Thomas Malthus, an English economist in 1798 predicted that with an exponentially growing population and an increase in food production, the world would not be able to sustain itself. Luckily this prophecy has not come true, but with the threat still looming, people are doing whatever they can to keep up with the ever growing increase in population. One of the revolutionary techniques to combat world starvation is genetically modified organism (GMO). A GMO is a plant, animal or other organism whose genes have been changed. This is done through gene splicing and makes combinations of genes that do not occur in nature (1, Powles). With the increase of seventy five million people per year in the world, the population is growing at an exponential rate (6, Kelly). Genetically modified
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Corn, cotton and soy have increased in production by thirty percent thanks to GMO’s. David Zilmerman, a U.C. Berkeley agricultural and environmental economist says “If it were more widely adopted around the world, the price [of food] would go lower, and fewer people would die of hunger.” He also says that future climate change will make a lot of the world’s farmable land more difficult to farm (3, Farmaid). They will be able to grow in poor climates and tolerate insects and weeds. Genetically modified crops will not only be able to survive in these more difficult areas, but thrive. Bill Gates, one of the wealthiest people in the world, founder of Microsoft heavily believes in genetically modified foods. He owns twenty three million dollars worth of shares in Monsanto stock, a leading company in GMO’s. Bill Gates says “With the right investments, it may be possible for farmers on the continent to increase productivity by 50 percent overall.” The Gates Foundation spent twenty two percent of its 1.8 billion dollar global development on agriculture (7,
Corn, cotton and soy have increased in production by thirty percent thanks to GMO’s. David Zilmerman, a U.C. Berkeley agricultural and environmental economist says “If it were more widely adopted around the world, the price [of food] would go lower, and fewer people would die of hunger.” He also says that future climate change will make a lot of the world’s farmable land more difficult to farm (3, Farmaid). They will be able to grow in poor climates and tolerate insects and weeds. Genetically modified crops will not only be able to survive in these more difficult areas, but thrive. Bill Gates, one of the wealthiest people in the world, founder of Microsoft heavily believes in genetically modified foods. He owns twenty three million dollars worth of shares in Monsanto stock, a leading company in GMO’s. Bill Gates says “With the right investments, it may be possible for farmers on the continent to increase productivity by 50 percent overall.” The Gates Foundation spent twenty two percent of its 1.8 billion dollar global development on agriculture (7,