New! Improved?People have shaped the characteristics of plants and animals for thousands of years through selective breeding. But today we can make changes directly to the genetic code and modify organisms more radically and quickly than ever before.
Foods have been the industry focus, with more than 100 million acres of genetically modified crops planted around the world in 2000. Today two-thirds of the processed foods sold in the United States contain ingredients from genetically modified organisms (GMOs). Yet society is divided about genetic modification.
Advocates say bioengineering can cut costs and boost the quality and quantity of some foods—improvements we need to feed the world's population, currently growing at 70 million people per year. Opponents argue that the long-term effect of growing and eating these foods is unknown, and that some environmental evidence is troubling. Meanwhile, critics observe, our food storage and shipping practices are already leading to some serious mix-ups, and a lack of product labeling prevents people from knowing just what they're eating for dinner.
Shaping Our WorldPeople have modified plants and animals for perhaps the past 10,000 years. By harvesting and sowing seeds from productive plants, and by breeding plants and animals with desirable traits, people have slowly changed the natural world to suit human needs. Today our family pets, domesticated farm animals and diverse food crops are largely products of our own modification.
Some say that shaping the living world through genetic engineering is simply the next step in the process. Others believe that modifying species by transferring genes from one to another is fundamentally different. What do you think?
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Genetically Modified Organisms |
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