Should New Zealand Genetically Modify Crops For Economic Purposes? Essay

Genetically modified crops are harmful to humans and the environment and shouldn't be used. Agriculture should proceed in harmony with nature and nature only. That is why some people have decided to buy organically grown food. From their experiences with organic food, they believe that the organic system can be economically practical. This system also provides a wide range of environmental and social benefits, and most importantly, it enables consumers to make a choice about the food they eat. According to Diana Brander, an American biology teacher, we should have the choice of the type of food we eat.

Wikipedia defines genetic modification as the “mutation, insertion or deletion of genes.” Consider that for over 14,000 years, humans have been using the practice of selective breeding by where only those organisms with desirable traits are used to breed the

Genetic modification of organisms is something the human race has been doing for thousands of years, starting with the first domestication of animals around 10,000 years ago. (Root, 2) Many of these genetic alterations were at a basic level, an example of this being the cross breeding of dogs to achieve desirable traits. Additionally, importation of new plants or animals into areas they didn’t historically come form, forced adaptations from these organism to survive. More recently, scientists have begun to understand genetic engineering at the DNA level, and expand its use into the altering of plants genetic code. (Goldbas) Scientists are now gaining insight into

"One of the most unscientific and dangerous statements made by biotech proponents is that millions of people in the US have been eating [genetically modified] food for a decade and no one has gotten sick" ("2007 Roulette"). Since the early 80s, there has been speculation on the safety of genetically modified foods, and to this day there is still no definitive answer. Genetically modified foods have many proponents who advocate their safety, but they have just as many critics who claim that genetically modified products are unsafe for human consumption. While there are some health risks associated with consuming genetically modified foods, there isn't enough research to defend the claim that all genetically engineered foods are harmful to

Introduction/Thesis Genetically modified organisms (GMO) are an organism whose genome has been engineered in the laboratory in order to favor the expression of desired physiological traits or the production of desired biological products according to the Encyclopedia Britannica. In grocery stores in the United States, as much as 70 percent of the processed food may contain genetically modified organisms. The same cannot be said for the European Union, who has much tighter regulations regarding the planting and end use of genetically modified (GM) foods. There is a worldwide debate over the safety and benefit of genetically modified organisms and whether they should be allowed on the dinner table.

For the last several decades, the world has been plagued by widespread starvation and poverty. Economies are failing in numerous countries, and developing nations struggle to feed their inhabitants. As a result of the world’s mounting overpopulation, food has become scarce and resources are rapidly dwindling. However, modern science has provided a solution: agricultural biotechnology. Genetically engineered crops represent the bright future of agriculture. Crops like cotton, corn, and soybeans can have genes inserted or deleted into their cell membranes; this modification facilitates pest and virus resistance, drought tolerance, and even provides nutritional enhancement. Genetically altered crops produce much higher

It has been over twenty years since genetically modified crops were initially commercialised. And the debate over if they are good for society or not still rages. It is a polarising topic, wrapped in propaganda and biased attitudes. It has divided the opinions of nations and brought the USA and Europe to the brink of a trade war. The acronym ‘GM’ is weighted down with cultural baggage and, in general society, has come to mean the unnatural mixing of genes by scientists who are playing God. However, genetically modified crops are actually defined as the manipulation of a plant through the insertion of specific DNA sequences to produce a desired trait. This

Farmers, gardeners, and scientists have been genetically modifying crops since the beginning of civilization. Early societies learned how to manipulate crops and food for predetermined growth in their harvest. The practice of genetic modification has ranged from fermentation-the breakdown of sugar to produce alcohol- to hybridization, the process of interbreeding between individuals of different species.

While genetically modified food cause allergies in children, the FDA regulates genetically modified food enough because no genetically modified foods have ever been rejected, there are a lot of agencies regulating genetically modified foods, and there is no proof that genetically modified foods have harmed anyone. Genetically modified foods are a part of our daily lives. They have become so common that consumers have begun to distrust these foods saying they cause allergies, cancer, and other disorders. Some of these people believe that these tests or manipulations harm the organisms. There is also that one person who wants to blame to regulatory agencies for not doing their jobs saying they are not regulating these foods enough.

Genetically engineered food, there are equal causes have also created, or contributed to, a lot of poverty, which prevents people from being able to afford food in the first place if not more important, debates on the socioeconomic ramifications of the way such science is marketed and used. Foods without proper testing could show corporate profitability to be very influential, while a thorough debate and sufficient public participation would ensure that real social and environmental concerns are in fact adhered to. And this pattern would probably indicate to us how other major issues in the future ought to be dealt with. Being said genetically food being processed the wrong way can be a danger to humans, eating foods that are not being watched

For thousands of years, humans have transformed their surroundings and neighboring organisms to suit their needs. The transformation first took place when humans spread seeds onto the earth to grow their own food, and continued when humans reached out to provide food and shelter to other animals in exchange for labor, companionship and sustenance. When early agriculture proved successful, the best and strongest animals and crops were chosen for the next generation. This was the dawn of genetic modification, and it is as old as agriculture itself.

Genetic engineering or modification is surrounded by confusion, this may be due to the wide range of purposes that it is used for, from saving lives to one case 6 years ago where scientists gave some goats the ability to produce spider silk by altering some cells in their mammaries.

With an ever-growing population and the problems of world hunger, there has been a high demand for an increased food supply and a better food supply. Technology has been called upon to meet this challenge. The advent of genetically engineered foods, sometimes called transgenic crops or genetically modified foods, is not a new concept, but the controversy over it is. Can these "frankenfoods" be harmful to humans? What are their effects on the environment? The following paper will focus on such questions as well as providing a better understanding of what genetically modified foods are and how they should be regulated.

Living in a world that is changing constantly and advancing due to technological advances, particularly in the area of molecular genetics. New ways are discovered and implemented to improve what nature has to offer, a variety of species are being genetically modified in order to produce new substances and carry out different functional roles (Ministry for the Environment, 2004). With the use of genetic engineering a gene of interest is introduced into a different species, allowing for a desired trait to be acquired in that species (Hui & Culbertson, 2006). With the introduction of genetic engineering it is now possible to produce crops that produce greater yields, in shorter periods of time and also provide resistance from pests, along with other various beneficial effects (Thomas et al, 2003). Many countries globally have already exercised the use of genetic engineering, however due to the strict regulations in New Zealand, commercial growth is prohibited. It is important to appreciate, understand and think of the dilemma that New Zealand faces in this situation, should New Zealand allow genetically modified food crops to be grown commercially? To answer this question the theory of Utilitarianism and Deontology will be applied.

In most events the goal is to introduce a new trait to the plant, which does not occur naturally in the species, for examples in crops and food. Since from 1960, there are many countries developing using genetic engineering crops. Genetic engineering crops bring a lot of benefit to society, it can fight with hunger world, it has better quality and it is good for environment. However, there are also many negative issue involved in genetic engineering crops such as it can harm the environment, it can be detrimental to human health and it is not safe.