The GMO and Biotechnology Debate

The debate on GMOs has been going on for years, and each side has its own valid points to be made on the matter. According to the ISAAA (International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications), genetically modifying plants is good for the world economy. Bhagirath Choudhary, of the South East Asia office of the ISAAA, states that India is the world’s second leading producer of Biotech cotton, as well as being the number one raw cotton exporter in the world.

In 2009, the BT technology in cotton engineering has contributed to 1.8 billion to the farm economy alone.

The ISAAA also used their technology to fortify rice with vitamin A, something that many children are deficient in and can go blind because as a result. Dr. Vandana Shiva has a very different opinion on Genetically Modified Organisms than the ISAAA does. She says that in India, the BT cotton has depleted the soil of 30% of its microorganisms within 3 years of cultivation because of the genetic modification.

They also have reports of cattle dying as a result of grazing on the fields that BT cotton was grown in, because it is toxic. In response to the ISAAAs claims on the health benefits of golden rice, she states that it really only has 34ug of vitamin A, whereas a curry leaf has 1400ug of vitamin A. Dr. Shiva says that these claims that the ISAAA makes are only illusions that they are marketing in order for people to hand over the power to them, because whoever controls the food supply has all the power.

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She points out that most the areas today with hunger problems are also the ones that are the most agricultural, and it’s because most of the farmers have to sell everything they grow in order to pay for the costly seeds that the major companies patented.

Tam very much against genetically modified organisms. I think that it’s a money scheme and that the major corporations controlling it all don’t care about an individual’s health-they only see the dollar signs. I also thought that Dr. Shiva’s point about the golden corn was very interesting. These large corporations have no problem with lying to their consumers in order to sell more product. I learned a lot, not only from this one assignment but from the first few classes in general, about GMOs and where our food really comes from. It scares me that the same corporations control not only our food, but other products that we use every single day that are made from genetically modified foods. I already try to eat as organic and local as I can as a “broke college student” as I like to call myself, but this assignment has made me even more aware of my food choices.