A Controversy Analysis of Genetically Modified Foods By: Kaiser Popal OMG! GMO! Aim of a Controversy Analysis identify the stakeholders involved in the GM Food debate illustrate the views of both opposing sides analyze the implications surrounding the debate economic environmentalsocial Problems Growing world population + Increasing demand for crops to feed livestock and produce biofuels + Unstable and unfavorable climate conditions + Shrinking farmland due to over-farming and poor land management + Pest and disease control challenges Significance of GM Crops Constant drive to: reduce farming costs increase crop yields Is the solution Genetically Modified Crops? What are GM Foods? GMO (Genetically Modified Organisms) are organisms whose DNA has been changed to give it characteristics that cannot be achieved through traditional breeding methods. GM Food Facts GM Food are currently engineered to take advantage of the following traits: 1.resistance to insect damage 2.resistance to viral infections 3.tolerance towards certain herbicides 4.GM crops with higher nutrient content (e.g. soybeans increased oleic acid) have been also studied recently. GM Foods Background Which Foods Might Be GM? Sides of the Debate GM Food Supporters Biotechnology firms Companies or organizations involved with Industrial Agricultural Some consumers, governments, scientists, politicians etc... GM Food Supporters claim that GM foods. Allows crops to overcome environmental challenges such as droughts and floods GM drought tolerant corn has been approved for use in the US Corn seeds that require less fertilizer to grow can have positive economic impacts for Farmers Improve crops nutritional value Golden Rice has been modified to include more vitamin A Pineapple with increased levels of lycopene may help prevent lung and prostate cancer Increase crops ability to resist diseases and pests Fungal resistant grapes which may enhance resistance to mildew and other fungal diseases Improve the way crops look to reduce waste Apple varieties have been modified so that they dont brown as easily have no negative environmental or public health effects GMO Supporters Claims GMO Opponents Public Health / Environmental Advocacy Groups GMO Free NY (group #1) GMO Free NY (group #2) GMO Free Buffalo Grocery stores o 3 Rivers Natural Grocery o A & B Natural Foods, Inc o A Harvest of Health Small Scale Farmers since GM Foods support industrial agriculture Conscious Consumers who are concerned about the risk of GM Foods GMO Opponents Claims GM Foods... Genetically Modified foods give negative health effects like allergies from the foods genes that are mixed with the genetically modified foods, and autism. The GM foods might throw the organic biodiversity off of its balance.GM seeds might crossbreed or outbreed the other plants that are in the area. Some animals might get immune to pesticides from eating the GM plants and it could create superweeds which are immune to herbicides. Farmers might get sued because the companies think that they are using GM seeds without buying them, but what really happened is that the neighbor farms GM seeds were deposited onto the organic farmers farm. Labeling of GM Foods Over 91% o f American want GMOs labeled About 200,000 people per state want GMOs labeled 1,000,000 comments on a food petition were sent to the FDA 89% of the Republicans and 93% of the Democrats say to label GMOs Only 4% of Americans Say yes to GMOs More than 500 organizations say to label GMOs More than 40 countries make labeling GMOs mandatory Some labels to look for when you are shopping at the grocery store Bottom Left - Top Left - Top Right. GMO Opponents Goals To stop or ban the production of GM foods and make the world a cleaner and safer place than with genetically modified foods. Economic Implications One story is that a french farmer named Paul Franois sued Monsanto for chemical poisoning that was from the pesticide Lasso. when Monsanto lost, they also lost a lot of money. Genetically modified seeds also cost a lot of money and when farmers pay for them, the farmers often go into debt. In Haiti, the natives were sent seeds from Monsanto for farming, but the people of Haiti said no and burned the seeds. That could have put Monsanto in a financial crisis and then could have put Monsanto in debt. When Universities fund for GMOs, then they are throwing away scholarships that deserving people need. Environmental Implications The seeds of the GMOs might throw of the balance of the biodiversity and could possibly outbreed the other plants. The seeds could also create super weeds that can resist all the herbicides and pesticides. Some animals were found eating genetically modified foods because they must have adapted to eat them. Now that we know that animals can adapt, mosquitoes that dont have malaria can now have another infectious disease that could be even worse than malaria. It could also give the animals some resistance to pesticides and herbicides and other weed killers. Social Implications Should GM Foods be labelled in stores The effect on Farmers from the use production of GM Foods o reliance on expensive seeds which lack natural reproductive capabilities The potential Health Effects of eating GM foods o some opponents claim that GM Foods increase allergic reactions o tests have shown that eating GM Foods caused cancer in lab Mice o concern over whether modified GM Foods can affect human genes a study showed that the more GM Foods you eat, the higher risk you have of having a child with Autism Lack of long term scientific studies concerning the effect of GM Foods Conclusion Before I started my research, I didnt really know much about GMOs. When I started to do research on them, I found out that they are organisms with a specific gene from another organism taken and put inside of the first organism. After learning all this I dont want to eat them because of the potential health risks such as allergies, and food poisoning. I was surprised to learn that even with the knowledge of what GMOs, people, such as some farmers, and biotechnologist still wanted to use them and would pay a lot of money to have seeds, when the people who know the consequences of the genetically modified foods dont even want to try them. My recommendation for the future of GMOs are that keep working on them until you are positively sure that they are perfect and will not have any health risk at all. After you prove to the world that your products are harmless and only good, then you will have more consumers buy your seeds and food.