GM crop is “substantially equivalent” to its non-GM varieties and whether it poses an allergen risk” (Norwood, Oltenacu, Lorenzo, & Lancaster, 2015, p.

GMOS have been cluttering many parts of the United States for many years but the issues surrounding them have recently made surface. A GMO is a Genetically Modified Organism. In other words, genetically modified means the materials that make up an organism have been altered and artificially engineered somewhere in a laboratory. Scientists create what can be called the ‘ultimate plant’ which are able to sustain life outside normal conditions that make organic plants susceptible to death. In most all cases GMOS are created to sustain the application of a herbicide or other chemicals. It is a more efficient way to get the most out of what nature gives. Some companies who produce GMOS

On recent years, Genetically Modify Organism (GMOs) are becoming a major topic for argument on American consumers. Recent studies are starting to prove how dangerous they are. More animal right groups are coming on how GMOs contribute to animal cruelty. Also, scientist are starring to warn the public on the effects GMO farming has in the Ecosystem. Finally, medical studies conducted in foreign countries show the negative impact GMO foods have on humans.

Case Studies: A Hard Look at GM Crops. Natasha Gilbert in Nature, Vol. 497, pages 24–26; May 2, 2013. www.nature.com/news/case-studies-a-hard-look-at-gm-crops-1.12907

Explain what some of the concerns are regarding GMOs and provide the evidence supporting these concerns

According to Library of Congress (n.d) compared to other countries, regulation of GMOs in the US is relatively favourable to their development. GMOs are an economically important component of the biotechnology industry, which now plays a significant role in the US economy. For example, the US is the world’s leading producer of genetically modified crops. This explains, why Monsanto Company makes more emphasis on improving their biotechnology and teach it to future generations, while EU establishes a strict monitoring of GM products for marketing in regard to the requirement of mandatory labelling rules. On the other hand, in the United States the issue of GMOs are promoted as a benefit for the population and the environment, while in the European Union, biotechnology has been viewed as a new process that requires large regulators by the European Food Safety Authority. It would be the reason because Syngenta's report is focusing on issues related to make crops more efficient and to help farmers meet new emissions requirements, to produce more food while reducing their environmental footprint.

All this agencies work hand in hand to make sure that the products that are being generated under genetically modified organisms are products that are harmless and are up to standard for humans to eat. The government of the United States has a legislation which was passed to ensure that substances which are meant for human consumption are safe. The legislation, Food, Drug and Cosmetic (FD&C) Act states that the food and food ingredients obtained from genetically modified organisms should meet similar safety conditions as those of the traditional bred plants and animals. The FD&C also prohibits false and misleading labelling which does not reveal the true ingredients of food

I will incorporate both scholarly and popular media articles to back it up. The world's leading producers of “Genetically Modified” crops are the United States, Argentina, Brazil, Canada, India and China. In 2006, GM crop production also reached noteworthy levels in Paraguay, South Africa, Uruguay and Australia. Seeing this its obvious that a large portion of the world uses GMO’s. There must be a reason, and a purpose behind a way of life that most countries can agree on and actively use to feed their general population. According to the article written by Justine Alford called “What you need to know about Genetically Modified Organisms”, she poses the questions “Why do we need GMOs?”. To summarize, she is saying that it is a population issue. The population is a worldwide issue in the way that the world is over populated. There isn’t enough food to feed everyone. Simply put, we can’t afford to lose crops due to crop diseases and unexpected weather disasters and climate change conditions. GMOs, she says; are the answer to this problem. GMO crops can fit the climate of the different geographies and conditions of every conditions as they can be genetically altered to fit the conditions. Aside from the benefit of saving dying crops, they can also help with a deficiency of some sort in a select country. Justine says that 250 million in the children of the world have a deficiency of certain key vitamins that the body

France, Germany, Belgium, Austria, all member states of the European Union and also participants of EU’s legislation and policy on GMOs, amongst other EU countries. A policy that is aimed to prevent harmful effects on the environment as well as monitor the safety of humans and animals in the area (Library of Congress, 2015). It is also seen to be one that accurately represents the concerns of local consumers and producers in the area. The success of this policy is due to science-based risk assessment that is designed to protect the health of organisms in the area; the success of this policy has led to no human or animal health related GMO incident in member countries. The United States is currently adhering to the opposite ideal and does not have a federal law relating to the regulation of genetically modified organisms. Furthermore, since the US is so heavily dependent on genetically modified foods, regulations on GMOs are not aimed at restricting production but rather focusing on the nature of production. (Library of Congress, 2015) After learning about the success of a restrictive GMO policy such as the one implemented in the EU, an average American consumer may wonder why the US has not adopted a similar policy? Or why the US might not be able to adopt a comparable federal legislation? The unforeseen issue with the United States government choosing not to restrict the increasingly growing GMO sector, leads to several adverse issues for an average daily consumer. As with

I like this article a lot, it offers a lot of different views of GMO’s. Basically, it first talks about GMO’s and what they are. Then it goes on to talk about the positives of GMO’s and how they are used in successful ways. As you read farther down it has the other side of the argument and that’s some cons of GMO’s. This article would honestly be good for anyone to read if they want to better understand GMO’s.