Genetically And Genetically Modified Organisms

Used since the dawn of human domestication of agriculture and livestock, the basic premise of artificial selection involved early farmers selectively saving seeds to breed plants with certain characteristics (Evolution of Corn, n.d.). In more recent times, the aim has shifted from simply creating sturdier, tastier fruits and vegetables to being able to create as much food possible in order to meet human demands. Shaped by our modern global economy’s demand of efficiency, rising industrialization over the 20th century, and growing population, agricultural practices of genetic manipulation of crops has grown immensely over the last century. Taking a step beyond selectively saving choice seeds, the discovery of “hybrid vigor” by genetic engineers lead to farmers being able to interbreed

In North America and Europe the value and impact of genetically engineered food crops have become subjects of intense debate, provoking reactions from unbridled optimism to fervent political opposition.

Modifying plants is not a new concept. "For centuries, gardeners and farmers have been crossbreeding different species of

The origin of GMOs started in 1982 by an experiment done by the United States Department of Agriculture, in which they changed the genes of a tomato plant. Commercial use of Genetically Engineered crops began in 1996 (Fernandez-Cornejo et al. pg 7). While developing Genetically Modified Organisms, scientists and researchers characterized the types of Genetically Engineered crop traits into

It has been shown that some GM crops can be less nutritious and possibly toxic in comparison to natural food. Because of this, many large countries such as Japan have put bans on GMO containing foods. GM foods are not labeled in the US and other countries so consumers are not monitored for health conditions that may result from long term use. Some reports have also linked GMO to possible cancers. In addition to the health effects, GMO crop technology can affect smaller farmers and our environment. GM crops are too expensive for the smaller farmers to grow, forcing the smaller farms into debt or off their land. This hurts the economy, as farms are disappearing while large GMO food companies are taking over. In addition, the initial drop in herbicide use on GM crops that was reported has now been followed up with a large increase in use due to the resistance that has developed, and farmers have had to use more and more powerful chemicals on crops. These chemicals are toxic to people, livestock and may possibly contaminate the

Genetically altering genes has been around for ages by cross breeding plants. Genetic alteration has been practice to help plants grow healthier and stronger helping Indians to become nomadic. “Gatherers

This finding became the foundation of the genetic modification process. In 1983, the first transgenic plant was created. Scientists were able to create a tobacco plant that could resist anti-biotic. Shortly after this creation, genetically engineered cotton was effectively field tested in 1990. Five years later, Monsanto the leading biotech company, released herbicide-immune soybeans. Finally, the promising science of genetic modifications was improved even further in 2000 with the discovery that the modification process could be used to bring vitamins and nutrients to enhance foods.

History In October of 1992, the US Department of Agriculture authorized a petition to allow Calgene Inc. to proceed with the commercialization of the Flavr Savr Tomato. By 1994 the genetically engineered tomato was the first of its kind to reach U.S. grocery stores. China had already been producing other transgenic products such as tomatoes and tobacco. This tomato was eventually removed from market for lack of interest but it started the landslide that is the face of today’s farmland.

“The history of GMOs started in the 1840s in Czechoslovakia with the study of pea plants once it was discovered that plants could be altered to take on the characteristics of one another experiments were performed to see if a better pea plant could be produced with the dominant characteristics of other pea plants and this gave way to the idea of heredity” (Pitman 2002). Working from these first discovery molecular biologists has produced GMOs that have proven to be both useful and dangerous.

With all these advancements in genetically modified organisms, we are on our way to what is becoming known as the Second Green Revolution. The First Green Revolution refers to the successful practices in farm production around the 1950s and 1960s. With higher rates of investment in crop research, infrastructure, and market development, the production of cereal crops was able to triple with only a 30% increase in land area cultivated (Pingali, 2012). This second revolution refers to the use of GMOs as the new innovation that will lead the way to even better advancements in agriculture. The use of GMOs is being adopted and promoted by many developing nations and affluent philanthropists. One such example is Bill Gates who is a big proponent of using GMOs to cure world hunger. He has personally donated millions into researching GMOs for this reason

Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are organisms whose DNA has been modified with another organism’s DNA using different methods of gene splicing. Genetic modification is used on both prokaryotes and eukaryotes. Your average citizen knows about genetically modified plants with the purpose of resisting insects, and rot in the hopes of creating more produce that lasts longer. What isn’t commonly known is that according to the Journal of Agrobiotechnology Management and Economics in 2008, Glyphosate-resistant (GR) crops represent more than 80% of the transgenic crops grown annually worldwide.(Duke & Powles 2009) Basically most of the produce we buy has been genetically altered.

By definition, food crops are genetically engineered in order to improve the crop- making it more pest-resistant or healthier.

From prehistoric times crop plants and animals have been improved by selective breeding, a process by which humans breed other animals and plants for certain traits, but the modern marvels of GMOs and transgenic plants have come to light in just the last few decades. Selection procedures have achieved huge differences in form and genetics of a single species for instance the mule, a cross between a male donkey and a mare has been used in Europe for more than 3,000 years (GM Education). Modern genetic engineering started back in 1973 when Stanley Cohen, Annie Chang and Herbert Boyer created the first genetically modified DNA organism. In terms of food, genetic engineering simply means

The development of genetically engineered foods began in the 1900s, and has been in United State markets since 1995 (Bredahl 18). The most widespread genetically modified foods are oil, maize, cotton, and soybeans (Cunningham 11). Transgenic foods were products created to increase benefit and lower prices (Whitman 2). Genetically modified foods are essential to enrichments of crops (Tan 3). It helps reduce the use of herbicides and pesticides in plants, enhances taste and quality, lower maturation time,

In the 1990s, the first genetically engineered foods were made available to the public. In 1994, Flavr Savr Tomato has been approved which was the first genetically modified whole food to be approved for public consumption (Lyona, 2000). What is more, in 1999, a strong development of pest and disease resistant seeds has been observed. For the last eleven years, from 2000 to 2011, companies and scientists have been very busy developing new GM products, testing them and submitting for approval to different authorities and agencies.