The GMO Food Debate

Companies like Monsanto have been selling the idea of super food crops like GMO corn, soy and wheat for years, yet concerns about health and environmental safety remain.

Genetically Modified Organisms (“GMOs”) are present in almost every prepared food in supermarkets today. Unless the package says “organic” or “non-GMO,” you can be reasonably sure that any soy, corn, or wheat in most commercial foods have been genetically modified. For a food source that has become so common, it’s almost shocking how little we actually know about the long-term safety implications – and how little the general public knows about GMO foods at all.

Why Genetically Modified Foods May Be Good

The ideal food crop is one that grows easily in several soil and climate conditions; does not require expensive, toxic chemicals to act as pesticides or otherwise aid or protect the plants’ growth; and has a nutritious, tasty edible yield. Genetically modified organisms can supply many of these needs that “natural” crops do not.

• By manipulating the genetic code of a crop in the lab, it is possible to create a strain of corn, for example, that is hardier and will survive a wider range of climates than ordinary corn.
• Some GMO foods are designed to produce chemicals that will repel insects and other pests, making hazardous pesticides unnecessary.
• Others are modified to boost their nutritional value or to appeal to shoppers by changing the colour or size of fruits or veggies.

Some argue that humans have been eating modified food crops since the beginning of agriculture; that by choosing particular strains of food crops to plant, harvest, and breed, we have intentionally altered the gene pool for as long as farming has existed. Yet there is, arguably, a difference between designing a plant or animal’s genes naturally, through selective breeding, and artificially creating new genes in a lab.

Why Genetically Modified Foods Are Potentially Dangerous

Although designer crops that require less pesticides and produce more food may sound like an ideal combination, the reality is that the safety of GMO food crops has not yet been established conclusively.

• Organizations such as Greenpeace question the impact of a plant “super strain” on natural local flora. Genetically modified food crops can easily spread out of the field and into the environment, choking out wild plants.
• The digestibility and health impact of GMO foods can by no means be taken for granted. We simply do not know the long term effect of eating modified foods. They may prove to be more nutritious… or they may be carcinogenic. At present, no one knows.

How to Avoid GMO Foods

• Buy organic. Certified organic foods do not contain genetically modified ingredients.
• Read labels closely on anything containing soy, corn, potatoes, or wheat, the most common transgenic crops. If it doesn’t say organic or non-GMO, these foods are almost always modified.

Case Study: GMO Pigs Excrete Less Phosphorus

One of the biggest problems in pork production is the amount of phosphorus excreted by the pigs. Pig manure used as fertilizer tends to pollute environments and waterways with toxic amounts of phosphorus because the pig digestive system needs a particular kind of phosphorus and no other kind can be absorbed.

Transgenic pigs or “Enviropigs” (TM) developed at the University of Guelph are able to absorb 60% more phosphorus from their diet - nicely solving the problem of phosphorus pollution while saving farmers money on supplements.

The downside? The gene used to modify these pigs comes from the bacterium Escherichia coli (E. coli).

The long-term health impact of eating pork from these genetically modified pigs is not yet known.