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Michael Weise
Professor Ludwig
Essay 3
31 May 2016
The Past, Present, and the Future of GMOs
Trends come and go every year, but it seems the latest trend of a healthy lifestyle will
stay for quite some time. The public seems to be having more of an interest in what they are
eating and how it is being processed with each passing day. Despite the many different aspects of
healthy living, there seems to be a common buzzword: Genetically Modified Organisms or
GMOs for short. According to Marc Lallanillas article, GMOs: Facts About Genetically
Modified Food: A genetically modified organism, or GMO, is an organism that has had its DNA
altered or modified in some way through genetic engineering. There are many qualifying
questions still to be asked about GMOs. The production of Genetically Modified Organisms
affects both public health and environmental sustainability due to the high demands of caution
for human safety, uses of pesticides, and modified organic properties.
This explosion of genetically all modified organisms is not all that of old; in fact, it is
quite recent actually which the majority of the concern surfaced from within the last 30 years.
After the discoveries of the possibility of the mutation of an organisms genetic code in the early
1900s, it was first tested on bacteria, then later expanded to plant organisms. In the early 1990s,
the FDA and government allowed the sale of our first genetically modified food. The first
genetically modified food sold on a food market shelf was a tomato, which was claimed to have
a longer shelf life by being firmer and maintaining its color longer. The use of genetically
modified organisms was implemented for this very reason; it could maximize the sales of the

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food industry without compromising the amount of resources needed to keep the produce fresher
longer. The duration of GMOs has not been around a long period of time, but GMOs are now
dominating the market over non-GMOs products. An even more frightening fact is that
genetically modified organisms are not limited to only plants that include our vegetables and
fruits, but also allow for testing and injections in livestock.
There are many viewpoints that the public might have concerning the uses for or against
GMOs and the public consume even unknowingly. There might seemingly be an overwhelming
cry for the ban of GMOs, but the public might not be ready for some of the proceeding
repercussions. Assisting in the shelf life and preservation of the foods, GMOs allow foods to be
held longer in grocery stores longer than it normally ever would have in the past. A ban on
GMOs would limit product availability and could cause a large uproar and a total lifestyle
change for some. For instance, the ease and accessibility of being able to walk into in a grocery
store and having the option to select from almost any type food and at any particular time is a
luxury in modern day society. Prior to this, if a type of food were sold out during a particular
time, then it would remain unavailable until the next restock or upcoming season. That caused
people to have to shop in accordance to when foods were in and out of season. It is yet to be
determined as to whether or not the public would be ready to give up such a freedom of
sacrificing their produce choices. Another advantageous comfort in produce today is the time of
growth of produce, which is now being shortened. Not only does the public have the ability to
purchase produce all year round and at a more quickly time, it is cheaper than producing fully
organic foods. Organic simply means that during the farming process, there were no added
pesticides and no gene mutation done to the produce. A larger issue when it comes to purchasing

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food is a matter of cost rather than food source. One would rather spend $1.00 on a burger than
$7.00 dollars on an organic salad. These are the difficulties that the public is faced with each day.
However, there is a fully angered opposite position towards the implantation of
genetically modified organisms in the everyday lives of the public. The major cause for concern
is the health of the public and the safety of consuming these foods. One of the concerns of those
who oppose GMOs is product labeling. According to Mary Jalonicks article: House passes bill
to prevent mandatory GMO food labeling in PBSs News Hour: The Food and Drug
Administration has said GMOs are safe, and the federal government does not support mandatory
labels. This can be quite suspicious to some people, because it makes them question whether or
not there is something to hide. In the late 1990s, the European Union and a few other countries
passed a law that enforced the labeling of being organic or not. The passing of laws like this in
other countries raises a few eyebrows and begs the question of why the United States has yet to
pass similar legislation more than 20 years later. What is worrisome to GMO producers is the
possibility of issues arising if the foods they engineered were to be labeled. If the foods were
labeled appropriately, then the purchase and consumption of genetically modified foods could
suffer or even cease to exist. This is quite alarming for some people as to whether or not the
government is in fact concerned with the safety of the public. The government appears to be
more concerned with the loss and gain of money that these large businesses will endure, than
setting guidelines for proper food testing, assuring the safety of GMOs, and protecting citizens'
wellbeing.
In addition to the human safety, there is another piece that the GMO farming
organization, the FDA, and government are withholding from the public as far as its ingredients:
pesticides. Pesticides are sprayed over crops and foods in order to protect them from insects and

