Food Safety TA03 Group 2 :>

Genetic Engineering/GMOs - Controversy

Genetic-engineering has always been a controversial topic, whether it's about human reproduction or agriculture.

The general public has never responded well to unnatural "frankenfoods". It doesn't seem healthy or ethical, and in reality, crops grown using GMO seeds have never fared well when it comes to taste.

No regulation

The GMO industry has simply grown too fast to pass federal laws to regulate it. In the 1980s, courts found the regulations that do exist to be flawed, and yet they still haven't been revised.

Sadly and frighteningly, GMO farms continue to practice untested, potentially harmful genetic engineering – unregulated and unchecked–, and to this day, there are no requirements to label foods that have been genetically altered.

Prevalence in our food supply

Recent lab tests and industry reports have shown that 60–75% of produce in non-organic supermarkets test positive for these untested genetically modified foods.

With no labeling regulations, there's no way to tell what has been genetically engineered or not.

Addressing global hunger

This has always been a pertinent topic, as one of the main arguments for GMO foods has been our alleged food shortage.

Biotechnology companies and "agri-business giants" claim that using technology and synthetics is the only way we can hope to supply our world population.

In reality, the general consensus of international organizations is that world hunger is not caused by inadequacies of production, but rather distribution and access. The United Nations Food & Agricultural Organization, Greenpeace, Bread for the World, and the Institute for Food and Development Policy all agree that GMO foods are not the solution.

Regardless, not only are GMO seeds too expensive for poor farmers in third-world countries, they are not practical for their specific environment and land conditions.

Historically, single species of GMO seeds are sold to these farms, which then produce a single, uniform variety year after year. Assuming they are not victim to common GMO crop pitfalls, such as overall crop failure, insecticide resistance, and the creation of new "superweeds" and pathogen strains, the farm soil is degraded from mono-cropping and synthetic pesticides, just as it is in the U.S.

We clearly need a better long-term, sustainable solution.

The environment

A common hazard of GMO crops is higher doses of chemical pesticides. Plants grown from certain engineered seeds attract more pests, so any increase in yield is outweighed by the pesticide's environmental damage.

The Ecological Society of America (ESA) has found that GMO crops introduce new "superweeds" as well as new, more resilient pests and pathogens. Still others fear the genetically-altered crops are harmful to non-target insects, birds, and animals that eat from the GMO fields.

GMO farming also causes long-term ecological changes in the soil. In Germany, studies have shown that growing genetically-altered foods changes the healthy bacterial community in soil, an essential component for soil fertility.

Your health

One innovation to address increased pesticide use is crossing seeds with a bacterium that acts as a pesticide, thereby making the plants naturally pest-resistant. Antibiotic "marker genes" are used in this process.

This may solve the problem of pesticide overload, but the American and British Medical Associations agree that antibiotic marker genes used in genetically modified foods are harmful and insufficiently tested.

Other studies show that eating GMO foods can cause more allergies, increase cancer risks, produce dangerous toxins, and degrade food nutrients.

Long-term effects

Because the industry has grown so quickly, we don't know what other long-term environment and health effects we will face from growing and eating GMO crops.

Manipulating nature isn't something we should take lightly, or from a limited economic perspective.

GMO foods, in their current state, are not a viable alternative for our environment or our health.

Genetic Engineering/GMOs - Advancements

GMO foods, in their current state, are clearly controversial and hazardous. In fact, Mendocino County has banned all GMO products in their region, and other counties are following suit. (More...)

Like most technology industries, though, GMO advancements are varied, and it's possible that some new processes are [more] natural and less harmful.

Some new methods don't use antibiotics or mix DNA across species anymore. Similar to genetic engineering in mammal reproduction, some involve cloning and some involve manipulation of an organism's existing DNA.

Also similar to engineered mammal reproduction, however, the ethical and health factors are still controversial and untested in the long-term.

Plants genetically possess strong defenses

The premise behind the newest types of genetic-engineering is that plants already possess the gene makeup to be robust, nutritious and pest-resistant.

Some believe that man's imprecise cross-breeding on farms over the centuries has inadvertently weakened plant species to be less nutritious and/or vulnerable to pathogens and pests. Others believe plants have simply degraded from environmental effects.

Since the advent of gene cataloging, scientists can now determine which exact genes are responsible for positive traits in plants. They believe it's simply a matter of manipulating those genes to develop or come out of dormancy.

Cross-breeding same species

Referred to as "transgenetics", scientists identify which genes are responsible for positive traits (like nutrition level or pest-resistance) in a certain species.

They then take thousands of the most healthy, naturally pest-resistant varieties that possess a certain gene and cross-breed them in a laboratory.

Offspring plants that possess the particular, marked gene are planted in a field and tested. (Genes are marked with dye, not antibiotics.) Those that die or weaken in the field are rejected; those that survive and remain strong are distributed.

Sometimes the resulting offspring have ended up stronger than even the original wild and naturally strong "parent" plants.

Manipulating species' existing DNA

A newer method, referred to as "transgenomics", does not involve DNA marking or insertions.

Scientists believe certain traits are created not only by a particular gene, but by the way groups of genes interact with each other.

So, a species that possesses a desired trait is studied to identify which interaction of genes causes that positive outcome. That gene interaction is then "taught" to another crop species. The second species is stimulated to start mimicking that interaction, and the desired trait results.

Problems in the past

Historically, every advancement and development process in the GMO field has been snatched up and patented by private conglomerates, which are notorious for not using the technology in an ethical or conscientious way. They typically use it to monopolize the market and build dependencies on their products.

Hope for the future?

Both methods described above are for the most part un-patentable. This means that, IF they are shown to be safe for the environment and our health, they could become a viable solution to increase yields quickly, lower the use of conventional fertilizers and pesticides, and be distributed internationally at affordable prices.

In fact, the scientist involved with "transgenomics" is pushing for agricultural bio-engineering "Open Source", the development model that has helped improve the computer software industry. The public could then share information to adopt the best methods, and the power (and benefits) would be spread to the majority.

What about organics?

IF these new types of "natural" GMOs are shown to produce healthy crops and be beneficial to the environment and our health, they could – in theory – be used in conjunction with organic farming methods to produce what Wired Magazine calls "Super Organics".

Taken from :http://www.omorganics.org/page.php?pageid=96&contentid=75

Posted by : Swe Mar Tun @ Sweety