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History of genetically modified food
History of genetically modified food
History of genetically modified food
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No or Pro for GMO? Why isn't Kraft MacNCheese allowed to be sold on the shelves of supermarkets in the United Kingdom, but it's sold here in the USA? The U.S. Government states that genetically modified foods and organisms don’t pose any health risks to the public, but several scientific studies indicate otherwise. While other countries require that GM foods and goods are to be labeled, the United States does not. Most people aren’t as informed about genetically modified organisms as they should be, making this a deadly factor in the situation. Just what exactly are classified GMOs? Where do they come from? What are the health risks? What can be done to minimize these health risks? Genetically modified organisms are created when genetic material is taken from one organism and transferred into another (Young 1). Such materials may pose health risks not only to animals, but also to the environment and …show more content…
Herbicide resilient crops increase the use of herbicides, swelling costs for farmers as well as creating conservational problems, affecting inferior communities who live near large GM farms in developing countries, as well as causing pollution. Insecticide crops are constantly producing toxins when they're not even necessary, and can indiscriminately kill other insects beneficial for the environment. Continued manufacturing promises about the ability of GM crops to tackle the world's growing social problems are pure myth: there is still not a single commercial GM crop with increased yield or salt-tolerance, enhanced nutrition or other 'beneficial' traits. GM crops are confined to a handful of countries with highly developed agricultural subdivisions – where GM-cash-crops are grown to be sold on the world market for materials, feed and fuel, and not intended to feed
Do you know what you're really voting for? Iowan farmer Reg Clause suggests you may not in his column, “Say ‘no’ to GMO labeling.” Reminding readers that general election day has come, he attempts to convince us that a certain law should be voted against. The proposed legislation would mandate all foods that contain genetically modified organisms, also know as GMOs, to display a warning label on their packaging. He argues that this would be detrimental to the good name of these types of foods when they do not deserve to be shamed. I agree that the genetically engineered crops should not be labeled, but not because that would tarnish their name. However, the reasoning for my opinion comes from the perspective that it would not only be impractical
The word GMO stands for Genetically-Modified Organism and can also be referred to as Genetically Engineered foods, Genetically Modified Foods, and Biotech. Genetically engineered foods are created when one desired trait is isolated and introduced to another plant by inserting the certain gene. The process, considered genetic breeding, and is much more precise than the regular breeding. While GMOs have been in food for 20 years, currently, the controversy and genetically engineered farms are larger than ever. 82% of Americans want GMOs labeled, but majority fail to understand them (Swanson). 90% of all US grown corn, canola, soybeans, and sugar beets have DNA bits from the lab (Woolston). The United States is the top GMO growing country with 70 million hectares of land dedicated to these farms. (Lee). These modified crops and plants for human and animals are created mainly for withstand herbicides or to produce an insectide. “No GMO traits are on the market for bigger yields, drought resistance, enhanced nutrition or any other consumer benefit” (Burnham). Overall, GE foods’ main purpose is to save money for large corporations.
GMO`s are starting to rapidly take over our food supply, but what exactly is a GMO? A GMO is a make up of DNA that is combined forcefully with a plant or animals DNA, and creates a new version of it. Seeing these products sold in stores for the first time people question what the change is from the natural, and organics, because when someone reads GMO they wonder if it is healthy and safe to consume.
You might have heard GMO thrown around by scientists or news stations before. It stands for genetically modified organism. This is a relatively new technology that has sparked a huge debate. Organisms are genetically modified by taking genes from one being and transferring them to another being in order to change the qualities of the resulting species. Now this seems like a very good thing, and in some ways it is, but it has some very serious consequences. When humans start to tamper with nature, trouble is never far away. The same is true for genetically modified foods and organisms.
Have you ever asked yourself what is Genetic modified organism(GMO)? Will in this paper I am going to tell you about GMO. Gmo is any foods or animals that have been modified genetically. There is too much Gmo in our food. We could cut down on how much foods have GM. We could also make more job for farming. We Should make more food with no GMO so we can all be healthy.
Genetically modified foods are developed by combining genes from two different organisms which alters it's DNA and do not occur naturally. Biotechnology is relatively new so like most people, I turned to research to argue this issue with facts. In my opinion, genetically modifying foods have more harmful effects than they do beneficial. I am against their use because it creates safety risks for our health and animals, it can damage the environment and we have to deal with the total costs.
According to an article titled “Genetically Modified Foods Eaten” regularly by Linda A. Johnson today, essentially 40% of the foods we eat are genetically modified, unless you eat organic foods and/or you grow your own. Most products containing corn, soil, canola oil, or cottonseed oil contain genetic modification. One of the biggest genetic modification company is Monsanto (Johnson). She goes on to say many Americans don’t even know they are consuming genetically engineered foods. In “Genetically Modified Foods Confuse Consumers” by Mary Clare Jalonick writing in the Washington Times, has talked about how this is because the FDA does not require them to be labeled. Jalonick has said, “Genetically modified foods are plants or animals that have
The term GM foods or GMO (genetically-modified organisms) is most commonly used to refer to crop plants created for human or animal consumption using the latest molecular biology techniques (Whitman, 2000). These plants have been modified in the laboratory to offer desired traits such as increased resistance to herbicides or improved nutritional content. Also, genetic engineering techniques have been applied to create plants with the exact desired trait very rapidly and accurately. For example, this is done by the geneticist isolating the gene responsible for drought tolerance and inserts it into another plant. The new genetically-modified plant will now have gained drought tolerance as well.
