GM Foods are
controversial for consumers in Canada. So I would
like to show you some real facts and accurate
information about that.
First, let’s look
at what genetically modified foods are:
Genetically modified foods come from seeds containing altered DNA. The
techniques of modern genetics have
made possible the
direct manipulation of the genetic makeup
of organisms. My personal definition is scientists took the DNA from
organism plants and modified into a brand
new plants.
Second, the advantages and disadvantages about GM foods
are:
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What are the
Benefits?
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What are the
Risks? |
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Genetically modified foods
(GM foods or GMF) offer a way to quickly improve crop
characteristics such as yield, pest resistance, or herbicide
tolerance, often to a degree not possible with traditional methods.
Further, GM crops can be manipulated to produce completely
artificial substances, from the precursors to plastics to consumable
vaccines. |
The power of genetic
modification techniques raises the possibility of human health,
environmental, and economic problems, including unanticipated
allergic responses to novel substances in foods, the spread of pest
resistance or herbicide tolerance to wild plants, inadvertent
toxicity to benign wildlife, and increasing control of agriculture
by biotechnology corporations. |
Third, let’s take a look at what
Canada has done about GM foods. In Canada, GM foods are strictly regulated by
the government. This ensures that consumers are not being put in any kind of
health hazard. Health Canada proposes that the safety assessment process is
based upon principles. They are developed through technical, broad-based
stakeholder consultations, and through expert consultations. They are in fact a
good point in favor of Canadian GM foods for consumers. In addition, the same
organization adds that safety insurance processes have been improved and used
for over 7 years with excellent results. Moreover, the government is committed
to closely monitoring any product containing modified DNA that is introduced
into the market.
On the other hand, despite all the rigorous safety
insurance procedures, not everything is good news for GM food consumers in
Canada. For one thing, recent studies have shown that foods containing modified
DNA can cause allergies in some people. For example, scientists incorporated a
part of a Brazilian nut's DNA in a corn seed to increase its nutrition values.
They discovered that people who are allergic to nuts and consumed the GM corns
were affected by it too. Since most DNA alterations consist in bringing some
characteristics from one type of plant to another, like in the nuts and corns,
scientists warn that we don’t know what similar side effects we can expect from
these combinations. Furthermore, the scientific community stated that there is a
remote possibility that GM foods could allow bacteria to develop immunity to
anti-biotic because their microorganisms could also acquire the food's resistant
DNA. As a result, people consuming GM food could also be eating the resistant
bacteria, which would be impossible to treat.
As a conclusion, although consumers are told that they
can rely on Health Canada to regulate GM Foods, they should be told what the
foods they are consuming. Since Canada does a lot imports and exports on food,
consumers must also be informed of any health issues that involved in GM Foods.
Let’s take a look at the following charts, see what
your opinion about GM Foods is.
Resource Links:
http://www.americans-world.org/digest/global_issues/biotechnology/graphs/biotech-belief.gif
http://www.americans-world.org/digest/global_issues/biotechnology/graphs/biotech-labeling.gif
http://www.daelnet.co.uk/images/news/tomatoes_gm.jpg
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