Should GMOs be embraced?
Sarah Katherine Short
Philosophy of Food
December 13, 2016
Today in America the majority of the food bought in grocery stores has been genetically modified in some way. Genetically engineered(GE) food has been around for the past twenty years and scientists have been working to create varieties in the crops to withstand extreme environments and attacks by pests and diseases.[1] There has been a lot of controversy over the past couple decades about GE crops. I will be arguing that Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO) should be embraced.
Today there are a little under 7.5 billion humans living on the planet but it is estimated that by 2050, the population will rise to 9.5 billion. This increase in humans means that changes will need to be made in production, distribution, and stability of food. These changes are beginning to be made by genetically modifying food. In Thompson’s article, he defines a GMO as “a plant or animal that has had its genes manipulated.” This “involves insinuating new bits of DNA into the plant’s genome using microbes.”[2] GM food is able to grow in climates that may not be fit for non engineered food. One issue with cropland and the population today is that they are not distributed evenly. For example, in China there is 1.4 percent of productive land butalmost 25 percent of the world’s population lives there. Crop land all over the world is diminishing because of erosion, less renewable resources, and less water. The carbon dioxide levels have increased, which leads to global warming and an increase in migration and alternative agricultural procedures.[3]
One reason that GMOs should be embraced is because they reduce environmental degradation. The amount of pesticides used is largely condensed. When pesticides are sprayed, they target the pest but can also harm plants and animals that are not meant to be damaged which leads to a loss of biodiversity. Because a lot of pesticides are not degradable, they seep into the soil and lead to water contamination. In a study conducted from 1994 to 2014, the use of biotech crops led to a reduction of pesticide spraying by 581 million kg. This reduced the environmental footprint linked to pesticide useby 20 percent. The greenhouse gas emissions were condensed greatly and can be compared to removing 10 million cars from the road. Just in the USA, because of the use of GM crops the amount of pesticides hasbeen reduced by 46.4 million pounds.[4] Herbicide tolerant canola oil was introduced in Western Canada in 1995 and a survey was done in 2007 that shows the benefits of the Herbicide Tolerant (HT) canola oil. There were “lower herbicide costs, decreased tillage use, and improved soil moisture conservation.”[5]
With the use of GMOs, the process of tilling is greatly reduced. The reason for tilling is to control the amount of weeds. This process involves turning over the soil and immediately planting the crops before the weeds are able to germinate again. Tilling is not the best method to get rid of weeds so farmers usually have to use a second method as well. The environmental impact this has on the earth is not a positive one. It causes “erosion and runoff, greenhouse gasses escape from the soil, and it takes a lot of energy and time to plow all those acres.”[6] Almost one billion tons of soil have been saved per year because of the decrease in tilling. One of the most GE crops in the United States is HT soybeans. They went from 17 percent usage in 1997 to 93 percent in 2010. The use of tillage systems has greatly reduced since the 1990s.[7]
Another reason that GMOs should be embraced is because they are more efficient than non-engineered food. The genetically engineered food can be grown in places where the climate may be unfavorable, the cost of production is less, and it has an increased shelf-life. These types of foods can be grown in droughts or where the soil may not be fit for agriculture, while a normal crop can only be grown during a specific season. This is important for areas around the world where crop land is now being used for residential areas. Farmers then have to move to areas that for non-modified crops would be unsuitable.[8] A solution that scientists have recently come up with to help plants grow in the cold is an anti-freeze gene that comes from cold water fish. The gene is put into crops like potatoes and tobacco so they are able to bear frost.[9]
Although the seeds for GM crops are more expensive, the cost to produce them is less because they have a natural resistance to pests and insects. This leads to farmers not having to buy as manychemicals to get rid of pests. Insecticide was reduced by 96 percent to control Bollworm. The ingredient amount went from 5,748 metric tons of ingredients to 222 metric tons in under 10 years.[10]
