Genetics and Ethics

Genetically Modified Crops

There has been considerable controversy over the use in agriculture of crops whose genetic code has been modified. Transgenic crops are those developed when a gene from another species has been inserted into a plant such as corn or tobacco. The gene could come from another plant, an animal, or a bacterium. Plants resistant to drought and disease (such as plant viruses), plants with an ability to produce their own pesticides, and plants with a higher crop yield have been developed. Companies that make these products argue that they both increase crop yields and decrease crop loss from drought, disease, and insects. In a difficult agricultural market, genetically modified crops can help make farming more economically viable. But more important, higher crop yields can increase the world's food supply, especially in developing countries. Agribusiness companies also argue that genetic modification of crops is only an extension of what farmers have been doing with selective breeding for centuries and that such crops are as safe as their nongenetically engineered counterparts.

Opponents of genetically modified crops (which many label as frankenfoods) argue that agribusiness companies have put profit first, ignoring potential safety concerns. They argue against inserting of genes from different species into crops, claiming that this practice is not safe. If someone is allergic to particular plant products such as peanuts and peanut genes are inserted into another crop such as corn, then eating that corn might cause an allergic reaction. Another potential problem is that pest-resistant crops may lead to “super pests,” which are pesticide resistant. In the case of disease-resistant crops, new varieties of viruses could develop, which are even more destructive of crops. A 1999 study of Bt corn (corn with a gene from a bacterium that causes the corn to produce an insecticide) involved monarch butterfly caterpillars eating milkweed leaves dusted with pollen from Bt corn. Half the caterpillars died. This fueled opponents of transgenic crops, who also pointed out that it may be difficult to localize such crops within a particular area—Bt corn pollen, for example, might spread to other corn. Proponents replied that most transgenic corn did not use the gene correlated with caterpillar deaths. Opponents said that more testing should be done before transgenic crops are placed on the market, since we do not know all the effects genetic modification may have on the plant—there may be health hazards (such as carcinogens) created, which may not be detected for a long time. Pressure was also put on the Food and Drug Administration to require labeling of genetically modified foods.

...