Ethical issues regarding GMOs
GMOs are genetically modified organisms that are from the DNA of different species of living organisms. DNA acid is a molecule of all living organisms. There are many foods that contain GMOs, especially the ones we eat all the time. Some foods that we eat that have GMOs in them are the Nature Valley Crunchy Oats' Honey granola bars, Kellogg's Loops, Doritos, and many more. GMOs have their positives and their negatives, especially with nutritional situations. Some pros about GMO foods are that they usually last longer. They have more preservatives than other foods which help them last longer. Humans have helped in the process of genetic modification for many centuries. Larger cattle were produced which allowed them to give more milk and produce larger offspring. GMO foods are also larger than other foods because they grow much faster than regular foods. For example, genetically modified salmon grows 30 times faster than natural salmon. It said in an article by Smiriti Rao that scientists from the NIPGR (National Institute of Plant Genome Research) had put out tomatoes and some tomatoes survived almost for 45 days without refrigeration; scientists say that is great news for farmers in developing nations. The genetically modified foods have affected the health of many people which became the major ethical concern over GMOs. In reviewing the rhetoric surrounding the established arguments of GMO's, it will be made clear that the products made from these plants triggered controversies around the GM food since Food Company's manufacture from them causes many diseases like allergies risk to the food web and contamination problem which make food unhygienic for a person to take. Nowadays more people read about GMO foods so they are more aware of their side effects and health issues and that is why more people are started eating whole food and whole food is getting expensive since more people are quitting GMO food and whole food is in more demand.
In Richard Robert's article "GMOs are a key tool to addressing global hunger" he talks about the significance of GMOs in present circumstances to end world appetite. He does as such for the most part using feeling while additionally including contentions of logos and ethos. Since Roberts principally utilizes feeling, his contention neglects to truly catch the persuader and persuade him/her that GMOs are a key device to address this world issue. The staggering utilization of feeling likewise calls the persuader to scrutinize the validity of Roberts and the article itself. The going with visual, in any case, makes a decent showing with regards to of displaying a succinct yet clear contention. Together, they work to contend that GMOs are key with regards to completion word hunger.
The first thing that comes to audience's attention when grabbing this article is that it was composed for the Boston Globe. This is the principal claim to the ethos that the persuader is given. The way that the Boston Globe is a trustworthy and prestigious source supports the writer because the persuader is more disposed to trust him and his contentions. Be that as it may, the writer is just displayed as Richard Roberts, which makes the persuader address his accreditations. It is just when the group of onlookers completes the article that a concise life story of Roberts is given. The life story is a solid interest to ethos since it demonstrates that the creator is met all requirements to talk about this specific point since he is a Nobel Laureate.
The persuader is first given a contention brimming with feeling. Roberts makes the claim that "few million kids die" due to unhealthiness. The solid claim sets up the contention that the passing's could be halted if GMOs were utilized. This specific proposal is exceptionally solid in that it has the fundamental effect for the gathering of people to end up plainly drew in and feels roused to continue perusing. Be that as it may, as the pursuer continues perusing, the argument turns out to be decreasingly persuading. While the utilization of feeling is viable with regards to drawing in an individual, a lot of it can separate the individual in any case, which is the thing that occurs in Roberts' argument.
The unnoticed ethical issue to GMO's is that they are being served in markets/ stores but are not labeled to inform people. Even educated people cannot distinguish a difference between any products sold unless the ingredients and other major things are mentioned on the label. People just walk into the markets and the products not knowing how it is being manufactured or a better tern is engineered. People do not know the chemicals in these GMO are that they consume daily which leads to major diseases in their life.
Besides the labeling on the products, the other major ethical issue is that this increases the risk of allergies to a great extent. The taste of GMO crops is like the normal crops so a person cannot tell the difference by eating them but the major difference arises when a person eats them on daily basis, which leads to affect the health and increase the allergies. Food allergies are affecting all age groups of people, from kids to elders. Today, engineered food is found everywhere and is making people sick every day. The nutritional problem arising in young aged people are still detectable but at the later age, it only affects the lifespan period of a person rather than any cure. Some companies are feeling guilty of giving off the unlabeled food throughout their stores which is wrong. They were hiding the toxic effect of the chemicals that were added in the GMO's. Unlabeled food also might have less nutrition quality. A hereditarily changed plant could hypothetically have brought down nutritious quality than its customary partner by making supplements inaccessible or inedible to people. On the other hand, The Allergen Online database at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln, independently managed by a panel of internationally recognized allergy experts who review and vote on allergen inclusion, does not list any allergens coming from GMOs. The database "lists every known protein that has been shown to cause an allergy and or even might be suspected of possibly causing a reaction," said Richard Goodman, a food allergy research professor who runs the database at the university. Three main tests are conducted to ensure that any new proteins from GM foods do not cause allergies: in vitro test, in silico test and digestion (XiaoZhi, Lim).
