Report on findings
How are safety assessments conducted on GMOs?
Many organisations such as WHO (World Health Organisation) or FSANZ (Food Safety Australia and New Zealand) state that GMOs have been rigorously tested in comparison to conventional foods. GM foods go under extensive safety assessments to ensure that they are safe at least in the short term. Scientists test whether the GMO has any direct health effects, potential allergens, stability of the inserted gene, components that have nutritional or toxic properties and any other unintended results. Risk assessments on the effects a GMO will have on an environment are also taken. This process evaluates its effects and stability in the environment by considering the characteristics of the …show more content…
These organisms have been tampered with, removing and replacing certain aspects for the greater good such as increasing crop yield or resistance to chemicals. These benefits may sound like the perfect solution, however it does not always go as they planned.
In 2009, a GM-corn harvest fails massively in South Africa. These South African farmers have suffered millions of dollars in financial loss when 82,000 hectares of GM-corn failed to produce any seeds. Monsanto, a company who develops GMOs and chemicals for crop protection, supplied 28% of South African farmers with their ‘super corn’ and has stated that ‘less than 25% of the varieties of corn failed as they were insufficiently fertilised in the laboratory’. However, Monsanto had grossly understated the extent of the crop failure as Marion Mayet, an environmental activist, has estimated there to be over 80% of the GM-corn planted to have not produced any seeds. Furthermore, Mayet stated, “Monsanto says they just made a mistake in the laboratory, however we say that biotechnology is a failure. You cannot make a 'mistake ' with three different varieties of corn’. Monsanto has already been placed on the watch list for many environment activists and health experts as the have been a source of has been a source of controversy for ethical, health …show more content…
However, there is no solid evidence to prove that they are harmful to your health which consequently causes many people to dismiss any correlation made between GMOs and health issues. There have been no long term studies to identify any possible health risks in consuming them because, allegedly, there is no reason to test them in such a rigorous manner. The longest study involving GMOs was 2 years long, using rats as test subjects in which suggested that GM corn could lead to the development of tumours and
How are safety assessments conducted on GMOs?
Many organisations such as WHO (World Health Organisation) or FSANZ (Food Safety Australia and New Zealand) state that GMOs have been rigorously tested in comparison to conventional foods. GM foods go under extensive safety assessments to ensure that they are safe at least in the short term. Scientists test whether the GMO has any direct health effects, potential allergens, stability of the inserted gene, components that have nutritional or toxic properties and any other unintended results. Risk assessments on the effects a GMO will have on an environment are also taken. This process evaluates its effects and stability in the environment by considering the characteristics of the …show more content…
These organisms have been tampered with, removing and replacing certain aspects for the greater good such as increasing crop yield or resistance to chemicals. These benefits may sound like the perfect solution, however it does not always go as they planned.
In 2009, a GM-corn harvest fails massively in South Africa. These South African farmers have suffered millions of dollars in financial loss when 82,000 hectares of GM-corn failed to produce any seeds. Monsanto, a company who develops GMOs and chemicals for crop protection, supplied 28% of South African farmers with their ‘super corn’ and has stated that ‘less than 25% of the varieties of corn failed as they were insufficiently fertilised in the laboratory’. However, Monsanto had grossly understated the extent of the crop failure as Marion Mayet, an environmental activist, has estimated there to be over 80% of the GM-corn planted to have not produced any seeds. Furthermore, Mayet stated, “Monsanto says they just made a mistake in the laboratory, however we say that biotechnology is a failure. You cannot make a 'mistake ' with three different varieties of corn’. Monsanto has already been placed on the watch list for many environment activists and health experts as the have been a source of has been a source of controversy for ethical, health …show more content…
However, there is no solid evidence to prove that they are harmful to your health which consequently causes many people to dismiss any correlation made between GMOs and health issues. There have been no long term studies to identify any possible health risks in consuming them because, allegedly, there is no reason to test them in such a rigorous manner. The longest study involving GMOs was 2 years long, using rats as test subjects in which suggested that GM corn could lead to the development of tumours and