GMOs have their pros and cons, but in terms of their effects on biodiversity, the technology is almost solely negative in how it affects the environment. Genetically modified food can damage agriculture as it allows for less restraint on chemical usage which leads to stronger weeds and weaker soil. The crops can easily spread their genetically modified genome through the wind. GMOs damage living organisms by making nasty insects stronger and vital insects weaker. GM foods are correlated with the decline in mammal and bird health and the introduction of GM animals like salmon poses a threat to the ecosystem of wild fish. GMOs can also bear consequences in terms of genetic pollution and alteration through contamination and mutation to adaptation to evolution to species extinction. Indeed, some claims are not well supported and may require testing, like genetic alteration through consumption or the validity of correlating animal health deficits with GM feeds. However, overall, GM foods clearly affect the world negatively in terms of biodiversity and ecosystem impacts.
In this day and age, Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) have become a topic of large interest in the media. GMOs are defined as an organism whose genetic structure has been altered by incorporating a gene that will express a desirable trait (Dresbach et al. al. 2013). Often times, these traits that are selected are either beneficial to the consumer or producer. Currently, GMOs are being created at a higher rate than ever before and are being used in the foods that we eat.
According to scientists, genetically engineering crops contributes to their quality. Crops that have been genetically modified to have a particular trait can decrease the amount of herbicides needed for growing that crop. Additionally, genetically modified (GM) crops can help third world countries, where malnutrition is common. For example, to help diminish nutrient deficiencies in developing countries, “plans were underway to develop a golden rice that also has increased iron content”(Whitman 2). In addition, GM crops can be modified to be able to “withstand the environmental challenges of drought, disease, and insect infestation” (Swenson 1). Growing GM crops can also result in fruits and vegetables that stay fresh for a prolonged period of time and taste better.
Genetically modified (GM) foods have become omnipresent over the past decade. They are a technological breakthrough that allows humans to manipulate and add foreign genes to crops to enhance desired traits, but they have also evolved into a controversial issue, especially for Third World countries. Some people believe that GM foods not only provide larger yields to feed hungry citizens in Third World countries, but they can also be a source of great nutritional value. For example, researchers have developed a strain of golden rice containing high amounts of vitamin A and numerous other vitamins and minerals. Additionally, GM crops are laced with herbicides and pesticides, and therefore reduce the need for chemical consumption. Opponents of GM foods claim that they pose a threat to the health of consumers and that these crops could eventually cross-pollinate in an unregulated fashion or lead to the growth of superweeds and superbugs resistant to the herbicides and pesticides woven into the genetic fiber of the crops. Developed nations should promote research and monitoring from an ethical point of view and financial assistance through philanthropic ventures in order to limit environmental and health risks. They should also make sure that limited cultural displacement will result from the introduction of GM crops and that instead, a better livelihood and well-being through collaboration will emerge. Hence, GM crops should be introduced only provided that the developed nations assume the ethical and financial responsibilities for the environmental, health, and social consequences that attend this new innovation.
It is evident that the majority of American farmers utilize biotech seeds, because of the risks that the insect resistant and herbicide resistant traits help reduce. GMO's make the life of a farmer much easier as they do not have to worry about rushing to spray herbicides, to keep weeds out, or worrying about insects damaging crops and having to spray pesticides. For instance, Brian Scott a farmer in Indiana, when corn root worms starts indulging on his organic crops, the worms will cause a significant damage before he can react accordingly and eliminate the problem with the use of chemicals. These corn root worms won't affect Scott's insect resistant GMO corn because the pesticide is always in the plant. In addition, the GM corn was created only to harm a small group of insects and this allows for other beneficial insects to survive and assist the crops, since Scott did not have to spray pesticides. Farmers use GM crops mainly because of a reliability issue, not only are biotech plants easier to maintain, but they are less likely to cause a devastating loss. To a point where even insurance companies will provide farmers with lower premiums. Troy Rausch, another Indiana farmer, states "... when you're delayed by a couple weeks by rain like we were this year, the GM traits come in awfully handy for weed control". The GM traits are of much benefit to Rausch as they eliminate the need for him to utilize his time and combat against pesky weeds. The use of GMO's in the agricultural space eliminates many risks that would be common in conventionally bred
Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO) is an organism, such as a plant, animal, or any microorganism who’s had its DNA changed in different ways through genetic engineering that is not natural. It is an organism like every other organism, which produces thousands of proteins, but one or two of them are proteins that were chosen were specifically by humans. It creates unstable combinations of plants, animal, bacterial, and viral genes that do not occur in nature or through traditional crossbreeding methods. Majority of Americans in the US consume nearly 200 pounds of GMOs each year. 90% of US crops are genetically modified.
Genetic engineering is a way in which specific genes for an animal or plant can be extracted, and reproduced to form a new animal or plant. These new organisms will express the required trait for that gene. This practice is a very controversial topic within the scientific world. It is being implemented in various areas such as agriculture, even though there are many alternatives that can be found for genetic engineered crops, such as organic materials and reducing leeching of the soil. The controversy regarding this practice occurs as it is believed to contribute both negative and positive implications and dangers, not only to oneself but the environment as a whole.