Matthew Pacl

Northwest Career and Technical Academy

English 12

Ms. Acosta

November 3, 2021

The Importance GMOs: Learning to accept and embrace them

Matthew Pacl

Northwest Career and Technical Academy

English 12

Ms. Acosta

November 3, 2021
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Abstract

Genetically modified organisms (GMO) or what they are generally called GMOs are organisms

which have been genetically modified including different kinds of plants and animals alike.

These kinds of plants and animals are made from Genetic Engineers moving a desired gene(s) or

trait(s) from one organism to another making that plant or animal suitable for the user's desire.

This may include stuff like stronger resistance to weather, soil erosion, drought, frost and other

environmental stressors. These plants or animals are then grown and produced to the public

which here lies our problem. People are against GMOs because of the unknown properties of

being “different”. GMOs now are grown in almost 90% or more of farmers yields and are still

growing. However I believe that the GMOs are not the actual problem here and that it's the big

companies running the whole show having too much power and control for what goes in a

farmers land.

Keywords: GMO, genes, different, environmental stressors, power and control

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What exactly makes GMOs so dangerous compared to normal plants when breeding

plants for the best genes or in this case modifying them has been happening for centuries in the

field of Agriculture? GMOs technically stand for genetically modified organisms and it is when

scientists move genes from one organism to another to either the benefit of the person or

organism. Some examples of this kind of stuff could be disease resistant, weather resistant, faster

growth rate, and even down to better nutrition and taste. They even have gone to affect the stock

market with cheaper prices, longer expiration dates and now it gives more small-time farmers a

chance to be successful in actually making a living. Even though people have said that GMOs

are a potential danger for us and/or the environment, GMOs have been tested and proven to be

safe for us because GMOs can be modified to actually help the environment solve world

problems, help advance agriculture, and create better, more accessible foods for the consumer.

Reason number one is that GMOs can actually help the environment and help fight

growing problems in our world like climate change. In the article Have GM crops caused

damage to the environment? By The Royal Society they state that “GMOs do not harm the

environment simply because they are genetically modified”. Also, certain farming practices like

an overuse of herbicides will harm the environment no matter what kind of plant happens to be

in that field. A genetically modified plant can be changed to resist unwanted vegetation and

parasites making the farmer maintain soil health with less labour to while at it. Scientists say that

this type of modification could help with fighting climate change, making trees grow bigger,

faster, resist disease and even absorb more carbon from the air around us. An example of this

could be the Armand Séguin, a first of its kind that was immune to the spruce budworm and even

turned carbon from the air into a stable white powder that falls to the ground.
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With advances in technology ever so expanding it's a wonder how far we have come from

what used to be agriculture. Over these past 50 years agriculture has advanced so much more

than in the last 10,000 years. Machinery has expanded the scale, speed, and productivity of farm

equipment, leading to more efficient cultivation of more land. Plant resistance has also gone up

from potentially fields being wiped or even economies like a virus almost did for the papaya

industry in Hawaii. Ensuring better outcomes for farms has led to more successful farms, even

some of the smaller ones being able to acquire more income, achieving it for less work.

Such advancements can only mean benefits for the consumers using the products. GMOs

make products more accessible for all and even be better than the original product itself. One of

the more notable examples in 10 Reasons We Need Biotech Foods and Crops, by the government

is “Golden Rice”. “Golden Rice” was modified to be enriched with the Provitamin A to help

maintain vision; at the time an increase in blindness was occurring. Something else that GMOs

can help with is the battle with obesity by having a healthier fatty acid profile. Something else

possible with GMOs is increasing the time at which one fruit expires leaving more time for the

consumer to eat these products.

Others may think that GMOs are a potential danger, something that shouldn’t be eaten or

used because of their genetic changes and potential chance to mutate, however the idea of

making plants have desired genes from other organisms isn't something new and has been

something happening over centuries of agriculture, selective breeding. According to the article,

“Genetically engineered foods”, they state that unlike selective breeding genetic engineering

allows for scientists to move specific genes to the plant completely avoiding undesirable traits

which could show up when selective breeding. If genetically modifying is seen as the far

superior and more consistent way of breeding plants then why protest against it when selective
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breeding has the exact same problems. By genetically engineering plants then it both speeds up

the process of moving desired traits and better avoids the unwanted traits that selective breeding

proposes, besides proposing a ban against this overshadows the previous 70 years of plant

breeding and mutations caused by it.

GMOs have all been tested and approved to have been released to the public. These

plants have been modified to help fight the over growing population of people, make food more

available, and to help save the environment. GMOs have not been the problem in the field of

agriculture, but the companies pulling the strings. They have caused a huge monopoly over the

field of agriculture and forced farmers to buy their seeds or potentially get sued for having their

GMO crops. GMOs are something that should be embraced and not something that should be

fought over. They might be our only option to fight against big challenges like climate change

and proper land use. As the consumers we have the most power, so why not just make use for it.

If you see something that came from these big companies like BASF, Bayer, Dupont, Dow

Chemical Company, Monsanto, or Syngenta, just don't buy it, it will send a message to them that

you don't want their products anymore. Please, don't reject something as huge as this, many

people have put time and effort into this making sure that it's safe, edible , and that it can help

protect our world for the better.

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References

1. Phillips, Theresa. “Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs): Transgenic Crops and

Recombinant DNA Technology.” Nature News, Nature Publishing Group, 2008,
https://www.nature.com/scitable/topicpage/genetically-modified-organisms-gmos-transge
nic-crops-and-732/.
2. “10 Reasons We Need Biotech Foods and Crops.” 10Reasons We Need Biotech Foods
and Crops, 2013,
https://geneticliteracyproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/Biotechnology-infographic
_7.29.13-clean.pdf.
3. Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition. “How Gmo Crops Impact Our World.” U.S.
Food and Drug Administration, FDA, 2020,
https://www.fda.gov/food/agricultural-biotechnology/how-gmo-crops-impact-our-world.
4. Lilschneb. “Why Are Gmos Good?” GMO Answers, 2016,
https://gmoanswers.com/ask/why-are-gmos-good.
5. “Benefits to Farmers.” Biotech Grassroots Toolkit,
https://www.fb.org/files/GrassrootsToolKit-AllBenefitsIncluded.pdf.
6. “Weighing the GMO Arguments: Against.” Weighing the GMO Arguments: Against, FAO
Newsroom, Mar. 2003, https://www.fao.org/english/newsroom/focus/2003/gmo8.htm.
7. Schouten, Henk J, and Evert Jacobsen. “Are Mutations in Genetically Modified Plants
Dangerous?” Journal of Biomedicine & Biotechnology, Hindawi Publishing Corporation,
2007, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2218926/.
8. “Genetically Engineered Foods: Medlineplus Medical Encyclopedia.” MedlinePlus, U.S.
National Library of Medicine, https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/002432.htm.
9. “Engineering Programs List.” List of Engineering Degrees, Programs & Curriculum |
EducatingEngineers.com, https://educatingengineers.com/degrees.