Genetically Modified Crops

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Genetically Modified Crops
Aly Huttlin, Manju Pillai, Diana Goodman
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What is it?

• Genetically Modified crops- the crops are from
  modified organisms that have been genetically
  engineered by scientists. They are a cross of
  different crops, and they are modified so that
  they grow more in quantity, and larger in size.

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Why they are Produced

• Because they are meant to be translated into a
  product with lower price, for greater product. It
  benefits both consumer, and farmer.
• Improve Crop Protection by resisting plant
  diseases caused by viruses through insects.

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Pros

• when they make the plants they try to incorporate
  a toxin that is used now as a pesticide, so they
  are making a built in pesticide which is safe for
  humans to eat or consume.
• the GM plants are assessed before they go out for
  human consumption
• when being assessed they look for things like
  outcrossing and gene transfer
• out crossing is when the GM mixes with wild and
  normal crops and the genes from the GM are
  transferred
• Less susceptible to disease
• Less tillage needed, especially with crops
  containing herbicide tolerance transgenes,
  therefore conserves fertility through minimizing
  soil damage through compression.

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Cons

• can provoke allergies
• they are afraid of gene transfer from the GM to
  humans and the gene might be antibiotic
  resistant.
• Risks destroying organic farming which rules out
  the use of GM organisms. Who will compensate
  organic farmers for the extra surveillance and
  analysis which will be needed to ensure that the
  organic food chains remain free of GMOs?

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Examples of GM Crops

• Broccoli
• Brussels Sprouts
• Cabbage

• Corn
• Soybeans
• Cotton

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The following countries planted genetically
modified crops totaling one percent of global GM
crop production Australia, Mexico, Romania,
Bulgaria, Spain, Germany, Uruguay, Indonesia,
India, Columbia, Honduras, and the Philippines.
Differences between values shown and those
calculated (from percent and total global
acreage) are likely consequence of rounding.
Source International Service for the
Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications (ISAAA)
Global Review of Transgenic Crops 2003.
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In 1996, 4.2 million acres in six countries were
planted with GM crops. By 2003, the numbers had
grown to 167.2 million acres in 18 countries on
six continents a 40-fold increase in eight
years. The adoption of GM crops has been the most
rapid in the United States, where there has been
a 27-fold increase in the area of GM crops
planted during the same eight year period (3.7
million acres in 1996 to 105.7 million acres in
2003).
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References

• http//pewagbiotech.org/resources/factsheets/displ
  ay.php3?FactsheetID2
• http//www.who.int/foodsafety/publications/biotech
  /20questions/en/ 
• http//www.ifgene.org/proscons.htm