Genetically Modified Foods for Global Food Security - Essay Example

Outline Genetically Modified Foods for Global Food Security 2. Opening paragraphs: The current issues on global food security Genetic modification and its meaning 3. Thesis: With the criticisms against GM foods proven to be mere fears, GM foods should be adopted globally as an effective strategy to enhance food security. 4. Essay body: A. GM foods increase food supply Production of high-yielding seeds GM crops withstand harsh climate GM crops withstand harsh land, insects and herbicides B. GM foods encourage food production by farmers Reduced agricultural chemical usage encourages GM agricultural practice Higher yields encourage agriculture in GM crops Higher profitability encourages engagement in GM agricultural activities C. It leads to reduced food prices Low cost of production results in lower cost of produce Increased profitability provides room for negotiating food prices downwards Minimal expenses to curb agricultural carbon emissions and handling the resultant effects 5. Counterarguments: Mutagenic risks on humans Refutation: Historical use of GM foods indicate no adverse effects Safety risks Refutation: Invalid research inferences; Safety measures by the government 6. Conclusion: With the fears regarding GM foods refuted, governments should make use of the benefits of increased food production and supplies and reduced food prices to promote GM foods in their countries to alleviate hunger. Genetically Modified Foods for Global Food Security Introduction The question of food security remains a critical issue of consideration among nations across the world. The significance of the issue follows the high number of people facing hunger despite many plans by various governmental and international organizations to curb the problem. Today, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, FAO estimates that over 700 million people from 79 middle and low income countries suffer from food insecurity, with the poorest countries suffering the most. Globally, about an eighth of the population suffers from chronic hunger and do not regularly get enough food to actively engage in life’s activities. Countries that have improved their food security measures have leveraged on modern technology to achieve their objectives. One such technology that has been used to improve food production is referred to as genetic modification. As defined by Freedman, genetic modification involves the scientific alteration of characteristics of organisms, encompassing both animals and plants, through removal or addition of genes (85). In crops, Shaw observes that biochemical changes would be induced through inserting or expressing alien cells leading to the difference in metabolites observed in genetically modified, GM foods and their non-GM counterparts (278). This usually aims at developing new traits considered as desirable in these organisms, including higher yield, herbicide resistance, improved nutritional qualities and pest protection among others. With the criticisms against GM foods proven to be mere fears, GM foods should be adopted globally as an effective strategy to enhance food security. Benefits of GM Foods Of prime importance to the world is the fact that GM foods increase food supply. Genetic modification leads to development of seeds that produce high yields. Freedman gives evidence to this noting that through genetic modification, humans have been able to increase the yield of cotton, soy and corn by a range of between 20% and 30% (86). Furthermore, a majority of GM crops are able to withstand the current harsh climatic conditions attributed to global warming. These crops have the ability to withstand salty land, dryness, diseases, insects and a wide range of herbicides. They are also able to withstand extreme temperatures (Shaw 256). Therefore, adoption of GM foods into our food supply systems would ensure a constant supply of foods and curb food shortage. This way, humans are able to enjoy a constant supply of food without lack, thus enhanced food security. Secondly, GM foods encourage food production by farmers. Studies have shown a direct correlation between production of GM crops and limited chemical application. Minimal chemical applications in terms of herbicides, pesticides and fertilizers among others would be required with regards to producing GM foods as noted by Riley and Rylott (6) and Winter and Gallegos (2). With the reduced input and higher yields, GM food production increases farmers’ profitability. Countries like the US, Canada, Argentina and Brazil have benefitted from GM foods in this aspect, the reason why these countries continue to be major players in GM technology. Combined, they produce over 90% of all the GM foods distributed globally (Freedman 88). The fact that production of GM foods require limited input and coupled with the fact that it leads to higher profitability, many farmers would be motivated to engage in producing GM foods which increases food supply. Finally, use of GM foods lowers food prices. As noted, production of GM foods involves limited inputs. With minimal or no application of herbicides and pesticides, the cost of producing such foods would be kept on the low (Riley and Rylott 6; Shaw 256). With this low cost production, the effect would be felt by the consumer through reduced food prices. Additionally, with the increased profitability from farming, farmers would be willing to lower the prices they offer for their produce thus generally reducing food prices. FAO observes that between 1996 and 2011, farm income gain globally has risen by $98.2 billion as a result of genetic modification agricultural practices, an indication of the immense economic gains associated with the technology. The profits directly relate to the increased production and limited input which sold at the current prices result in immense profitability to farmers. Even more, GM foods are associated with reduced emission of greenhouse gases from agricultural practices. This is