Toxic Tacos? the Case of Genetically Modified Foods Essay example

“Should We Care About Genetically Modified Foods?” by John N. Shaw appeared in Food Safety News issue of February 1, 2010, as a feature under the health section on the controversy between the pros and cons of genetically modified foods (Also known as GMO, genetically modified organisms). The main idea of this article is to inform people of the benefits of GMOs . The author, John Shaw received his Bachelor of Science degree in Finance with a minor in Marketing from the University of Arkansas in 2007, where he was a “leadership scholar.” In addition to his studies, he has worked as a research assistant with Food Law LL.M. Director Susan Schneider, interned with Wal-Mart Government and Corporate Affairs division, the Arkansas Attorney General Public Protection Division, and with United States Senator Blanche Lincoln. John has a passion for Food Law, sports, and outdoors. In the article, he states, “ I submit that I am no scientist; merely an interested student.” According to the article, he is passionate and has done sufficient research about the topic to support his argument.

In the essay “Genetically Modified Food: Watching What We Eat,” by Julie Cooper, she argues against the rampant use of genetically modified food (GMO) without any current form of regulation. Cooper discusses the possibility of health risks to those consuming foods with altered genes and the food’s capabilities to have far-reaching health risks. She continues with a discussion as to how and why the creation and use of the GMOs have become so unregulated. She then discusses the response, which is the public’s cry for their right to make informed choices. Other topics discusses are the political, environmental, and corporate ramifications of the rise of GMOs.

Second, should Taco Bell continue to use approved genetically modified substances in its food? Third, which steps should Taco Bell take in order to communicate with Kraft? Fourth, what brand damage has been caused, if any? And how can it be mitigated? Fifth, should Taco Bell contact media outlets regarding this issue or allow Kraft to take the lead given that it manufactured the corn shells?

GM foods are in the middle of many controversial issues; primarily these are addressed by conflicts over the relative pros and cons of GM foods. Major biotech companies like ‘Monsanto ' and ‘Cargill ' are promoting GM foods by focusing only on their beneficial aspects, giving least importance to their negative effects on safety, environment and biodiversity. On the other hand, governmental regulators and nongovernmental organizations, along with some scientists, are strictly opposing this type of blind promotion of GM food by enlightening the people on their negative effects The controversies associated with GM foods include issues such as safety, environmental benefits and risks, biodiversity, and ethical and social considerations.GM foods are implicated for adverse human health risks like people being allergic to it, environmental hazards such as development of super weeds, and pesticide and antibiotic resistance in disease causing organisms. On the other

Problems/Harms: Serious health risks of genetically modified foods are ignored in order to benefit greedy billion dollar corporations.

Next, the authors write about how food has been modified throughout the years. They use the example of “cultivated rice, wheat, corn, soy, potatoes, and tomatoes have very little in common with their ancestors.” They use this example to go on to reveal that genetically modifying foods is nothing more than hybridization, or the mating of different plants of the same species to integrate the desired traits from several different varieties into a leading variety. The authors use the example of the tomato and how it is commonly bred with wild tomatoes to make the plant more resistant to pathogens, nematodes, and fungi while eradicating any unwanted traits from the wild plant such as toxins. This example, as a whole is a brilliant use of ethos. It displays that genetically modified foods are healthy and safe because it compares this new technology to a technique that has been done for thousands of years that has never been thought of as dangerous. More importantly, this comparison shows that the authors are credible and that they use their evidence wisely and correctly.

The lawsuit, filed on behalf of California consumers who bought food from Chipotle after April 27, 2015, says that the advertising campaign is deceptive and misleading because many menu items do contain GMOs and that the plaintiff was injured “by purchasing (or overpaying for) Chipotle’s Food Products” (page 18). and that “[p]laintiff would not have purchased Chipotle’s Food Products (or paid as much for it) had she known the truth” (page 19).

