GMO Speech Oultine: Production, Advantages and Disadvantages

What is a GMO? Do we need to be more aware of this topic or to stay calm knowing that GMO is almost everywhere? Genetic modification is the method of modifying genetic make-up of organism. Animals and foods have been modified by combing DNA from other species to create a new developing plant or animal. This method has been used over 10,000 years which have helped humans with their beneficial need.

Why is Genetic Modification Carried Out?

Genetic modification is carried out for beneficial reasons which help farmers in different ways. GMO crops are grown by famers to produce stronger and healthier crops for themselves and others. Corn is a popular crop grown to resist against insect pest or herbicides. Insect pest have major effects on farmers which damages agricultural production and market access. This means famers must pay more money for crops seeds more often which affects their income as well. Genetically modified corn contains Bacillus thuringiensis (BT) that produces toxins to certain insects which damages their digestive system so that they die. The use of the BT protein has reduced insecticide use on corn while preventing insect damage. Farmers have gained a rise in their income, through the not spending lots of money on water, insecticide and increased yields.

What are the Stages to Produce Genetically Modified Food?

When producing a genetically modified scientist follow 4 steps in order to produce a GMO plant: Identify, Copy, Insert and Grow.

Identify – In order to produce a GMO plant, scientists must determine which characteristic they want the plant to have. For example, exposure to pests, herbicides or insects. They find an organism which already has that trait within its gene. If scientist want that characteristic, the requirement of for chemicals must be applied to the crop. A gene called Bacillus thuringiensis produces a natural insecticide which has been used for many years.

Copy – After scientists identify the gene with the desired trait, they duplicate the gene. For BT corn, they copied the gene that would have an insect-resistance function.

Insert – After scientists use tools to insert the gene into the DNA of the plant. An example is inserting the BT gene into the DNA of the corn plant, which gives the insect-resistance trait. The new trait does not change the other existing traits.

Grow – The final step is to plant the seeds in a laboratory and carefully test the resulting plants. Scientist need to make sure that the new developing plant has ensured its new characteristic. If successful, scientist first grow and monitor the new corn plant in greenhouses. They test the new developing corn crop on small fields and then onto larger fields. GMO plants undergo a full depth review and safety tests before they are ready to be sold to farmers.

How Well Does Genetic Modification Work in Australia?

Genetically modification in Australia has been used since 1996 and has been beneficial for farmers and consumers. The three main GM crops grown by farmers are cotton, canola and safflower. GM cotton crops are primarily cultivated in New South Wales and southern Queensland. Cotton is genetically modified to be immune to insect pest attack and to withstand other herbicides. They are primarily developed for textiles; cottonseed oil is often used in a range of foods. Cottonseed oil is a agricultural commodity that has beneficial and harmful impacts on human health. Cottonseed oil is adjusted to extract gossypol, which has many human health effects. As for unadjusted cottonseed oil pesticide is another option to be used to protect crops. The toxin is also capable to lead towards infertility and liver damage. The oil is also used in cooking and has beneficial effects for humans and can reduce bad cholesterol and boost good cholesterol. There also side effects which has opposite effect on cholesterol, which means it is high in saturated fat which can lead to the risk of having heart disease. The negative effects may change the people’s perspective on the oil, but there are more positive effects that have benefited human health. This oil includes fatty acids and antioxidants which benefits the human’s skin. This alternative of cottonseed oil is cheaper than buying an expensive skin care cream. The fatty acids increase the absorption of other ingredients which improves the skin. Research have shown that gossypol has enhanced the effects of radiation of prostate cancer cells. This has also been shows to decrease tumour growth and to slow three prostate cancer cell lines.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Genetic Modification

There are advantages and disadvantages of genetic modification which can improve farmers and consumers or have negative effects on human health.

Advantages

1. Genetic crops contain certain genes which can better improve farmers work. The BT protein (Bacillus thuringiensis) lets engineered plants produce protein that destroys the digestive system of specified insect pests. This helps famers by using less pesticide which is more expensive, this overall improves their income.

2. Genetic engineering allows us to choose the traits we want for our foods, such has make fruit grow bigger, immune to pests, different taste and so on. This benefits markets by consumers being appealed towards them, which increases their production of GMO foods and crops as well.

3. Increased yield means farmers kept more land from agricultural production, decreasing deforestation and harm to ecosystems. GMO crops are also cheaper to grow and buy which boosts the income of farmers and economy.

Disadvantages

1. Genetically modified crops can lead to allergic reaction, this is because it contains genes from allergens. This can lead to consumers not purchasing GMO products.

2. GMOs are not tested thoroughly; shortest testing times are up to 90 days. This may not be enough days which includes risks towards humans.

3. As GMO foods contains different genes and DNA they have negative affects on the human body. This can lead to businesses being affected by this, which is not good practice.

Conclusion

The effectiveness of genetic modification of food has helped the environment, farmers and consumers. GMOs help farmers by allowing them to grow more crops using less land, this means starvation can be stopped easily. GMO crops contain different toxins in them to fight of certain insects, this means less usage of pesticide and fuel usage. This means soil quality is better and fertility. Farmers choose GMO seeds to grow what is best for their farms, market demand and local growing environments. Using these GMO seeds are more efficient while reducing the impact on the environment. Growing GMO seeds reduces the impact of agriculture on the environment, using less money and reducing crop loss damage from weeds, diseases and insects. Farmers can produce more which means their income is also better.