Krista Law

Kim Strickland

English 1010

February 16, 2017

ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY

"Global Issues." BBSRC Author. Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, Polaris
House, North Star Avenue, Swindon, SN2 1UH, UK, Email: Web@foodsecurity.ac.uk, n.d.
Web. 13 Feb. 2017. <http://www.foodsecurity.ac.uk/issue/global.html>.

This article brings to light the global issue of the food supply. The increase in
population, what a spike in food prices could mean, as well as what obstacles there
are to growing food are all addressed. The use of genetically modified foods could
be one of the answers to these problems.

First, the population is set to increase to over 9 billion, which also increases the
amount of food production the global community needs. Second, in 2008 when oil
prices spiked, so did food prices- they are directly tied to oil prices. Third, obstacles
of water stress, pests, chemical-bans , food waste and climate change all greatly
effect food production. All of these facts help to sustain the idea that the use of GM
foods may be able to help with the great worry of global food production. But this
article is just fact based, with no opinions on either side of the GMO issue.

"GMO and the FDA." GMO Awareness. N.p., 14 Oct. 2015. Web. 13 Feb. 2017. https://gmo-
awareness.com/all-about-gmos/gmo-fda/

The GMO awareness website is most definitely opposed to the use of genetically
modified foods. They very much want to expose the big chemical companies who
are making and modifying food- such as Monsanto. They claim that Monsanto and
the FDA has too many close ties. A chart of what Monsanto employees have also
held government positions- including Senators, Congressman, and FDA officials is
posted. They claim that neither the food producers nor the US government want to
take responsibility for the safety of our food- especially when it comes to testing
GM foods. On the website there are possible side effects GMOs can have, although
there is a lack of solid studies and testing results. Most of their claims are thru
studies done in other countries or studies that were not directed at GMOs. This
information was very eye opening to me. It indeed makes me uncomfortable with
the idea that some huge companies seem to have so much control over the FDA and
over some of the main staples in our food supply.




 "Issues | GE Foods | GE Food & Your Health." Center for Food Safety. N.p., 2017. Web. 13 Feb.
2017. <http://www.centerforfoodsafety.org/issues/311/ge-foods/ge-food-and-your-health>.

There is a wealth of information by the Center for Food Safety. Their position is also that
GMO foods are simply not good for us, and they want them banned. They too talk about
the company Monsanto as having a monopoly on the seed and chemical industry- and thus
way too much control over food production. I found this website to be much more
informative than others about the reasons why we should not use GMOs and why they
think them to be harmful. It addresses the myths and realities of using GM foods. One of
their main points is that while we may not have long-term studies than GM foods are
harmful to humans, we also most definitely do not have any studies that confirm that they
ARE safe either-a very important point to consider. Information regarding the harm that
GMOs containing pesticides can do to the environment is documented thru soil testing,
contaminating neighboring fields and harming beneficial insects. I found their debates
about GMO crops that are using pesticides and herbicides to be some of the most
convincing I have found. They speak of the growing concern that these GMO crops are
bringing about a resistance to some of the chemicals- possibly causing super weeds that
are difficult to control.

Ronald, Pamela. "The Case for Engineering Our Food." Pamela Ronald: The Case for Engineering Our Food | TED
Talk | TED.com. Ted Talks, Mar. 2015. Web. 13 Feb. 2017.
<https://www.ted.com/talks/pamela_ronald_the_case_for_engineering_our_food>.

This was my absolute favorite piece of information. It spurred me to look up much more
information on the topic, as well as research Pamela Ronald-plant geneticist and her work. She
makes a very convincing case for why GM foods can be incredibly beneficial. Her work is centered
on growing food in the best and most sustainable way possible for the world. She gives several
very vivid examples of what pests in fields look like, and why it would be beneficial to use GM
seeds to get rid of them. She also talks about the golden rice and the virus of the papaya that I
used as examples in my paper. Her concern is not so much that GMOs are the complete answer
to world food production, but points out the many uses that are positive about some of them. And
she points out that many of these GM seeds and foods are NOT controlled or sold by huge
companies- but by other charitable and non-profit foundations. Truly, she made me see a much
bigger picture in regards to GM foods and how they relate not just to my local grocery store, but
the global community.