1) What are the ethical issues in this case? There are a few ethical issues in this case, making genetically engineered food and distributing to the public without the publics knowledge is unethical. Another ethical issue is not knowing what side affects of the engineered food will do to humans in the long term. It is still not determined whether or not some of these GM foods will cause health problems in humans in the long run and should be tested like new drug have to be tested. It seems to me that the government is not as strict on GM foods like they are on new drugs being tested.

Critics fear that genetically engineered products are being rushed to market before their effects are fully understood. Anxiety has been fueled by reports of taco shells contaminated with genetically engineered corn not approved for human consumption; the potential spread of noxious "superweeds" spawned by genes picked up from engineered crops; and possible harmful effects of biotech corn pollen on monarch butterflies.

(Visual aid)According to Mike Adams, author of an article for Huffington Post in 2012 titled New GMO Study: Rats Fed Lifetime of GM Corn Grow Tumors, in a study that has been labelled “the most thorough research ever published into the health effects of GM food crops,” researchers fed rats the same kind of GM corn that is used in our potato chips and corndogs, and measured the results against a control group over their lifetime. The researchers found that “The animals on the GM diet suffered mammary tumors, as well as severe liver and kidney damage. The researchers said 50 percent of males and 70 percent of females died prematurely, compared with only 30 percent and 20 percent in the

Dr. Praphul Joshi 10/23/2013 Controversial Public Health Issue There are several controversial issues confronting us today; from Universal Healthcare (Obama Care) to Stem Cell research, to vaccinations, to genetically engineered (GE)/genetically modified (GM) foods. However, I shall look at genetically modified foods as the controversial issue for this article. I shall look at an article from the mass media about this controversial public health issue and place emphasis on the message the document wants to convey and address any biases that may be within. In addition, I shall provide additional data or facts from another article to see if it supports or refutes the controversial message. It is my intention that this article will provide some clarity on genetically modified foods confronting us in the United States and the world over. Since the successful cloning of Dolly, the sheep, in July 5, 1996, Biotechnology has been praised and castigated at the same time.

In this research project, the question that initially guided my ideas was “How safe are Genetically Modified Organisms?" Beyond further investigation of the topic, I took the route of GM Feed to assess the animals that are being prepared for our consumption. Therefore whether there is some sort of GM contamination in the body of the animals with a GM diet, it allows me to make my own stance on the potential risks and safety of GMOs for animals and humans. With conductive research on scholarly articles and journals that investigate the study of animals fed GM Crops, I plan to explain to my audience that GM foods have more benefits

Genetically modified food is a topic of intensive debate that has caused a lot of controversy over the years, basically due to a lack of knowledge about genetic engineering and large amounts of misleading information within mass media. Genetically modified foods have recently gathered more attention since environmental and health organizations have actively rejected genetically modified foods for various reasons. Genetically modified foods have the ability to resolve problem of famine and malnutrition in the world, also produce greater yields, decrease pesticides and herbicides usage, and improve the nutritional value of food. While the benefits of GMOs to our society have been widely discussed, their effect on our health is still a controversial

Many Americans consume thousands of pounds of genetically modified foods every day. Throughout the 21st century, genetic engineering tremendously impacted new research in pharmaceutical and forensic science. During that time, it also revolutionized the food in America and many other countries around the world. Using Recombinant DNA biotechnology on crops and farm animals helps improve nutrition and quantity of foods. However, crops that are altered with hybrid genes can also contain chemicals harmful to humans. By using developed biotechnology, scientists are able to inject viruses and bacteria into the embryos of plants to produce genetically modified crops (). The same is applied for transgenic farm animals to increase the size of the

Could it be that there are dirty little secrets lurking inside the foods you put on your table? “Do you really know what’s inside the tomato you just put on your salad? Do you care to know if that cheeseburger you just ate is not infused with liquid nitrogen?” There are no notices, no warnings and most definitely no labels. Genetically modified food (GMF, GM Crops, or Bio-Food) are the norm in America today. Some even say we are just another Human Experiment for our American Government. While others claim if it weren't for scientists and their experiments we would never have discovered genetics and DNA.