Food Supplies Become Predictable.: Genetically Modified Foods Can Have A Longer Shelf Life

Advantages:
•The primary advantage of genetically modified foods is that crop yields become more consistent and
productive, allowing more people to be fed. According to Oxfam, the world currently produced about 20%
more food calories than what is required for every human being to be healthy.
•Food supplies become predictable.
When crop yields become predictable, then the food supply becomes predictable at the same time. This gives
us the ability to reduce the presence of food deserts around the world, providing a greater population with a
well-rounded nutritional opportunity that may not have existed in the past.
•Nutritional content can be improved.
Genetic modifications do more than add pest resistance or weather resistance to GMO crops. The nutritional
content of the crops can be altered as well, providing a denser nutritional profile than what previous
generations were able to enjoy. This means people in the future could gain the same nutrition from lower
levels of food consumption. The UN Food and Agricultural Organization notes that rice, genetically modified to
produce high levels of Vitamin A, have helped to reduce global vitamin deficiencies.
•Genetically modified foods can have a longer shelf life.
Instead of relying on preservatives to maintain food freshness while it sits on a shelf, genetically modified foods make it
possible to extend food life by enhancing the natural qualities of the food itself. According to Environmental Nutrition,
certain preservatives are associated with a higher carcinogen, heart disease, and allergy risk.
• We receive medical benefits from GMO crops.
Through a process called “pharming,” it is possible to produce certain proteins and vaccines, along with other
pharmaceutical goods, thanks to the use of genetic modifications. This practice offers cheaper methods of improving
personal health and could change how certain medications are provided to patients in the future. Imagine being able to
eat your dinner to get a tetanus booster instead of receiving a shot in the arm – that’s the future of this technology.
• It creates foods that are more appealing to eat.
Colors can be changed or improved with genetically modified foods so they become more pleasing to eat. Spoon
University reports that deeper colors in foods changes how the brain perceives what is being eaten. Deeper red colors
make food seem to be sweeter, even if it is not. Brighter foods are associated with better nutrition and improved
flavors.
• Genetically modified foods are easier to transport.
Because GMO crops have a prolonged shelf life, it is easier to transport them greater distances. This improvement
makes it possible to take excess food products from one community and deliver it to another that may be experiencing a
food shortage. GMO foods give us the opportunity to limit food waste, especially in the developing world, so that hunger
can be reduced and potentially eliminated.
•Herbicides and pesticides are used less often.
Herbicides and pesticides create certain hazards on croplands that can eventually make the soil unusable. Farmers
growing genetically modified foods do not need to use these products as often as farmers using traditional growing
methods, allowing the soil to recover its nutrient base over time. Because of the genetic resistance being in the plant
itself, the farmer still achieves a predictable yield at the same time.
•GMOs have a positive impact on the health of the environment. Recently, a meta-analysis of 20 years of data found that
growing genetically modified insect-resistant corn in the United States has dramatically reduced insecticide use. By
suppressing the population of damaging insect pests, it’s also created a “halo effect” that benefits farmers raising non-GM
and organic vegetable crops, allowing them to reduce their use of pesticides, too.
•The USDA Pesticide Data Program reported in 2015 that 85 percent of crops had pesticide residue. Other studies that
have looked at the pesticide levels in groundwaters reported that 53 percent of their sampling sites contained one or more
pesticides. These chemicals are not only contaminating our water and food supplies, they’re also contaminating the
supplies for other organisms in the surrounding environment. So the fact that GM seeds now account for more than 50
percent of global glyphosate usage is certainly concerning.
•With the world’s population expected to reach 9.7 billion by 2050, farmers are now being asked to produce more food
than they’ve produced in the entire 10,000-year history of agriculture. At the same time, we’re facing extreme climate
change events, such as prolonged droughts and severe storms that greatly impact agricultural production.
DISADVANTAGES:
•1. GMO crops may cause antibiotic resistance.
Iowa State University research shows that when crops are modified to include antibiotics and other items that kill germs
and pests, it reduces the effectiveness of an antibiotic or other medication when it is needed in the traditional sense.
Because the foods contain trace amounts of the antibiotic when consumed, any organisms that would be affected by a
prescription antibiotic have built an immunity to it, which can cause an illness to be more difficult to cure.
2. Farmers growing genetically modified foods have a greater legal liability.

Crops that are genetically modified will create seeds that are genetically modified. Cross-pollination is possible between
GMO crops and non-GMO crops as well, even when specified farming practices are followed. Because many of the crops
and seeds that produce GMO crops are patented, farmers that aren’t even involved in growing these foods are subjected to
a higher level of legal liability. Farmers that do grow GMO crops could also face liabilities for letting seeds go to other
fields or allowing cross-pollination to occur.
3. Genes go into different plant species.
Crops share fields with other plants, including weeds. Genetic migrations are known to occur. What happens when the
genes from an herbicide-resistant crop get into the weeds it is designed to kill? Interactions at the cellular level could
create unforeseen complications to future crop growth where even the benefits of genetically modified foods may not
outweigh the problems that they cause. One example: dozens of weed species are already resistant to atrazine.
4. Independent research is not allowed.
6 companies control most of the genetically modified foods market at the core level. Because most GMO foods are made
from corn, wheat, or soybeans, even food manufacturers that use these crops are at the mercy of the manufacturer’s
preferences. Over 50% of the seed producers that have created the GMO foods market prohibit any independent research
on the final crops as an effort to protect their profits.
5. Some genetically modified foods may present a carcinogen exposure risk.
A paper that has been twice-published, but retracted once as well, showed that crops tolerant to commercial pesticides
greatly increased the risk of cancer development in rats. The information from this research study, though limited, has
been widely circulated and creates the impression that all GMO foods are potentially hazardous.
6. Allergic Reactions
Some people believe that GMO foods have more potential to trigger allergic reactions. This is because they may contain
genes from an allergen — a food that prompts an allergic reaction. The World Health Organization
(WHO) discourages genetic engineers from using DNA from allergens unless they can prove that the gene itself does not
cause the problem. It is worth noting that there have been no reports of allergic effects of any GMO foods currently on the
market.
According to Dr. David Perlmutter: Genetic modification of agricultural seeds isn’t in the interest of the planet or
its inhabitants. Genetically modified (GM) crops are associated with an increased use of chemicals, like glyphosate, that
are toxic to the environment and to humans. These chemicals not only contaminate our food and water supplies, but they
also compromise soil quality and are actually associated with increased disease susceptibility in crops.

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2. Farmers growing genetically modified foods have a greater legal liability.

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