Genetically Modified Foods

GENETICALLY MODIFIED FOODS

Genetically modified (GM) foods are food items that have had their DNA changed through genetic engineering. Unlike conventional genetic modification that is carried out through conventional breeding and that have been consumed for thousands of years, GM foods were first put on the market in the early 1990s. The most common modified foods are derived from plants: soybean, corn, canola, and cotton seed oil.

ADVANTAGES OF GM FOODS After a 12 years of use on more than 690.9 million hectares worldwide, plant biotechnology delivers proven economic and environmental benefits, a solid record of safe use and promising products for our future. 90 percent of who farm in developing countries have choose to plant biotech crops. International regulatory standards for GM crops are affirmed by a decade of safe use.

Biotech crops are among the most studied and reviewed foods in the world. Using well-established, internationally accepted standards of risk assessment, regulatory authorities worldwide have reviewed all biotech crops now on the market and determined that they pose no more risk than crops produced through traditional breeding methods.

A proven 12-year history of safe use supports the conclusion that the regulatory process has been successful. Experts estimate more than 1 trillion meals containing ingredients from biotech crops have been consumed with no reliable documentation of any food safety issues for people or animals. Each year, global population grows by more than 70 million, and agriculture is required to produce more food with limited land and water resources. Scientists believe biotechnology holds great potential to help farmers produce more food — and healthier food — with fewer resources.

Over the next decade, biotechnology promises to deliver products that address land and resource limitations, such as improved drought tolerance, saline tolerance and increased yields. The research also will deliver products with direct consumer benefits such as enhanced nutrition, convenience and taste.

For example: Food ingredients in which the major allergenic proteins are modified or eliminated. Rice enriched with beta-carotene, which stimulates production of vitamin A. Vitamin A deficiency causes blindness in 500,000 children and up to 2 million deaths annually. Plants that can tolerate stress from harsh environments — such as arid or saline soils, cold environments or low nutrient availability — and continue to produce food.

Farmers have decreased pesticide applications by 289,000 metric tons. Consumers consistently rank a reduction in pesticide applications as the most valuable benefit of plant biotechnology — which is important since farmers have significantly reduced pesticide sprayings, while conserving the water and fuel otherwise depleted with tillage or plowing. Since 1996, the use of GM soybeans has been one of the largest contributors to reduced pesticide applications, accounting for cumulative reductions of 41,000 metric tons.

YieldGard corn rootworm is expected to eliminate one million plastic containers, 68,845 gallons of aviation fuel, 5 million gallons of water used in insecticide formulations, 5 million pounds of insecticide active ingredient, and 5 million gallons of diesel fuel per year. GM crops benefit the environment and conserve natural habitat for wildlife.

One of the advantages of gentecially modified foods and crops is the reduced need for tillage or plowing, allowing farmers to adopt conservation or “no-till” practices. In the United States alone, these practices and other conservation measures are reducing soil erosion by 1 billion tons and saving consumers $3.5 billion in water treatment costs annually. Biotech crops also have played an important role in boosting the productivity of existing farmland — enough to allow for the protection of at least 400 million acres of prairies, forests and other natural areas from cultivation over the past decade. These areas provide food and shelter for wildlife and preserve biodiversity.

Farmers growing biotech crops increased their income by US$34 billion. Farmers have increased income through higher yields and lower production costs — including fewer pesticide applications and the more efficient use of farm labor. Research indicates an increase in income is consistent worldwide with significant economic benefits realized by small- and large-scale farmers alike.

A century of discoveries and scientific research make plant biotechnology possible. People have always strived to grow better, more plentiful foods. As early as 5000 BC, farmers began saving their best and sweetest corn to use as seed the next year. But it wasn’t until 1865 that Mendel concluded “unseen particles” pass these traits from generation to generation.

Researchers then began to understand DNA and determined that the cells of all living things are composed of the same basic components. In 1953, Watson and Crick defined the structure of DNA, allowing us to understand how cells store, duplicate and pass genetic information. By 1973, Cohen and Boyer had isolated and moved a gene — a specific piece of DNA — from one organism to another. Each of these discoveries paved the way for great improvements in plant breeding. In 1982, researchers genetically modified a plant cell for the first time — making precise, controlled improvements in plant breeding possible. Farmers planted the first large-scale commercial biotech crop in the United States in 1996.

Today, after a decade of use on more than 1 billion acres worldwide, crops developed through biotechnology have delivered significant benefits and a proven record of safe use. The next decade with plant biotechnology holds even more promise.