Genetically Modified Organism Essay

GMOs: The Good, Bad, And Ugly

Genetically modified (GM) foods are rising as a new contender to the good ol’ natural crops we have known and loved for all of human history. No longer are we satisfied with having a sufficient amount of food, we want a surplus, and how do we plan on getting that? Genetic modification! All of these procedures attempt to create superior crops which can withstand all pests, weeds, pesticides and can end world hunger. Scientists construct these “super-foods” by taking the genes from one organism and injecting them into another, thus fixing genetic defects and making them safer to consume.

Genetically modified foods sound like a great idea, they can solve countless problems all around the world. They have been know to be pest, drought, and disease resistant making them almost impossible to die from natural causes like normal crops. These crops are especially useful in the less developed countries where they can help solve hunger problems, however they don’t seem to reach the poor farmers in Africa. The large companies that produce the GM organisms only care about the money they can get from the farmers, therefore they don’t find a need to send there valuable products to places where they are truly needed. (Whitman)

While the benefits of genetic modification seem numerous and infallible, further research shows that these benefits may only be superficial claims leaked by the big GM companies in order to raise profits. Not only has not enough adequate research been done to determine the safety of these products, but the overtake of GM organisms may severely harm the natural world. (Non-GMO Project)

These side effects aren’t just pesky disturbances; some findings are revealing that mice fed GM corn are suffering from reduced fertility and immune system problems that worsen over the span of time that they eat the modified food (Mercola). These conflicting studies should send a warning sign to all the GM advocates. If nothing is done to at least slow the output of these engineered foods twenty years down the line we may have a world-wide crisis in which all of our food is contaminated with harmful gene modifications.

Unfortunately, the big companies’ GM plan has already been implemented. More than 80 percent of the corn, soybean and cotton grown in the United States is genetically engineered (POLLACK). If those numbers continue to steadily increase, within a decade the world may be completely rid of natural farming, and may solely rely on GM farming. This would mean that our shelves would be stocked entirely with unknown products that, for all we know, could shut our immune systems down.

Humans aren’t the only beings at risk, however. GM food has the potential to severely disrupt the environment. Because men are creating superior organisms and releasing them into the wild, natural selection is being tampered with. Naturally, plants and animals that survive long enough to reproduce are superior, however now it’s the humans that choose the organisms who live to reproduce. It will no longer be natural selection; it will be changed to manmade selection.

What will happen to wild fish and marine species when scientists release into the environment carp, salmon, and trout that are twice as large, and eat twice as much food, as their wild counterparts (Cummins). It seems that

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