Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Financial Impact
GM.foods.are.being.pushed.onto.consumers.by.big.businesses,.which.care.only.
about. their. own. proits. and. ignore. possible. negative. side. effects.. These. groups.
are.actually.patenting.different.life.forms.that.they.genetically.modify,.with.plans.
to.sell.them.in.the.future..Studies.have.also.shown.that.GM.crops.may.get.lower.
yields.than.conventional.crops.
Environmental Impact
GM.foods.could.pose.major.environmental.hazards..Sparse.testing.of.GM.plants.
for. environmental. impacts. has. occurred.. One. potential. hazard. could. be. the.
impact. of. GM. crops. on. wildlife..One. study. showed. that.one. type. of.GM. plant.
killed.Monarch.butterlies.
Another. potential. environmental. hazard. could. come. from. pests. that. begin. to.
resist.GM.plants.that.were.engineered.to.reduce.chemical.pesticide.application..The.
harmful.insects.and.other.pests.that.get.exposed.to.these.crops.could.quickly.develop.
tolerance.and.wipe.out.many.of.the.potential.advantages.of.GM.pest.resistance.
B..The.following.is.a.collection.of.statements.and.information.on.genetic.modiica-
tion.provided.by.a.group.of.leading.biotechnology.companies,.including.Monsanto.
and.Syngenta.
General Information
GM.plants.and.animals.have.the.potential.to.be.one.of.the.greatest.discoveries.in.
the.history.of.farming..Improvements.in.crops.so.far.relate.to.improved.insect.and.
disease.resistance.and.weed.control..These.improvements.using.bioengineering/
GM.technology.lead.to.reduced.cost.of.food.production..Future.GM.food.prod-
ucts.may.have.health.beneits.
Scientiic Impact
Genetic.modiication.is.a.technique.that.has.been.used.to.produce.food.products.
that.are.approved.by.the.FDA..Genetic.engineering.has.brought.new.opportuni-
ties. to. farmers. for. pest. control. and. in. the. future. will. provide. consumers. with.
nutrient-enhanced. foods.. GM. plants. and. animals. have. the. potential. to. be. the.
single.greatest.discovery.in.the.history.of.agriculture..We.have.just.seen.the.tip.of.
the.iceberg.of.future.potential.
Human Impact
The.health.beneits.from.genetic.modiication.can.be.enormous..A.special.type.of.rice.
called.“golden.rice”.has.already.been.created.which.has.higher.levels.of.vitamin.A..
This.could.be.very.helpful.because.the.disease.vitamin.A.deiciency.(VAD).is.dev-
astating.in.third-world.countries..VAD.causes.irreversible.blindness.in.over.500,000.
children,.and.is.also.responsible.for.over.1.million.deaths.annually..Since.rice.is.the.
staple.food.in.the.diets.of.millions.of.people.in.the.third.world,.golden.rice.has.the.
potential.of.improving.millions.of.lives.a.year.by.reducing.the.cases.of.VAD.
The.FDA.has.approved.GM.food.for.human.consumption,.and.Americans.have.
been.consuming.GM.foods.for.years..While.every.food.product.may.pose.risks,.
there.has.never.been.a.documented.case.of.a.person.getting.sick.from.GM.food.
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