The debate surrounding genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and their impact on access to healthy food is complex and multifaceted. Many people wonder what impacts GMO crops have on our world. While some view GMOs as a key to addressing food security challenges, others express concerns about potential risks to human health and the environment. This article aims to provide a comprehensive overview of GMOs, exploring their potential benefits and drawbacks, and examining their role in ensuring access to nutritious food for a growing global population.
What are GMOs?
“GMO” (genetically modified organism) is the common term consumers and popular media use to describe a plant, animal, or microorganism that has had its genetic material (DNA) changed using technology that generally involves the specific modification of DNA, including the transfer of specific DNA from one organism to another. Scientists often refer to this process as genetic engineering. Genetic modification is when scientists insert new DNA into the gene pool of an existing plant
To make this happen:
- Scientists transfer new DNA into plant cells.
- They grow the cells in tissue culture, and a plant develops.
- The new plant produces seeds.
- A person grows plants from the new seeds.
The new plants will have genetic features that make them, for example, more nutritious or resistant to pests, disease, or climate factors.
For thousands of years, people have used processes such as selective breeding or crossbreeding to produce more viable crops. However, changes took a long time to achieve, and it was hard to make specific changes. In recent years, developments in genetic engineering have allowed scientists to make specific changes more quickly. The crops produced in this way are called GMO crops.
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How GMOs Impact Agriculture and Food Production
Most of the GMO crops grown today were developed to help farmers prevent crop loss. For GMO crops that are resistant to insect damage, farmers can apply fewer spray pesticides to protect the crops. GMO crops that are tolerant to herbicides help farmers control weeds without damaging the crops. When farmers use these herbicide-tolerant crops they do not need to till the soil, which they normally do to get rid of weeds. This no-till planting helps to maintain soil health and lower fuel and labor use. The GMO papaya, called the Rainbow papaya, is an example of a GMO crop developed to be resistant to a virus. When the ringspot virus threatened the Hawaii papaya industry and the livelihoods of Hawaiian papaya farmers, plant scientists developed the ringspot virus-resistant Rainbow papaya. The most common GMO crops were developed to address the needs of farmers, but in turn they can help foods become more accessible and affordable for consumers.
GMO crops may be increasingly attractive to consumers. Examples of this include apples and potatoes that are less likely to bruise or turn brown. Some believe that GMO foods may have an enhanced flavor compared to non-GMO foods. In fact, most people cannot tell the difference between GMO and non-GMO foods.
Some of the reasons farmers choose to grow GMO crops include:
- Higher tolerance to herbicides, making it easier to control weeds
- Greater resistance to certain plant viruses, which can help increase food security by reducing food waste
- Greater residence to damaging insects, which can help reduce the use of pesticides
GMO crops may also be more resistant to harsh climates, such as drought, heat, and salty soils. This can help increase the growth of crops in areas where food security is a concern. Certain genes in GMO foods may also help increase the shelf life of foods, again decreasing food waste.
Potential Advantages of GMO Crops
Increased Food Production and Availability
GM crops could contribute to food production increases and higher food availability. According to the National Center for Biotechnology Information, or NCBI, genetically modified crops could contribute to food production increases. This is particularly important in the face of a growing global population and increasing demand for food. GM technologies could make food crops higher yielding and more robust to biotic and abiotic stresses. This could stabilize and increase food supplies, which is important against the background of increasing food demand, climate change, and land and water scarcity. A 2016 Purdue University Study found that without GMO crops, corn yields would decline by 11 percent, soybeans would decline by 5 percent and cotton would decline by 19 percent.
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Improved Nutritional Value
Certain types of GMOs may add nutritional value to foods. An example of this is golden rice. This is a product that is engineered to provide higher levels of vitamin A to consumers. While it can provide nutritional value to those who eat it, especially in areas where vitamin A deficiency is an issue, the growth of this product is not widespread.
GMOs also impact the lives of farmers in other parts of the world. Agency for International Development (USAID) is working with partner countries to use genetic engineering to improve staple crops, the basic foods that make up a large portion of people’s diets. For example, a GMO eggplant developed to be insect resistant has been slowly released to farmers in Bangladesh since 2014. Farmers who grow GMO eggplants are earning more and have less exposure to pesticides.
Reduced Pesticide Use
For GMO crops that are resistant to insect damage, farmers can apply fewer spray pesticides to protect the crops. Genetic characteristics in fruits and vegetables, such as insect- and disease-resistance, can also help farmers use less pesticides.
Economic Benefits for Farmers
Growing plants that are more resistant to diseases spread by insects or viruses will likely result in higher yields for farmers and a more attractive product. All these factors can contribute to lower costs for the consumer and can ensure that more people have access to quality food.
Addressing Food Security in Developing Countries
Agency for International Development isn’t waiting for a public consensus. It’s already introduced genetically engineered staple crops in countries where food shortages are prevalent. Eggplant is now thriving in Bangladesh.
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Concerns and Potential Disadvantages of GMOs
Genetically engineering foods is a relatively new practice, which means the long-term effects on safety are not yet clear. Many concerns about the disadvantages relate to human health. If there is a link, it could take several more years before a trend emerges.
Potential Health Risks
Some GMOs contain changes that make them resistant to certain antibiotics. In theory, the genes from these plants could enter humans or animals when they eat them. As a result, the person or animal could also develop antibiotic resistance. The likelihood of this happening is very small, but the WHO and other health authorities have guidelines in place to prevent it.