due to the minimal tillage which enhances soil carbon storage (Winter and Gallegos 3). As a result, minimal expenses go into efforts to curb carbon emissions and handling the resultant effects, costs which go to improve farming and also passed down to consumers, further reducing food prices. With reduced cost of production and higher gains, food prices would reduce making it more accessible to a greater population thus enhance food security. Criticisms Despite these benefits, there has been an increasing body of critics who argue against the distribution of GM foods for human consumption. It is against this background that eight EU countries banned GM foods within their borders, only allowing GM maize and potatoes (Freedman 88). Asia has also been reluctant to allow such technology to infiltrate its food market, with China and India showing reservation to allowing the production GM rice said to be high yielding and resistant to pests. Even countries in Africa facing immense starvation have still not approved such technologies to curb their hunger problems, looking up to Europe and following suit of its decisions without proper considerations (Séralini et al. 22). Such criticisms which do not have any credible basis have slowed down the benefits that the world should realize from GM technology. One of these criticisms is the fact that GM foods risk interfering with the natural genetic arrangement of humans. Logically, interference with the natural genetic arrangement of organisms which constitute human food risks interfering with the genetic arrangement of humans upon consumption of such foods. Therefore, by consuming GM foods, humans risk mutagenic changes. As noted by Shaw, such a reaction could take place slowly over time and could be expressed even in future generations (279). Nonetheless, this argument does not hold because humans have historically produced genetically modified foods with no adverse effects. As documented by Freedman, from as early as 10,000 BC, humans selected the crops seen to be high yielding and resistant to diseases and pests for the subsequent planting season (86). They also selected the livestock with high production history for breeding. If there has been no adverse mutagenic effects on humans over this long period of time, then GM foods stand no chance of causing mutagenic changes on human health, Therefore, GM foods should be used to improve food security. GM foods are unsafe for human consumption as they risk negative health effects. This argument has seen major retailers vividly brand their products as being GM-free because of customers’ cautious nature to the health risks of GM foods (Riley and Rylott 6). In one of the popular studies documented by Shaw, female rats that were fed with GM soy flour gave birth to smaller offspring than their counterparts that were fed on normal flour (213). A majority of those pups from rats exposed to GM soy flour also died earlier and organ analysis showed that the fragments of GM DNA were found to have interfered with the kidneys, liver, spleen and the blood. Thus, further studies to infer these findings to humans have indicated that GM foods risk causing Alzheimer’s disease and cancer in humans. As such, the conclusion has been that GM foods negatively affect humans. However, such arguments have been criticized by an increasing body of scientists who fault such studies for inferring findings on animals to humans (Shaw 279). Furthermore, various government agencies, including the US Food and Drug Administration, FDA, Department of Agriculture and Environmental Protection Agency among others ensure that all distributed foods, including GM foods, meet the required safety standards as provided for in various legislations such as the federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (Winter and Gallegos 2). As such, the safety of GM foods for human consumption is guaranteed and should therefore be used to improve food security. Conclusion The world continues to face immense food insecurity with many people still facing starvation, malnutrition and under-nutrition. With the increasing global population, the problem seems to worsen. Therefore, humans should adopt technologies that would increase food supplies and make every human around the world access adequate portions and right quality of food. GM foods have been proven to enhance global food security. Arguments regarding the interference of GM foods with human genetics and health safety remain to be mere skepticism as such foods, just like others, undergo intense safety check-ups. Furthermore, the studies used in favor of such arguments are invalid and ignore the fact that genetic modification has been historically practiced without any adverse effects. It would be beneficial for countries across the world to allow distribution of GM foods as the associated increase in food production and supply and decrease in food prices would make food accessible to all its citizens. Developing countries which bear the greatest brunt of hunger should lead in approving the adoption of GM agricultural practices so as to alleviate hunger. This way, the world would realize immense gains that make GM foods foster global food security. Works Cited Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. The Multiple Dimensions of Food Security. 2014. Web. 15 Apr. 2014. http://www.fao.org/ Freedman, D. H. “Are Engineered Foods Evil?” Scientific American 309.3 (2013): 80 – 85. Riley, P. and P. Rylott. “Should We Allow GM Cropping?” Research and Development in Biotechnology (15 Nov. 2003): 6 – 7. Academic Search Premier. Séralini, G., et al. (2011). “Genetically Modified Crops Safety Assessments: Present Limits and Possible Improvements”. Environmental Sciences Europe 23.10 (2011): 21 – 30. Print. Shaw, I. C. Food Safety: The Science of Keeping Food Safe. Iowa: John Wiley & Sons, 2013. Print. Winter, C. L. and L. K. Gallegos. , L. K. “Safety of Genetically Engineered Food.” Agricultural Biotechnology in California, (2013): 1 – 5. Web. 15 Apr. 2014. Read More