Isabella Revel

Professor Bryant

Rhetoric & Composition 1000

November 1, 2020

Genetically Modified Foods: are They Harmful or Helpful?

From your grocery store around the corner to a different country entirely Genetically

Modified Organisms or “GMOs” can now be found practically everywhere. These new foods

have been slowly taking over the market due to the ease of production, but they have been under

a microscope of sorts. Many people believe these new “Frankenfoods” (as many call them) are

extremely risky as well as unhealthy. Even though this new invention has increased crop

production in a way no other has. Genetically Modified organisms have allegedly been shown to

have negative effects on the environment as well as having adverse effects on health, but overall

GMOs are an extremely beneficial source that helps feed people around the world.

The advanced systems for creating genetically modified foods have been around since

the early 1990s, but the idea of interbreeding plants to create more versatile crops has been

around for thousands of years. Lisa Jaeger and her co-authors discuss how farmers from 8700

years ago would select certain crops that had good qualities and “expand upon them” (Jaeger

387). These processes are not new; they have just been improved upon with the increase of

technology. Many people believe that GMOs are dangerous and unhealthy, Dona Artemis

discusses how there have been tests on animals regarding GMOs, and while there is not a direct

correlation between what GMOs do to animals compared to humans the result does show some

concerns. Some results were showing that these foods caused “hepatic, pancreatic, renal, or

reproductive effects and may alter the hematological, biochemical, and immunologic
parameters.” (Artemis 2). These foods, however, are being tested just the same as any other food

product you would buy at the store. If not more rigorously, because with new types of crops

come new kinds of testing. The FDA says “ FDA makes sure that foods that are GMOs or have

GMO ingredients meet the same strict safety standards as all other foods.” (FDA). The Food and

Drug Administration isn’t the only one making sure these foods meet regulations and safety

standards. Lisa Jaeger shows that the USDA along with the EPA test’s GMOs while there still

being farmed, “In the US, the USDA regulates the farming operations, the Environmental

Protection Agency (EPA) regulates the application of chemical agents such as pesticides as well

as environmental consequences of GMO, and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration

the safety aspects of farming operations.” (Jaeger 389). A lot of testing and care goes into the

production of GMOs. From the farm where they are grown to the factory where they are

packaged these foods are watched and maintained every step of the way to assure a safe and

enjoyable experience for the consumer.

One of the biggest complaints of Genetically modified foods is allergies. Scientists show

that there are risks associated with allergies, “ Because the genetic modification ultimately

results in the introduction of new proteins into the food plant, the safety, including the potential

allergenicity, of the newly introduced proteins must be assessed.” (Taylor 6). Consumers worry

that through cross-pollination GMOs are becoming breeding grounds for new allergies as well as

increasing older ones. Cross-pollination is when plants that contain things like gluten

contaminate plants surrounding them which would cause people to ingest plants that are

supposedly okay for them to eat but are suddenly hit with a deathly allergic reaction. Charles Xu

explains that creating a location barrier between different plants will help eliminate cross-

pollination, “GMO plants can spread their genes to conventional crops through cross-pollination.
To avoid such occurrences, guidelines are stipulating that GMO plants should be physically

segregated from the closely related plants by a buffer zone.” (Xu 3). Along with these issues of

allergenic plants being dealt with scientists also show that there are ways to take the allergenic

side completely out of the plant through genetic engineering. Crops that would normally be a

highly allergic food to some people could not be eaten by everyone, “ Additionally, it has

recently been reported that scientists can reduce or remove the common allergens in our crops

with GMO technology.” (Xu 4). Although there are some downsides such as cross-pollination,

overall, allergies in GMOs are not any more dangerous than any other food product. With this

new technology, allergies could soon be a thing of the past.

Throughout the world, people go hungry every day. Specifically, in places like Africa,

many people don’t know where their next meal is going to come from due to population growth

and the depletion of natural resources. Genetically Modified Food is an extremely beneficial

source in providing people food stability. Crops are being bred to be resistant to all sorts of

environmental factors such as drought, and insects. Jennifer Hsaio says “Genetically modified

organisms (GMOs) are often engineered to be more resistant to pesticides or produce pesticides

themselves.” (Hsaio 4). These crops can survive in much harsher climates which helps people in

Africa and other developing countries be able to not only receive food from places like the US

but will actually be able to grow more food themselves as shown by an article from Cornell

“Public scientists are working independently to help their own countries by developing

genetically modified crops that address issues specific to local agriculture and meet the needs of

their nation’s farmers.” Scientists want to help these countries bring up their food production so

they can start relying more on themselves to keep people from starvation. These foods have also

been studied countless times and at no point has a huge concern for the health of the consumers
come up, they have all been shown to be perfectly safe for consumption. Yet people remain

cautious but as said by Robert Paarlberg “Sceptics who remain fearful sometimes respond that

‘absence of evidence is not the same thing as evidence of absence.’ Yet if you look for

something for 15 years and fail to find it, that must surely be accepted as evidence of absence.”.

(Paarlberg 611). These crops are helping feed the hungry in developing nations while setting

them on a path to sustain themselves.

Genetically Modified Foods have been a subject of controversy for many years, whether

it is consumers, farmers, or scientists, many people don’t see eye to eye on the topic. Many

people argue that there are health risks associated with the consumption of GMOs but there has

been no solid proof of any risks in the 15 years they have been tested. They also show many

beneficial attributes such as feeding the hungry as well as potentially being hypoallergenic.

These foods have been rigorously tested by the FDA and many other agencies that test all other

foods that end up in the hands of consumers. Overall GMOs help people all over the world and

they have the potential to solve so many problems worldwide. These crops need to become more

universally accepted so farmers and scientists alike can have the ability to continue tests and

experiments, they should be able to discover just how much good these new foods can provide to

the world.
 Works Cited

Artemis Dona, Loannis S. Arvanitoyannis. “Health Risks of Genetically Modified Foods.”

Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition, vol. 49, no. 2, 2009, pp. 164-175

Hsaio, Jennifer. “GMOs and Pesticides: Harmful or Helpful.” Harvard University,

http://sitn.hms.harvard.edu/flash/2015/gmos-and-pesticides

Moghissi A. Alan, Lisa M. Jaeger, Dania Shafei, Lindsey Bloom. “Regulatory Science

Requirements of Labeling of Genetically Modified Food.” Critical Reviews in

Biotechnology, vol. 38, no. 3, 2018, pp. 386-393.

Paarlberg, Robert. “GMO foods and crops: Africa's choice.” New Biotechnology, vol. 27, no. 5,

pp. 609-613.

Steve L. Taylor, Susan L. Hefle. “Will genetically modified foods be allergenic?”. Journal of

Allergy and Clinical Immunology, vol. 107. No. 5, 2001, pp. 765-771.

USA Food and Drug Administration, FDA, 2020, https://www.fda.gov/food/agricultural.

Xu, Charles. “Nothing to Sneeze at: the Allergenicity of GMOs.” Harvard

University,http://sitn.hms.harvard.edu/flash/2015/allergies-and-gmos/

“10 things Everyone Should Know about GMOs in Africa.” Cornell University,

https://allianceforscience.cornell.edu/10-things-everyone-should-know-about-gmos