Introduction
Genetically Modified Organisms or GMOs have the desired characteristic due to artificially inserted genetic material. They have primarily been used in agriculture for decades and have caused many controversies. On the one hand, some believe GMOs are harmful due to cases when they serve as disease carriers. On the other hand, some say that GMOs are the only thing that can help humanity provide enough food to everyone when resources are scarce. GMOs being more harmful than profitable for the people means the position regarding GMOs should be negative.
Danger for Environment and Health
Research and development conducted to produce GMOs cause environmental damage. Since this area of research is increasing, genetic modification is applied to plants, animals, and fish. According to Tang, the environmental impact of GMOs is negative because “genetically modified crops may become weeds to agricultural or natural habitats, diverting nutrients from the crops in the soil” (Tang, 2014, p. 4). Moreover, the crops that have passed into the soil can later damage human health in the form of plants, fruits, and vegetables. The same applies to the animals that feed on plants and risk being poisoned by GM crops.
One case supporting the idea of genetically modified foods being dangerous is the one in South Florida, where GMO mosquitoes have proven to be controlling the Ziko virus (Tang, 2014). Some of the possible reactions of human organisms to GMOs are allergies and bacterial rise, leading to antibiotic resistance (Tang, 2014). Since antibiotics are one of the effective medications for severe diseases, resistance to that kind of treatment might cause difficulties in treating the patient. Because of these reasons, such as the unsafety of consuming GMOs, I would not use those products to feed myself or my family.
Legal Problems
Another ethical concern regarding GMOs is the law regulations around the matter. The first problem is that “Currently, genetically modified crops do not require labeling” (Tang, 2014, p. 4). Food consumption is different for everyone; for instance, there are vegetarians, vegans, people who do not consume sugar, and many others. That is why producers need to provide detailed labeling of the products to ensure the safety of customers’ food choices.
Another problem with the legal side of GMOs is the research and experiments conducted using animals and humans. Many people oppose GMOs because of those trials since they question human safety, and there are no legal regulations that would guarantee that (Tang, 2014). After discussing the policies regarding GMOs and other biotech foods, “the result is that no single statute and/or single federal agency specifically governs the regulation of biotechnology products” (Tang, 2014, p. 5). Nonetheless, some policies recently have been accepted to regulate animal drug use by forcing companies to receive FDA approval. However, more regulations are required if GMOs will be massively used in production and delivered to every person’s table.
Conclusion
To conclude, genetically modified food is dangerous for the environment and human health. GMOs endanger the environment because genetic crops in the soil make that part of the ground useless and harmful to plants and animals. In addition, GM animals can control viruses and serve as carriers of poisons and diseases for humans. Moreover, there are a few regulations related to biotech food, plants, and animals, which endangers human safety. Therefore, GMOs should be limited or banished until there are enough appropriate legal policies regarding their production and consumption.
Reference
Tang, J. (2014) Fishy Business? Aquabounty technologies, the FDA, and genetically modified food. The Kenyan Institute for Ethics. Web.