Phi 105 - Genetically Modified Foods

Tamra Sanchez

PHI-105

5/21/18

Rob Bjork

Genetically Modified Foods

Almost everything that humans consume has been genetically modified in some way and will keep on being genetically modified for years to come. Genetically modified food is when the biggest breed of fruit or vegetable is picked with the best traits and spliced with a different breed to make bigger and better crops (Okigbo, Iwuba, & Putheti 2011). Animals are also genetically modified by selective breeding of the biggest and healthiest animals. The benefits of genetically modified food would be an increase in the food supply, crops and animals grow faster, and animals and crops are more resistant to diseases, pests, drought and extreme heat and cold.

Genetically modified foods are beneficial to humans and animals because they have led to an increase in the worlds food supply. Genetically modified plants have a higher yield of food per acre of farmland used to grow them, allowing farmers to be able to produce more food from a smaller space. Due to being able to use smaller spaces to grow crops that have been genetically modified increases the amount of yield per farmland used, and therefore, increased the amount of food that is grown (Okigbo, Iwuba, and Putheti 2011). By genetically modifying crops there is an increase of food, and with this increase there would be more food to go around globally, due to this starvation would decrease, and that could lead to the possibility of ending world hunger. With the population of the world constantly growing, it is important to maximize the amount of food that is produced, genetically modified plants and animals allow this to happen.

Genetically modified foods make crops and animals grow faster, so that more food can be distributed to people that do not have food. Crops and livestock that have been genetically modified grow faster and has caused food security on a global scale by improving and increasing the food supply, and because of this modification people now have an abundance of safe and nutritious food (Quim, Kouser 2013). Livestock farmers raise cattle and poultry that produce higher quality meat and dairy products, faster and more efficiently because of genetic modification and selective breeding. Foods are now being genetically modified to have more of a nutritional value than they normally have, which could help people who are malnourished. People with less variety in their diet would still be able to get the nutrition they need. With crops and livestock being lost due to pests, diseases and other natural disasters could drive up the cost of food, making it difficult or impossible for many people to afford their everyday essentials.

Having crops more resistant to diseases, pests, drought and extreme heat and cold means that less food gets ruined, and more will be sent to grocery stores to be bought by the consumer. Since genetically modified foods have been around, crops are naturally