Are GMOs Friend Or Foe?

The public perspective of what is and isn't healthy fluctuates throughout time. Corn syrup, MSG, and cooking oils are just a few products that have been subject to scrutiny. By the early 2000s, GMOs began to face that same criticism. They became the next villain in the food industry, and brands everywhere began declaring that their products were free of them. While many people understand that the acronym stands for genetically modified organism, do most actually know what that constitutes? Moreover, what role do GMOs play in the larger conversation of food sustainability? We are increasingly aware of the dangers that fertilizers and pesticides pose to our health and the earth. Should we be as equally concerned with GMOs? Breaking down what genetically modified organisms are and why they're used can help determine whether or not their presence in our food supply does more harm or more good.

The GMO Breakdown

Genetically modified organisms can come in many forms and serve different purposes. A modified organism can be a plant, an animal, or even a microbe. When an organism has been genetically modified, its DNA has been altered through genetic engineering. We can think of GMOs as the result of selective breeding with technology. Specific characteristics are chosen in an organism to produce a specific result, usually an enhanced trait. Genetic engineering can change phenotypes like the color or shape of an organism, or it can change characteristics the eye can't see, like fertility or maturation time. While animal DNA is normally modified for research, plants are often modified for food consumption. The concept of choosing an organism's genetic traits is nothing new. Humans have altered DNA using different breeding methods for generations. The domesticated dog breeds that exist today are mostly the result of selective breeding, and people have selectively grown corn for years!

One key difference between the traditional methods of selective breeding and today's genetic modifications is the amount of time required. With modern technology and science, genetic modifications allow living things to be changed and enhanced at a much faster rate. Not only does biotechnology cut down the time it takes to create GMOs, but it also helps avoid any unwanted traits. Traditional selective breeding and crossbreeding aren't exact science. Oftentimes, these methods yield desired traits as well as unwanted traits that are just a byproduct of breeding. In truth, many success stories wouldn't even be possible without modern GMOs. For decades, the oyster population in the Chesapeake Bay declined to a point where over 99% of the population was lost due to overfishing and disease. When scientists and watermen joined forces, they bred and repopulated the bay with a lab-bred species. The specialty oyster species was engineered with genes that were disease resistant and with faster growth patterns.

In fact, the origin of GMOs didn't begin with food at all but instead with medicine. While people mainly think of GMOs as health hazards, GMOs were actually first introduced for insulin. In 1982, The Food and Drug Administration approved genetically modified insulin hormones. Before this was done, diabetic patients had to rely on insulin from pigs and cows, a method that wasn't reliable for two reasons. Suppliers couldn't always guarantee to have enough livestock for these insulins. On top of that, not everyone could tolerate insulin from pigs and cows. Creating insulin that was lab-grown and genetically altered allowed those with diabetes to receive medication that was animal-free and a much closer match to human insulin. This pharmaceutical breakthrough was the first step for GMOs as we know them today.

Corporate Crops

Going beyond science, GMOs provide a financial benefit to the companies that produce them. The genetically modified food supply can't be discussed without looking at the massive corporate industry behind it. Federal government agencies insist that GMOs do nothing more than optimize the supply chain and output. However, there's an existing argument that corporations rely on GMOs for financial gain and control. A small handful of agrochemical corporations control half of the world's seeds, and unfortunately, monopolies like this often lead to higher prices of the product. Choosing to opt-out of purchasing seeds from these companies is nearly impossible for farmers to do because there are only a few options to choose from. Most of those options are just other conglomerates that control too much of the market. With that much power, companies can make decisions that impact a large number of people. In an industry that makes billions of dollars in one year alone, companies tend to act on what benefits them financially instead of what benefits anything else, whether it be people or the planet.

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A Threat To Sustainable Farming

Because a small number of corporations control a large portion of genetically modified seeds, they have distribution and selling power. At one point in time, many of the seeds sold to farmers that were resistant to herbicides were also referred to as terminator seeds. This is because the seeds were also designed to produce sterile seeds, meaning farmers could not replant the additional seeds from their harvest. Instead, farmers had to continue purchasing from agrochemical corporations, leaving them subject to whatever prices were set for the seeds. Terminator seeds entered the market in the 1990s, and they prevented pollen production as well as crossbreeding in the wild. What used to be a natural, continuous cycle became a linear relationship that began and ended with these large firms. Some companies even made it so the seeds wouldn't activate without a specially designed compound that farmers also had to buy. In this regard, genetically modified seeds morphed into a tactic to control farmers and the food supply. In the early 2000s, complaints about this practice rose, and federal governments around the world had to step in. Biosafety laws came into effect to better protect farmers. Today, terminator seeds have an international moratorium.

The dominating presence of GMOs also has an influence on the ecosystems around them. Farming with genetically modified seeds has caused other seed varieties to drop over the years, leading to the endangerment and extinction of other crop varieties. When we create only one type of seed for each crop and grow them at an industrial level, we create monocultures. Monocultures of any crop also tend to be disadvantageous for the environment, as they take away the biodiversity and suck up the soil's nutrients. A land that grows plants of all kinds will do a better job of fostering a healthy ecosystem.