Do you know about GMO?

A common word you may hear in health news today is GMO or genetically modified organisms. This term is defined as organisms that instead of mating and reproducing naturally, their DNA has been altered by transferring genes from on organism to another. One of the reasons GMOs are being used is to protect crops from disease by changing their DNA so they are more resistant against bacteria and insects. National authorizes say assessments for GM foods are necessary, but not so much for conventional foods.

Many GM foods are present in our food system and the positive and negative effects of them can never be studied too much since science and technology are always changing. Each food is different and will have different health effects such as toxicity, nutrition, and allergens and environmental effects such as biodiversity and cross contamination.


The NY Times article describes how an orange farmer deals with a disease that makes oranges sour and half green. Money was lost due to less juice production, jobs were lost, and money was spent to find a biotechnological way to combat the disease and grow “healthy” oranges. DNA from 2 vegetables, a virus, a pig, and a synthetic gene were considered for testing and a gene for spinach was selected because it had the best results. Upon EPA and FDA test results and approvals, these GMO oranges will be harvested for juice.

With the recent protests against Monsanto and awareness of GMOs, I do not think this GMO orange juice will have a high acceptance rate from the general public because GMO products are perceived as “bad or unhealthy” from my experience and the people I interact with. For example, GMOs destroy the ecosystem and can cause negative health effects. However, there are people that believe the benefits of GMOs in the food systems outweigh the negative consequences and are necessary to survive because they provide a steady food supply and are equally nutritious.

Personally, with the research and reading I have done about GMOs, I think there's a time and place for everything. I believe there are instances where the pros outweigh the cons such as providing nutritious foods in underdeveloped countries. And other times the cons outweigh the pros when plants or organisms become resistant or immune and causes an imbalance in the ecosystem which negatively affects the environment.

Whole Foods is taking an initiative to allow consumers to choose what they want to purchase based on selling non-GMO foods and I fully support this notion. Petitions and legislation are trying to pass laws to require companies to label GM foods because currently companies may do so voluntarily. I support the labeling of GMOs in the United States. There are over 60 other countries (including France) that require such labeling but the United States does not. I believe Americans should have the right to know how their food was grown just like they have the right to know the nutritional facts. In addition, I think there is benefit for GMO in the food supply of underdeveloped countries in which nutrient deficiencies are prevalent.

Pictures:

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