Andy Rees proposes a few contentions against the biotech industry in his article "Genetically Modified Food Should Be Banned." In these contentions, Rees calls attention to a few slip-ups and serious cases made by biotech businesses in a few situations. Rees trusts that the contentions made for GMO's, for example, we require hereditarily adjusted items; it has negligible pollution; the restricted partition is required between hereditarily changed yields an ordinary harvest; the items are protected; it expands decision and popular assessment is not against it. Considering his contentions, Rees requires an entire prohibition on all GMO foods inside the United Kingdom. Rees endeavors and interest to various types crowds to assemble their support to his bring about. He does this by first utilizing appeal to pathos to stun the pursuer. He utilizes expressions, for example, "The biotech industry has a long track record of first exaggerating a problem, then offering an unproven and oversold GM solution." Even the front of his book GMO: A Short Guide for the Befuddled has a pathos appeal with pictures of corn with underhandedness unnerving appearances on them with a set of the front of a market. It plays off human frailties and doubt of real companies trying to actuate them to outrage and activity to encourage the cause of GMO foods.
Rees additionally utilizes appeal to logos as support for his announcements and the general message of the article. He diagrams a few cases where GMO foods are neglected to experience the intense claims by the biotech organization included. Albeit a portion of the situations turned out to be precise through research into the subject, a large portion of the numbers and insights recorded are unsubstantiated, not referred to, and do not state where the information originated from which leaves inquiries afterward. Totally mistaken explanations, for example, referring rats as being "virtually indestructible" additionally detracts from the believability that he was attempting to build up through a logos appeal. In the event, rats were indestructible they would make exceptionally poor guineas pigs to make a correlation with the human physiology.
Some people believe that GMO foods are a good thing while some people believe they are not. GMO foods may cause health risks, but they can also be a good thing for farmers and our community. They also help us because there are many places where people have no access to food and GMOs can help us with that by giving those people food. GMOs give us more food, and even though they are bad for us in some ways, they help us intake more food into our bodies. Some business owners disagree with this whole GMO situation because in many studies it shows that GMO foods can cause allergies from the different pesticides. Some business owners also say it is a good thing because genetically modified foods give people more food, especially those in starving countries with limited food. Not only that reason but only because they can grow faster and bigger. GMO foods are the useful thing for developing countries where the population is rapidly growing.
Much of the media says that GMO foods are bad for us. They say that they can damage our health as said before, while some scientists say that GMO foods are not that bad. Although they can damage crops, they have some pros such as helping the starving population. It is believed that this is a societal issue because, on one hand, people have the right to know what is in their food and what their food is made of. They have the right to know what they are consuming. On the other hand, GMO foods give people food all over the world and have more benefits than regular foods. For example, these foods can last longer, which is necessary because if you buy something one day and the next day it is old and rotten what is the point of buying it? GMO foods can last longer. GMOs are a good thing because they can help in many ways that individuals do not know, but other people have experienced. They help in developing countries because with GMOs more food is produced, which in turn helps the starving population of developing countries. These foods can cause some diseases, but they can be cured and at least those poor, hungry people will be fed instead of dying of hunger.
Talking about animals that are tested with GM food which is dangerous. Lab animals that are tested with GM Food suffer many problems like stunted growth, impaired immune systems, stomach bleeding, cancerous cell growth which is abnormal in the intestines, problems in blood cell development. This also causes problems in the cell structure of the organs like liver, pancreas, testicles which can cause the problem in gene expression and cell metabolism. There are many more problems with reduced brain development, enlarged livers, inflames kidneys, higher blood sugar, inflamed lung tissue. This finally causes increased death rates and higher offspring mortality.
All these results from GMOs on animals illustrated how mutations cause serious health risks. Not only on the body parts but also on the animal's lifespan and their offsprings generation which is much lowered due to the lower chances of survival. This shows how humans can be affected by the GMOs. Humans will suffer short-term effect as well as the long-term effect on their offspring generation. Short term would be the diseases and the damage to the cells of the organisms and much more. This could lead to many problems of the bodily organisms of the future generation which can lead to endangering the species one day.
After talking about all the ethical issues of Genetically Modified, it's important to know how to overcome and deal with these plants in the better smart way. Since the GM plants or food will not be banned easily but it's important for consumers to look for GM food and go for healthy food. This could be done by labeling the food with all the nutritional value on it. Some countries like the United States does not actually require GMOs to be labeled as GMOs. If they could have labeled all the food items with the GMOs and the nutritional value of it, it would be easier for people to look at the food product and buy it in that way. They would be able to see what food is what and they can decrease the intake of GMOs for their health. Moreover, some people are allergic to some of the specific GM used chemicals, so labeling would be the great help to them as they can see what they need to intake and what's healthy for them. This way people can make the more smart choice while buying the grocery items for their home. Groups like "California's Right to Know" is petitioned for labeling of the GMOs that requires d
As a part of a solution to eliminate the intake of GMOs, I propose that GMOs be labeled along with the nutritional values. Presently, the United States is one of the few countries left that does not require GMOs to be labeled (Label GMOs). However, in a 2007 poll, only 11 percent of participants said that they would knowingly eat GMOs while most of the others would try to avoid the mutations (Lapidus 31). If we were to label GMOs on the nutritional label found on all food products, we would be able to see what food we eat on a daily basis and decrease our intake of GMOs for the sake of our health. Groups such as "California's Right to Know" are petitioning for the labeling of GMOs to be a requirement for all food products so that shoppers can be cautious of what foods they buy and make more informed decisions. By knowing exactly what we are eating, we can make more informed choices about our food, which can only prolong our health.
