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What Are The Pros And Cons Of Genetically Modified Organisms

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Genetically Modified Organisms - Transgenics and Biopharming In today's world, the need for more efficient and better quality foods grows greater. The population on earth is thought to increase to nine billion by the year 2050. To support this population, the application of biotechnology is used to modify foods. The reason why foods are genetically modified is to produce better quality food which can also fight off pests, insects, weeds and diseases. Not only can you insert genes to induce these effects, you can also insert genes to produce medicines which is called biopharming. This then allows farmers to reduce the use of pesticides and herbicides (agric.wa.gov.au). GMOs can help protect the world's food supply and reduce the cost on farmers …show more content…

A company modified tobacco to produce a protein that acted as an antibiotic which fought off diseases. The gene used was part of the cauliflower mosaic virus (335) and was altered and inserted into the chloroplasts of the tobacco. The pros and cons raised by this were quite strong on either side in this scenario. The cons in this scenario were that who has access to these new pharmaceuticals? Will it only be available to those that can afford it? Another con was that there could be cross contamination of plants and that the gene could spread to other wildlife and make them produce this protein. The consequence of this is that fauna could consume these drugs causing fatality or other health issues. Accidental ingestion of the drug could be an issue as well. If the plants were to be grown in greenhouses to avoid this problem, it would cost more money and may be a waste of time. The pros to this scenario were that it would make drug production a lot easier and cheaper. This is possible as tobacco plants are one of the easiest plants to modify and the leaves grow from the same plant. It is also one of the largest biomass producers in the world. Another benefit was that the tobacco production of this drug would be worth over $2.2 billion within a decade in the United States. The pros and cons to this scenario create quite the predicament. Are we willing to take the …show more content…

What happens if all the new GMOs die out due to a certain disease that only affects them? The idea that GMOs can save the world's food supply is a very old idea and only a small amount of professional companies can afford the cost and risk of undergoing genetically modified foods. Very serious risks are associated with transgenics and biopharming yet as the future draws near we look towards it. I personally believe that we should investigate this technology further in order to provide better quality foods, increase production, reduce costs and support human life on earth. Safety protocols do need to be taken seriously in this however, precautions like growing the GM foods in greenhouses, running safety checks and intensive

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