Many researchers have been trying to discover ways in which fruits and vegetables can last longer. In one case, scientists discovered that by “suppressing two enzymes (A-Man, B-Hex) that accumulate during ripening” of a tomato,it was able to hold its ripeness and firmness for one month. The standard shelf life of a tomato that has not been genetically modified can only last 15 days. This procedure can also be used in other fruits like bananas and papayas. The result of a longer shelf life could reduce the amount of food that is wasted and thrown away in grocery stores. It could also help out farmers with their income because they will be able to sell more produce because less fruit will go bad before it gets to where it is being sold.[11]
Some would argue that GMOs should not be embraced because they cause harm to the environment rather than improving it. The toxicity of the chemicals in pesticides and herbicides can be an issue. Organisms such as bees, butterflies, and birds that are not being targeted can be impacted greatly by this. Bees are extremely important in the pollination of food crops but they are endangered by modern agriculture. Monarch butterflies are dropping in numbers because their main food source, Milkweed is diminishing. Milkweed is prevalent around crops like corn and soybeans but it is getting destroyed from the herbicides that GM crops are sprayed with. This is where the butterflies’ larvae grow, making it one of their main habitats. There was a study done in 2012 in the journal Insect Conservation and Diversity. During a 20 year span from 1990 to 2010, 58 percent of milkweed declined and the monarch population declined 81 percent.[12]
However, these issues are not as extreme as they seem. Monarch butterflies are not going extinct but they are declining in population. The percent of monarchs declining and milkweed declining may be due to other reasons. Correlation does not equal causation. There is major deforestation in Mexico from illegal logging. The monarch butterflies’ lifecycle has been interrupted because now where they usually migrate to is being destroyed. Drought is also a large issue. A few years ago in Texas, there was a severe drought that reduced the flowers along the butterflies’ migrationpath, which is very necessary to the butterflies’ survival. They need to pick up nectar from the flowers as they migrate. The monarchs were not able to get back to Mexico from the United States.[13] Therefore, genetically modified crops should be embraced because of their reduction in harming the environment and their efficiency.
Bibliography
Bodnar, Anastasia. "The Promise of GMOs: Conservation Tillage." Biology Fortified. February 19, 2014. Accessed December 10, 2016.
Carroll, Lauren. "Are GMOs Causing Monarch Butterflies to Become Extinct?" Politifact. February 17, 2015. Accessed December 10, 2016. meter/statements/2015/feb/17/peter-defazio/are-gmos-causing-monarch-butterflies- become-extinc/.
"GM Crops and the Environment." International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications. September 2016. Accessed December 10, 2016.
Kazim, Syed. "GM Food Benefits: Cold Tolerance." Genetically Modified Food. June 30, 2014. Accessed December 10, 2016. cold-tolerance/.
Schwartz, Ariel. "GMO Tomatoes Could Stay Fresh For Over a Month." Inhabitat. February 2, 2010. Accessed December 10, 2016. fresh-for-over-a-month/.
Smyth, Stuart J., Michael Gusta, Kenneth Belcher, Peter W.B. Phillips, and David Castle. "Environmental Impacts from Herbicide Tolerant Canola Production in Western Canada." Agricultural Systems 104, no. 5 (2011): 403-410.
Thompson, Paul B. "Shall We Dine? Confronting the Strange and Horrifying Story of GMOs in Our Food." 209-210.
[1]"GM Crops and the Environment." International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications. September 2016. Accessed December 10, 2016.
[2]Thompson, Paul B. "Shall We Dine? Confronting the Strange and Horrifying Story of GMOs in Our Food." 209-10.
[3]"GM Crops and the Environment." Accessed December 10, 2016.
[4]"GM Crops and the Environment."
[5]Smyth, Stuart J., Michael Gusta, Kenneth Belcher, Peter W.b. Phillips, and David Castle. "Environmental Impacts from Herbicide Tolerant Canola Production in Western Canada." Agricultural Systems 104, no. 5 (2011): 403-10.
[6]Bodnar, Anastasia. "The Promise of GMOs: Conservation Tillage."Biology Fortified. February 19, 2014. Accessed December 10, 2016.
[7]Bodnar, Anastasia. "The Promise this is when the readerrealizedirds ntressures Laura has to go through. . pper class did not assicciate with the lower class.
[8]"27 Big Advantages and Disadvantages of Genetically Modified Foods." ConnectUS. 2015. Accessed December 10, 2016.
[9]Kazim, Syed. "GM Food Benefits: Cold Tolerance." Genetically Modified Food. June 30, 2014. Accessed December 10, 2016.
[10]"GM Crops and the Environment."
[11]Schwartz, Ariel. "GMO Tomatoes Could Stay Fresh For Over a Month." Inhabitat. February 2, 2010. Accessed December 10, 2016.
[12]Carroll, Lauren. "Are GMOs Causing Monarch Butterflies to Become Extinct?" Politifact. February 17, 2015. Accessed December 10, 2016.
[13]Carroll. "Are GMOs Causing Monarch Butterflies to Become Extinct?"