GMO Crops

Agriculture has come a long ways in the last 20 years. Corn never use to produce 250 bushels an acre and soybeans never use to produce 70 bushels an acre either. The reason why crops can produce this much yield is with the help of GMO (Genetically Modified Organisms).

PRO’s

There are many people that like GMO hybrid crops and there are others that don’t like it. The GMO have been in the news recently for the pros and cons. The world’s population is at 6 billion people right now and is suppose to double in 50 years. It’s going to take GMO to support this growing issue. To make crops more efficient, scientist produced crops that is disease and pest resistant. They also have made crops more tolerant to herbicides, cold temperatures, drought, and salinity. All this traits help produce better quantity and quality crops. These traits prevent the stressors from nature by reducing as much competition against the plant as possible. According to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), there are over 40 plant varieties that have completed all of the federal requirements for commercialization, but not all are products are available in supermarkets. Scientist has not only enhanced crops, but they also have produced GMO fruits, vegetables, and vegetable oils. There are thirteen countries that use GMO crops commercially, and the United States is the majority leader. In 2000 68% of all the crops grown in American were genetically engineered. Corn and soybeans make up 82% of those crops grown. In 1996 the number of GMO crops increased from 4.3 million acres to an outrageous 109 million acres in 2000. This number is still growing to this day. GMO crop’s makes it easier for all farmers to use. Seeds come with insecticide and fungicide on them and you can spray pesticides directly onto the crops without any damages.

CON’s

What most people are worried about GMO is the safety and the environmental concerns. With B.T corn, people are concerned about the potential dangers to non targeted insects that might eat the pollen of the corn. The pollen is toxic to insect larvae. This worries environmentalist that some insects could perish. There is also the worry of targeted insects becoming resistant to the hybrid crops. They are also nervous of gene transfer to non targeted species. This would be a major problem. Crop plants engineered for herbicide tolerance and weeds will cross breed, resulting in the transfer of the herbicide resistance genes from the crops into the weeds. One of the biggest concerns is human health. The risk of introducing foreign genes into food plants may have an unexpected and negative impact on human health. There has been studies that shown organ malfunctions in some people.  

Could you imagine the world without GMO crops? The world would starve. Remember that the population is increasing and the amount of farm land is not. Hybrid crops give the world potential to solve world hunger and preserve the environment by reducing the reliance on pesticides. On the whole, with the exception of possible allergenicity, scientists believe that GM foods do not present a risk to human health.