Are GMOs Bad, Really?
Genetically modified crops are plants that have had their DNA changed in the lab to provide them with a certain trait (e.g. pest or herbicide resistance, stress tolerance, higher yields...) that is not present in their wild relative. Although this technology seeks to improve crops, its effects on health and the environment are highly controversial.
Risks
GMOs can be harmful to consumers and ecosystems. Allergies can be transferred through genetic modification. For instance, GM soybeans with added genes from Brazil nuts to improve their amino acids' content maintained the nuts' allergenic component. Modified plants may also synthesize toxins, like it happened in 1981 in Spain when modified rapeseed oil killed a 1000 people. Moreover, genetical engineering uses antibiotic resistance to identify successful genome modifications, and this resistance can be transferred to the human’s or livestock’s bacterial microflora, compromising antibiotic therapeutic use. All of this sounds dreadful, but of course, these are exceptions.
Last, GMOs also threaten ecosystems through the potential introgression of transgenes into the wild populations through the uncontrollable dispersion of pollen and reproductive plant parts. A gene that confers an advantageous trait will spread and threaten the ecosystem's biodiversity.
Benefits
Nevertheless, a recent paper found that the GM alternatives of soybean, maize and cotton reduce chemical pesticides application by 37%, increase crop yields by 22% and increase farmer profits by 68%. Pest and disease resistant crops can also prevent huge production losses, and improve food security and agricultural growth in developing countries by boosting smallholder farmers' yields. Increased stress tolerance can also be very beneficial in the face of climate change. And by increasing the nutritional content of staple crops, such as Golden Rice (Figure 1) that has added vitamin A, human health can be improved in communities that cannot secure a diverse healthy diet.
Figure 1 - Golden rice (right hand) rich in vitamin A.
Conclusion
Although GM technology can help combat global food security, it carries many risks too and miscommunication of evidence to the lay public and amplification of risk by the media have lead to an overall rejection of GMOs by consumers. Moreover, while agro-ecological approaches can tackle food insecurity while promoting human and ecosystem health, GM technology puts health at stake and yet receives more funding. In my opinion, transgenic crops should be assessed on a case-by-case basis and using a precautionary approach, and can be a compliment to a productive sustainable food system, which is nevertheless mainly based on agro-ecological diversity.
Diego Garcia-Vega - December 17th 2017
Although GM technology can help combat global food security, it carries many risks too and miscommunication of evidence to the lay public and amplification of risk by the media have lead to an overall rejection of GMOs by consumers. Moreover, while agro-ecological approaches can tackle food insecurity while promoting human and ecosystem health, GM technology puts health at stake and yet receives more funding. In my opinion, transgenic crops should be assessed on a case-by-case basis and using a precautionary approach, and can be a compliment to a productive sustainable food system, which is nevertheless mainly based on agro-ecological diversity.
Diego Garcia-Vega - December 17th 2017