We Live In A World That Is Constantly Evolving And Adapting

Genetically modified foods are produced from organisms that have gone through a process that introduces specific changes to its DNA using genetic engineering. This process allows companies to choose specify traits a crop will display. On the surface this process seems like a technological breakthrough, and it is, however, the topic of genetically modified foods (GMOs) is very complex. There are many aspects of this process we must consider when deciding if GMOs should continue to be sold. Due to many human health, environmental, and economical concerns the sale of all genetically modified foods should be banned.

We are keeping our food reliable through the use of GMOs. GMOs can provide food that can be helpful for conditions in the world. They can be manufactured to fit to threatening conditions, such as drought. They can also be used to withstand diseases that have the potential to cause famine. Blights can cost millions in damages, and with new resistance technology being tested we could save millions of dolars and millions of crops. "Blight-resistant potatoes would be one of the first major foods genetically engineered to incorporate defenses against plant diseases, which annually destroy some 15 percent of the world’s agricultural harvest." These foods can even be modified to prevent bugs from consuming or ruining a crop yield. This resistance to famine can help us become less concerned about starvation due to unfavorable conditions. The crop yield can remain the same. Those opposed to GMOs may claim that they increase pestacides and harm the environment. This is completely false. "It is a matter of fact that GM crops have drastically cut the use of such pesticides. GM cotton, containing a built in insecticide, uses 50% less chemical insecticides. In 1998 around 1000 tonnes less insecticide was used in the US cotton belt than before the introduction of GM cotton. That insecticide was mainly sprayed from planes. Only a small percentage reached its target. The rest drifted into the wider environment killing

We live in a Gilded age of produce. Within the past couple of years, GMOS replaced our original, natural diet with these “genetically altered” foods. GMO, or genetically modified organism, is defined as “a plant, animal, microorganism, or other organism whose genetic makeup has been modified using recombinant DNA methods (also called gene splicing), gene modification, or transgenic technology” (Non-GMO Project). What may be perceived as healthy salad at first glance, may just be a bowl of genetically modified “food”. These are underlying problems not recognized by most of the public. The use of GMOs creates endless risks and pose a threat to the environment, genetic diversity, and future.

In contrast, the counter argument claims that GMOs are unsafe for human consumption. However, GMOs actually improve human health by reducing the amount of pesticides needed for successful crop production. With the use of GMOs in crop production, the amount of pesticide and herbicide application has decreased. To resume, successful crop production is essential to a farmer’s success, which could be why over 18 million farmers throughout the world utilize GMOs. The successful production of crops can be achieved by genetically modifying crops with resistance against insects, weeds, and other threats. Resistance to different stressors has reduced pesticide applications by 8.1 percent. Additionally, crops that are modified to be resistant to specific

There are two types of GMO; herbicide tolerant and self-generating insecticide. “The herbicide tolerant variety are designed to survive high doses of toxic weed killers” (Must-Avoid Foods: Linking GMO to Toxicity and Disease, 2012). When the toxic weed killers get used on these crops, some of the toxins end up in the weed in the food. What is alarming is that the toxic weed killers are actually linked to birth defects, cancer, and hormone disruption (Must-Avoid Foods: Linking GMO to Toxicity and Disease, 2012). The self-generating insecticide such as corn, produces their own insecticide in each and every cell (Swanson, Genetically Modified Organisms and the deterioration of health in the United States, 2013). When insects eats the corn or any other food with the insecticide, Bacillus thuringiensis (BT) toxin, the insecticide breaks open the stomach of insects in order to kill them. Although this supposedly applies only to insects, studies have shown that the BT-toxin can also break the wall of

In 2011, more than 66 million hectares of GMO plants were grown throughout the world. These plants were “engineered to produce a bacterial toxin lethal to some insects but harmless to people,” (Carrington 1). By altering the plant’s genes, scientists were able to design the plant in a way so it could control the pest population without the need of using as many chemicals in comparison to pesticides. Therefore altering the plant’s genes proves a method for controlling pest populations because it reduces the amount of harmful chemicals that are used. Pesticide use is dangerous to the environment because of the pollution involved. Studies have found that farmers using GMO seeds use 37% less pesticides, and since “these seeds don’t need to spray as much pesticide, which means less pesticide ends up washing off the fields and into streams” (Horowitz 2). Ultimately, pesticide pollution can endanger entire ecosystems and even threaten human lives. By significantly reducing pesticide use, there would be less dangerous chemicals to threaten local environments. As well as reducing pollution, GMO replacement of pesticides helps increase populations of pest predators. Carrington states that GMOs have the “added benefit of looking after the predators that could have been killed by the pesticides” (2). By substituting GMOs for pesticides, which kill more than just the targeted pest, farmers can help

Humanity’s advancements over the course of history have been due to major technological milestones. Of these milestones, arguably the most important has been the advent of agriculture. Agriculture has allowed humans to store food in surplus which frees them from slaving in fields and allows focus on more scholarly and artistic pursuits. As time has progressed, agriculture itself reach important advances, from selective breeding to artificial fertilizer. However, one of the most recent advances in modern times has been met with suspicion and distrust. Genetically modified organisms, commonly referred to as GMOs, have begun to be used in commercial agricultural and their widespread use in food for humans and livestock is on the rise. Many

Although it is safe to say that GMOs do hurt human life and the environment, it is also necessary to acknowledge the pros in having genetically modified foods. It is believed that farmers would be able to spend less money producing more food organically because of GMOs. The cost of the technology used in plowing fields would drop drastically if crops were to be modified. Likewise, farmers would have bigger yields to land and be able to use less herbicides and

According to an article in ”American Scientist”, Crops (GMO) poison pests can deliver major environmental benefits (American Scientist, 2016). And because GMO crops do grow faster than regular crops this means faster production, more money for food companies, and more food to help and feed the world. Although I for one am against GMOs this evidence proves that GMOs do still have many benefits that can help people and the environment.

