Guide questions from UN for genetically modified crops

1. What are the potential environmental impacts of genetically modified crops that have been successfully
developed to address specific agricultural challenges and promote sustainability?

Answer:
Potential environmental impacts are increased pest resistance to pesticides, decrease in soil health could result from
the enhanced crop productivity, and resistance to pests.

2. What are the key ethical considerations associated with genetic engineering in crops, and how can they
be effectively addressed to foster public acceptance and trust?

Answer:
Patenting and corporate control, potential risk to human health and environment, and ecological impact are the
ethical considerations that need to be addressed; in order to foster public trust and acceptance, documents with
binding powers need to be drafted and signed by member states in order to strictly regulate products with genetically
modified origins in order to ensure health and environmental safety, as well as, regulate corporate control.

3. Which countries, groups, or individuals truly benefit from genetic engineering in crops?

Answer:
The true beneficiary from genetic engineering in crops are the member states that have invested in the development
of GMOs. This can be evident in their production level and in their exportation of goods to other states.

4. Do the farmers in rural and marginal areas enjoy the benefits that arise from genetic engineering in
crops? Are there any disadvantages being brought to these farmers and do the advantages outweigh the
disadvantages?

Answer:
Small-scale farmers do enjoy the benefits of genetically engineered crops (GECs), especially the enhanced
resistance of GMOs; furthermore, it is a more sustainable strategy for them to apply; especially because farmers use
significantly less irrigation and other resources in cultivation these GECs. Farmers would have to buy these
genetically engineered crops for a higher price; however, the farmers would also use far fewer auxiliary resources.
The ideal result is not entirely guaranteed, and there are many more factors to keep in mind to get the ideal result
from these GM crops. Until we can bring down the price of GECs, small-scale farmers are still at a disadvantage
because of the underlying fees caused by intellectual property rights owned by the private sector.

5. How can regulatory frameworks and policies be developed to ensure the safe and responsible use of
genetic engineering in agriculture?

Answer:
Regulatory frameworks from other countries can be adopted, and drafts from each country need to be reviewed by
an international regulatory body, ensuring an equal standard for the rest of the world. Treaties are also needed in
order to ensure repercussions are imposed to regulation violators.

6. How can the United Nations as an international organization address the persisting ethical
considerations and lack of structural and policy limitations of the genetic engineering industry?

Answer:
Binding documents should be engineered by the UN. The framework should have an executive capability to be
carried out by member states; this is necessary in order to ensure that the document has a bearing.

7. How can Member States ensure the sustainability of their agriculture and food security through genetic
engineering?

Answer:
Member States can ensure sustainability and food security through genetic engineering by focusing their attention in
their agricultural sector. They can initiate farmer seminars and give away free samples in certain areas as an
experimental control group to lead the innovative use of GM crops in their local areas. The free samples shall be
cultivated in those pioneering agricultural lands; this is of course with the help of both small-scale and large-scale
local farmers. If success is seen in these areas, widespread modernization can then be organized and put into action.

8. Can biotechnology alone solve the problem of hunger in the developing world? If not, what other
measures can be taken to complement the efforts to achieve sustainable agriculture and farming?

Answer:

9. Are the knowledge, skills, and technologies brought by the use of genetic engineering in crops for
sustainable agriculture and farming accessible and applicable to farmers in rural and marginal areas?

Answer:
As we speak, more and more farmers are adapting the methods that genetically engineered crops have brought to our
farmers; however, there are still rural and marginal areas that are yet to be reached by recent developments in the
methodologies of farming.

10. Why is there a lack of agreement as to whether genome-edited organisms are genetically modified
organisms?