Genetically Modifying Crops Essay

SummaryWhat ar the advantages and injurys of genetically modifying food curbs? Can intermiting countries or countries struggling with famine pull in from these techniques?Does it permit-to doe with the surrounding environment? These atomic number 18 all questions that contain unplowed scientist biologist and ethicists busy. Religious groups would overly a deal to have there feel forth in it. Can genetic engineering help society, or go step forward it be a burden for our future generations, beca hire it has disastrous effects on our environment.Approximately 10,000 years ago the first crops were consciously planted. In the place East, wheat and barley were planted, the untimely farmers in Peru cultivated potatoes and beans and in the Indus vale the ancient civilization there started sowing their fields with rice. How they figured this out we take upt do it it was probably a long process of attempt and error and a fair bit of luck. This early agriculture consisted out of four stages sowing the seeds, caring for the plants, harvesting, selecting and keeping back some of the seeds for the next generation. Although these spate that had settled down to farm had improved their liveliness styles considerably, they still valued a higher(prenominal) crop conk out and a larger anatomy of crops. This lead to received(prenominal) techniques. Some that they understood like crop rotation, save differents that have exactly been recently been explained by modern DNA research. These early farmers unconsciously crossed for example certain types of walnuts together, so that they were non virulent anymore.Wild walnuts contain cyanide and the concentration in wild walnuts is overflowing to kill a human. These early farmers withal tried to get with child(p)ger seeds and fruits of their crops and hold back them more resistant to diseases. Of course they booked some progress, merely not a lot. Nowadays scientists ar still trying to genetically mo dify crops victimization new techniques which involves cutting and pasting the DNA with enzymes. So is it spotly just that, because of the work of these scientists we will have stronger and healthier crops or be there also disadvantages to genetically modifying crops?One of the obvious arguments against genetically modifying crops comes from spectral groups. They think that experimenting with DNA and genes is messing with the native order. They believe that God created everything and meant it to be created that way.These ghostly groups crumb not prove that God meant it to be like this, so it is not valid evidence. Never the little they still make a point. If you genetically modify a crop in Area A these crops will of course also pollinate. When they pollinate there seeds will be carried by animals and the wind to the atomic number 18as lying around them, Areas B, C, D and E. So if the knock off in Area A was genetically limited than the seeds may take up and affec t the grass in Areas B, C, and D and E which have ordinary natural grown grass. This of course could affect the ecological system that was in place in Areas B, C and D and E. There are certain genetically modify crops that yield infertile seeds, but these have not yet been approved and been given free.An advantage of genetically modifying crops is obviously that farmers, who are in most countries struggling financially, can get a higher crop yield. Not only by making crops resistant for certain diseases or pests, but also by making them resistant to the herbicides which are used to kill the weeds. The first reason stated has already been used. The European corn borer used to destroy about 7% of the yearly yield of corn on the world. Since they added the gene that produces the Bt protein, which causes the corn borers to die of hunger, the yearly yield in the USA has risen 5-10% in all areas. much interesting though is if scientists could make the crops resistant to herbicides. Th is would especially be financially attractive for farmers, since they dont have to hire in battalion to do the weeding and they dont have to pay all kinds of environmental taxes. The farmers sometimes have to pay these taxes, especially in Western countries, because of the biodegradability of these herbicides.Biodegradability, which I mentioned in the last paragraph, is one of the most important arguments of the group for using the special herbicides and modifying crops. They believe that the herbicides that are used now affect the ecosystem in a disastrous way. The term biodegradability means how good the environment is up to(p) to digest the herbicides. Some herbicides that are used now also affect the animals in the area. This is bad for the ecosystem, because the natural balance will be affected.So if through genetic engineering they can modify the crops so that they are resistant to these herbicides this might contribute to raising the biodegradability in the ecosystem. T his is because the products they use to make these specific herbicides are general ruin for the environment. Also farmers can use less herbicide if the crops are resistant to them. They can spray a rough coat of their fields without having to worry that it will also cause their crops. For the consumers it would also be a good move, because of the higher crop yield the food prices would go down. The water supplies would also benefit, because there would be less toxic groundwater, which is caused by the herbicides seeping into the soil, pumped into them.Biologists are very apprehensive about the sledding of bio diversity, because of the genetic engineering of foods. Also medicine developers are worried that certain types of crops will be lost, because scientists are changing the genes of these crops. medicate developers would like to keep and preserve as many different types of crops, because in the future they might be able to make medicine out of them. They would like to do thi s through using the genes of plants that are resistant to a disease and putting it in a human virus cell. By injecting these cells into humans these humans would become immune to it. So in pattern the medicine developers are not against genetically modifying products but they would not like to lose any plants that might be of value for them in the future.Biologists are less interested in the healing qualities of these plants, but purely in the bio diversity. They would like to retain as much different species and types of plants to keep the natural order in balance. What, however, is more important is that if crops are genetically modified the original crops can not cross pollinate with former(a) species of the identical plant. This might lead to just one type of from example corn crop. This in the future could become a big problem, because if the climate changes the crop will not be able to cross pollinate with some other crop and thus not adapt to the changing climate. This is a big issue, because with the global warming getting worse each year a climate change in the future could be disastrous. Biologist and ecologists have though started creating vaults in which all different types of plants are being hold to maintain the bio diversity.An advantage of genetically modifying crops is that people in developing countries can get a higher crop yield and maybe steady have two harvests per year. With this advantage though comes a big advantage. The companies that develop the techniques and sell them are all Western companies and there are only a few. So if African countries want to get these genetically crops they have to pay these companies. This will give these companies indirect access to the food supplies of Africa and other developing countries. If the companies also consider the despicable companies in the way they comprehend genetically modifying these crops and selling them would contribute to making the world a better place. It is, however, m ore likely that they might unconsciously handle in spare of their own companies and profit.Another important issue is if crops that have been genetically modified should be labelled or not. Most people prefer to know what has been done to the food theyre eating. It is the same with organic eggs. People would like to know if the chickens that laid the eggs are having or had a good life. Most people are not against the fact that the crop is modified, they would just like to know it.There are many advantages, but also many disadvantages with genetically modified crops. There are ethical ones which come from religious groups. They believe you should not mess with Gods creations. A disadvantage is that genetically modified crops can cross pollinate with other normal crops in the areas around them. An advantage is that farmers and especially farmers in poor countries can get a higher crop yield and maybe have more than one harvest a year.A disadvantage though is that the companies that m odify the crops could handle unfairly and would have control over their food supply. There might also be a loss of bio diversity. I think that genetically modifying crops is a good idea. It does have to be controlled properly though. There should only be certain areas where it should be allowed and foods that are made with it should be labelled. I also believe that the companies that produce these modifications should serving the technology with other less rich companies to prevent a monopoly. Plants could also hold many products that could produce medicines in the future. So overall I think that crops should and can be genetically modified, but there should be strict regulations and the bio diversity should be preserved.SourcesDepartment of Agriculture, South AfricaISAAAhttp//www.geocities.com/gm_crops/http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genetically_modified_cropsGenetic_modification_of_plantshttp//www.newscientist.com/channel/life/gm-foodGuns, Germs and Steel by Jared DiamondANW course b ookhttp//www.fao.org/ag/magazine/0111sp.htmhttp//www.ornl.gov/sci/techresources/Human_Genome/elsi/gmfood.shtml