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bacteria that may eat or damage the produce. According to Jennifer Hsaios Harvard article:
GMO and Pesticides: Helpful or harmful? Pesticides are substances used to repel, kill, or
control animals (insecticides) or plants (herbicides) that are considered to be pests. Due to the
lack of full testing of pesticides, which the farms deem safe to use on their foods, the GMO
farms are free to use the spray as they see fit. As previously mentioned before, due to the lack of
time that GMOs having been present there is no real evidence of harm done due to the ingestion
of the chemicals. Testing of similar chemicals has been seen to cause different types of cancers
and long-term health problems. Also, without knowing what exactly is in the ingredients,
although, the public could have allergic reactions as well as other sicknesses.
The actual modification of the genes within each food item is now only fairly simple
difficult with the advancement of science today. The process is called crossbreeding. During
crossbreeding, the actual DNA of each organism is crossed with a particular gene in order to
achieve a desired trait. Referring back to the tomato, which was the first genetically modified
food to be sold on the shelf, was crossed with the DNA of an arctic fish so it would be able to
withstand colder temperatures. In actuality, those tomatoes contained a gene from a fish, which
the public was to consume and think as a normal juicy red tomato. This process is being carried
out with more than just tomatoes. For example, corn is now being genetically modified as well. It
does not stop at fruits and vegetables, within the last two years, other countries have been
reversing the process and extracting DNA from within plants and bacteria and injecting them in
animals. An example is a new process that will allow a salmon to grow at a much more rapid
pace, which allows more salmon to be available for sales and consumption. According to the
Tom Colicchio New York Times article: Are you Eating Frankienfish?, the Food and Drug
Administration approved for sale to the public the first genetically engineered animal approved

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for human consumption. The worry the public has on this idea of a Frankienfish a new name
that is thrown around, is how exactly are the macronutrients that include protein, fats, and
carbohydrates being affected with this new fish? The idea of new forms of macronutrients could
eventually cause harm to the body because it is a newly created foreign molecule added to ingest,
which in theory could be hazardous to the body.
It is publically known that California is in one of its largest droughts within these last few
years. The drought has been so ruthless that the government has had to implement emergency
measures for the state to preserve water. As we have seen the commercials in saving water and
even provided some ideas such as watering grass at night and limited the water while you shower
and brushing teeth. Technology is growing everyday and even faster than anyone had ever
anticipated. The future of GMOs is right out the corner, in Christie Wilcoxs article: GMOs of
the future two recent studies reveal potential of genetic technologies, scientists are in the testing
state of creating genetically modified planted which is requiring them to use less water while still
allowing them to grow as normal as a non-GMO plant would. The process would reduce the
amount of pours that that plant already contains, which would allow less water to be lost in the
growth process. As a potential consumer of these modified plants, I am not quite sure the quality
of the vegetables or fruits that will be produced. If the plant will be using less water to be
created, would it not pass on the same qualities to the offspring? This could change the current
taste of foods we have come to know and love.
With these new plants to come out in the near future this will add more and more pressure
on local and non-GMO farms. This will continue to lower the prices of the current food market.
This is will could mean that local farms could be put out business by attempting to complete with
these larger corporations. Which almost seems an impossible feat to overcome.

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There is a small light at the end of the overly large tunnel to end GMOs in out market. In
Jonathan Lathams article Monsantos Worst Fear May Be Coming True: The End-Game for
GMOs?: Large companies such as food chain Chipotle has deemed to go GMO-free in all their
products, and has becoming a overwhelming large success for them. This is putting more
pressure on larger markets such as McDonalds and more to someway incorporate the same ideas
in their chains. This is a great idea for all parties involved, McDonalds already has a negative
connotation with healthy food overall. This will only benefit them and allow them to raise their
prices slightly and create more revenue for the company.
These are just some of the different characteristics of Genetically Modified Organisms; it
seems that this type of farming could change the way we eat and prepare our food each and every
day in the future. There may never be a drought of any food item in the world in the in coming
years, potentially being able to feed underdeveloped countries with this new technology.
However, it appears to come at a risk, from the lack of quality testing and possible danger of
long-term side effects from the gene manipulation to pesticides used on the foods. Whether or
not the costs outweigh the benefits, for now, is settled in the court of public opinion. The choice
remains in the hands of the pubic whether to eat organic foods or adapt to the new industry of
genetically modified organisms.

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Works Cited
COLICCHIO, Tom. "Are You Eating Frankenfish?" New York Times. 15 Dec. 2015. Web. 26
Apr. 2016.
Hsaio, Jennifer. "GMO and Pesticides: Helpful or Harmful?" Biological and Biomedical
Sciences Program at Harvard University. Aug. 2015. Web. 26 Apr. 2016.
Janonick, Mary Clare. "House Passes Bill to Prevent Mandatory GMO Food Labeling." PBS. 23
July 2015. Web. 26 Apr. 2016.
Lallanilla, Marc. "GMOs: Facts About Genetically Modified Food." Www.livescience.com. 16
Jan. 2016. Web. 26 Apr. 2016.
Latham, Dr. Jonathan. "Monsantos Worst Fear May Be Coming True: The End-Game for
GMOs?." Global Research. 18 May 2015. Web. 31 May 2016.
Wilcox, Christie. "Gmos-of-the-future-two-recent-studies-reveal-potential-of-genetictechnologies." Discover Magazine. 15 Mar. 2015. Web. 31 May 2016.