In order to look forward to a long and healthy future, we need to focus on local farmers who still choose to grow their crops the "natural way." Foods that are grown organically have shown to be beneficial for our bodies because they contain vitamins and minerals that are not combined with chemicals which dilute their effectiveness (Hinduism Today). In his article "The land ethic," Aldo Leopold writes, "the conquering role is eventually self-defeating" (23). As we attempt to conquer the food industry by imposing our own rules on how to generate food, we are essentially going to defeat ourselves at our own game. Rather than creating foods that contain GMOs, we should focus more on the naturally occurring wonders that nature has performed for millions of years. Shiv Visvanathan writes, "that nature was not just an object of experiment or a source but a part of a way of life" (152). Nature is a way of life, something that is not to be manipulated or changed. Organic farmers are an excellent example of people who decided to work with nature, rather than against it.
Another way we can take a stand against GMOs is by supporting farmers that continue to grow food organically. In an interview with Nancy Gammons, who works with Four Sisters Farm in Colorado says in response to why they grow their produce organically that, "First of all, it's healthy! Anything that is toxic enough to kill one living thing will do harm to all living things. As a farm, we have chosen to do as little harm as possible" (Gammons). Inspired by J. I. Rodale, who was an advocator for organic food, the farm tries to refrain from using pesticides whenever possible. Rodale's "agricultural methods and health benefits of growing food without synthetic chemicals" (Pollan 142) are said to be what started the organic revolution and Four Sisters Farms wishes to keep that dream alive. If we support farms who's purpose is to be as sustainable as possible, we are doing our part to eliminate GMOs because organic farms are able to continue growing their produce and stay in business. By supporting these farms they do not have to fall victim to large corporations who "by their nature, are always trying to take more market share, therefore taking from smaller businesses" (Gammons). Farmers that are sucked into corporations with the promise of making money struggle to escape the debt they accrue by the end of the next planting season. Purchasing food that is grown locally and without the use of GMOs, we can preserve the businesses that still choose to grow their food the natural way while also increasing our lifespan and overall health.
One way to become more aware of what we consume is by downloading an application on your smartphone that helps you locate and avoid products that contain GM ingredients. The app is called "True Food Shoppers Guide" and is compatible with iPhones, iPod Touches, iPads and Android phones. The app is extremely easy to use and offers information about the products that contain GMOs as well as tips on how to avoid them. Products that do not contain any GMOs are also listed so that customers can decide between two different brands that are similar but differ in GMO content. The "Four Simple Tips" feature tells the buyer how to avoid GMOs in any product they choose to buy. For those who are unable to download the app, there is a printable version available so that even those with less familiarity with technology can still be informed (The True Food Network). By making the information more accessible to the general public, more awareness can be spread about the foods we consume and how we can avoid GMOs.
Unfortunately, the controversy and fears around GMO foods and any company that produces these products continue to persevere, although this could be viewed as a positive move because it will challenge GMO technology and help to make it safer and more regulated. Beside so many ethical issues with GMO foods, people are still eating genetically modified foods. Not all concerns regarding GMO's are being found, scientists are still looking for many other ethical concerns regarding these engineering of studies, which may affect more or worst in this environment. Somehow, the GMO crops are useful, but they do not have long-lasting effect since there goes nothing with fake the original thing has its own value, which gives a useful result, the same as the crops and the safety of humans is a big concern and this food web is not only concerned with mammals but is related to all the organisms around the planet along with the plants. By education, people are still finding the difference between the engineering crops and original but still, it is not going that far, so there needs to be more research and a proper conclusion given to these crops so that they do not affect the food web completely which may ruin people's life completely. People need more education so they know what are they eating and, they need to be aware of their surroundings since there is a new research happening every day regarding GMO foods. By reading labels, people can avoid many health issues and serious diseases.
Now, what should we do with all of this information? GMOs have not been adequately tested on humans and are just one of the many reasons why they should not be consumed. With their long list of side effects that are present in animals, soon enough humans will be affected as well. Taking a stand against GMOs is key. If we want local farmers to continue growing their crops without genetic mutations, we need to support them by buying their produce rather than a brand name. Not only does buying locally grown produce healthier, but also gives promise that the healthy food you are purchasing will still be available for years to