Producers have been manipulating DNA in the reproduction of their products before Gregor Mendel founded the modern understanding of genetics. Thus, genetically modified organisms -GMOs- are simply more advanced hybrids. The World Health organization defines GMOs as organisms in which their genetic information has been altered in a way that does not occur naturally (Blair, 2015). The controversy regarding genetically modified organisms has been prevalent not only in the agricultural community, but academic conversation as well. Although many organizations and individuals claim genetically modified organisms are malicious to human health as well as the environment, they are indeed the basis for healthy, sustainable agriculture that not only provide a quality product for the consumer, but a safe and nutritious product as well.

For example, there is an insect called the European corn borer, which is now prevalent in the U.S. and feeds on more than just corn. It also attacks peppers, potatoes, lima beans, and millet. An article on the University of Minnesota website describes a type of corn has been developed that contains a natural insecticide, called Bt. Bt, the article continues, stands for Bacillus thuringiensis, which is a protein that is released by Bt corn and kills the European corn borer (Witkowski). Having the insecticide naturally residing within the plant reduces the need for insecticide. This built-in pest protection is a definite advantage that GMO crops have over regular species of the same

When farmers grow genetically modified foods, they are damaging the environment; by labelling these foods, consumers can choose whether to support GMO farmers or go with organic or conventional growers. Ronnie Cummins, founder of the Organic Consumers Association (OCA) mentions that “scientists estimate that herbicide-resistant crops planted around the globe will triple the amount of toxic broad-spectrum herbicides used in agriculture” (Genetically Engineered Foods 18). These herbicides are bad for the environment because all non-GMO plants will be killed if these chemicals spread. This would possibly destroy ecosystems and reduce biodiversity between plants and other species. When GM crops are planted, there are less weed flowers; therefore, there is less nectar for pollinators. In addition, toxins released into the soil from GM plants’ roots mean fewer soil bacteria come to exist in an ecosystem (Glass). When GMO

Farmers of GM (genetically modified) crops use big amounts of herbicide that are more and more toxic every year, and the reason for that is because, GM crops are designed to be herbicide tolerant. US farmers used extra amounts of 383 million pounds of herbicides between the years 1996 and 2008, this overuse resulted in “super-weeds” (Smith, par 7). Another reason of why GM crops affect the environment is because a lot of GM plants already contain insecticides, these are called Bt plants, they are named like this because “they incorporate a transgene that makes a protein-based toxin,” also called Cry toxins (Latham, par 9), but the creators of these plants have stated that it only affects insects that affect the crops, but they haven’t said that they are also affecting the insects that help with the balance of the ecosystem such as butterflies and bees, and they also affect other species such as birds. Something that the creators of these crops have not stated is that these seeds, GM seeds, travel and contaminate other farms, and a lot of non-GMO and organic farmers have been affected, causing them a lot of economic loses. GM crop seeds have been found growing in the wild, threatening the balance of the

An objection to this argument is that some environmentalists oppose GMOs, arguing that genetically modified foods have a negative environmental impact, especially for agricultural practices. For example, they contend that the modified genes created by genetic engineering can spread through pollen to other non-GMO plants outside of their intended cultivation area. “If a GMO is herbicide-tolerant,” some environmentalists believe this characteristic can spread to other plants with the possibility of creating “super-weeds” which will be difficult to suppress (Thompson 213). Others argue that widespread use of GMOs can lead to a reduction in the biodiversity of plants and insects. As more and more GMOs are used, the genetic diversity of other similar plants may be lost, as conventional and organic seeds are no longer used for agricultural practices (Gertsberg). It is debated that the “toxins produced to kill insects in GMOs can also kill ‘non-target species,’ which are insects we may not want to kill”, such as monarch butterflies, leading to a loss in biodiversity (Thompson 213). Conversely, overreliance on a single pesticide can lead to the development of resistant “super-bugs” which also hurts the environment.

Most public concern has been focused on human health and safety regarding the use and consumption of these foods, but potential environmental impacts are important to consider as well. Many varieties of genetically engineered crops are intended to decrease the need for chemical pesticides and fertilizers, but the scope of environmental impacts does not stop at chemical usage. Common concerns about GM crops include the effects of cross-pollination, so-called “genetic contamination,” and the escape of GM crops from cultivation and their interactions with native species. Conversely, the environmental benefits of GM crops range from reducing dependence on chemical pesticides to the ability to treat polluted soils with bioremediating plants (Ford, 2004).