Some people have also raised fears that eating GMO food could lead to genetic changes in humans. However, most of the DNA in food - whether GMO or not - either is destroyed by cooking or breaks down before it reaches the large intestine. Small fragments of DNA from food can and do enter the bloodstream and body organs, but there is no evidence that they have any impact on genetic makeup or human health.
In older research from 2009, some researchers suggested that GMO foods might impact the liver, kidney, pancreas, and reproductive system. They did not have evidence to confirm this and called for further studies. The use of GMO crops may even reduce the risk of toxicity from some substances, as farmers may be able to reduce the use of pesticides.
Environmental Concerns
Environmental concerns include the risk of altered genes entering wild species.
Accessibility and Control
“The technology and the seeds developed from it are owned by a handful of companies,” Otero Jiménez says. “What’s their goal? Is it to make healthy food accessible to everyone? Is it to provide local farmers what they need to grow food locally? “The technology doesn’t translate to better access to healthy food, like broccoli and squash,” Otero Jiménez says.
Minimal increases in yield have come with major externalities
These include but are not limited to water pollution, pollinator loss, and soil degradation, that put future food security at risk.
Food Labeling and Consumer Choice
Foods that are bioengineered and products that contain bioengineered foods must carry a specific label. A GMO food needs a special label if it is “materially different” from its conventional counterpart.
The Role of GMOs in Addressing Food Insecurity
The role of genetically modified (GM) crops for food security is the subject of public controversy. GM crops could contribute to food production increases and higher food availability. There may also be impacts on food quality and nutrient composition. Finally, growing GM crops may influence farmers’ income and thus their economic access to food. Smallholder farmers make up a large proportion of the undernourished people worldwide.
Food security exists when all people have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food. Unfortunately, food security does not exist for a significant proportion of the world population. Around 900 million people are undernourished, meaning that they are undersupplied with calories. Many more suffer from specific nutritional deficiencies, often related to insufficient intake of micronutrients. Eradicating hunger is a central part of the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals.
There are three possible pathways how GM crops could impact food security. First, GM crops could contribute to food production increases and thus improve the availability of food at global and local levels. Second, GM crops could affect food safety and food quality. Third, GM crops could influence the economic and social situation of farmers, thus improving or worsening their economic access to food.
Case Study: Bt Cotton in India
One notable exception is Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) cotton, which is grown by around 15 million smallholders in India, China, Pakistan, and a few other developing countries. Bt cotton provides resistance to important insect pests, especially cotton bollworms. Several studies have shown that Bt cotton adoption reduces chemical pesticide use and increases yields in farmers’ fields. There are also a few studies that have shown that these benefits are associated with increases in farm household income and living standard. Higher incomes are generally expected to cause increases in food consumption in poor farm households.
A study on the impact of Bt cotton adoption on calorie consumption and dietary quality in India showed that Bt cotton was first commercialized in India in 2002. In 2012, over 7 million farmers had adopted this technology on 10.8 million ha - equivalent to 93% of the country’s total cotton area. The survey questionnaire included a detailed food consumption recall, which is a common tool to assess food security at the household level. For a 30-day recall period, households were asked about the quantity consumed of different food items and the corresponding monetary value. The quantity data for the different food items were converted to calories consumed by using calorie conversion factors for India. The results showed that Each ha of Bt cotton has increased total calorie consumption by 74 kcal per AE and day. For the average adopting household, the net effect is 145 kcal per AE, implying a 5% increase over mean calorie consumption in non-adopting households.
The Bigger Picture: Addressing Systemic Issues in Food Access
Healthy living has recently become one of the biggest trends in modern society. Celebrities endorse organic eating and clean lifestyles, which has influenced many people to follow in their footsteps. While eating clean and organic can be an important part of maintaining a healthy lifestyle, this is becoming a luxury rather than an accessible necessity. So where does this leave those who are living in low-income communities? It is so important to make healthy and organic food products accessible to everyone, not just the wealthy elite. Without the equal distribution of healthy and nutritious food to the entire population, the general health of most Americans will continue to suffer.
More than anything, hunger is a result of poverty. The World Bank estimates that there are over 1 billion poor people in developing countries. Continued hunger leads to continued poverty as those suffering from chronic hunger are unable to perform manual labor (the most common source of income in developing countries) and increase their standard of living. Much of this poverty and hunger is caused by existing economic inequity as a result of current political systems that favor those with higher incomes. The current industrial food system emphasizes the need for countries (regardless of size) to export food crops despite the local demand for basic nutrients.
At the same time that there is great hunger there is also excessive food waste throughout the world. It is even worse in the western hemisphere; the US alone wastes 40 percent of its food. In western countries, grocery stores throw out a lot of food and will not purchase unattractive produce. Food is wasted simply because it is visually unappealing or goes uneaten. In developing nations food waste is a result of a lack of infrastructure, capital investment, and basic necessities. Lack of access to road ways, storage facilities, and basic refrigeration prevents food access and increases spoilage rates.
A Path Forward: Sustainable and Equitable Food Systems
We need an international system of agriculture that supports food sovereignty, regenerative agroecological farming practices, and food security on a regional and local level. Regenerative agriculture works to rebuild soil health and biodiversity; sequestering carbon, preventing soil erosion, protecting water sources, and reducing harmful pesticide and fertilizer runoff in the process. Agroecology is also a much better system of management for small holders and provides a more balanced diet with more nutrient dense crops. Smallholders already produce 70 percent of the world’s food on only 25 percent of the land.