Controversial Topics
A topic concerning genetically modified organisms that is currently of large significance worldwide is the labeling of genetically modified foods. The controversy lies in whether or not foods which contain genetically modified ingredients should carry a special label signifying the presence of these GM ingredients. These labels would allow for the consumer to be aware of whether or not certain foods contained GM ingredients, thus allowing them to make more conscientious purchasing decisions. This system has been adapted in the European Union, Japan, China, and many other countries around the world, but the major controversy lies in the fact that America has yet to follow the trend. One would imagine that a society which likes to know whether their orange juice was freshly squeezed or not would be applying an extensive amount of pressure to adopt a labeling system for foods containing GM ingredients. But this does not seem to be the case; at least if pressure is being applied it is not significant enough to cause any major changes. But the fact of the matter is that something needs to be done and it needs to be done now. Most Americans are blind to the fact that more than two-thirds of all of their processed food contains genetically modified ingredients. Ingredients whose long term affects are a great mystery and possibly could be harmful to their well being. But it’s not just their well being that the public needs to be worried about but it is also their home. Not home like a house, but rather home as in the lovely earth which we inhabit. The current trend of GMO’s could be significantly detrimental to mother earth for many years to come. We could be potentially causing irreversible harm to the earth thus leaving future generations with an uphill battle. All this damage could be caused without the public ever being the wiser as businesses are happy to keep consumers in the dark about what is truly in their food. In countries where GM foods labeling has been put in effective most of these countries have decided against the use of GM ingredients. The American public needs the opportunity to make this decision. Will the American public come to the same conclusion as many other countries worldwide that the potential harmful effects of GM foods outweigh their advantages? No one will ever know unless the American public is given a choice. America is a society founded on freedom and democracy, thus it is only proper that the people be given the necessary knowledge to make a wise decision about the food they consume.
Another controversial topic in America concerning genetically modified organisms is the attempt of the FDA to apply old laws to the regulation of genetically modified animals. Currently no GM animals have been approved for sale as food within the United States but this is a topic of extensive research and the explosion of GM animals into American society could be just around the corner. Thus it is important for the United States to establish a specific and comprehensive law focused upon instilling the proper safeguards and regulations concerning the sale and distribution of GM animals. Currently the FDA reviews GM animals under the “rules that govern new drugs for animals (Smithson).” “Jane Rissler, a senior staff scientist for the Union of Concerned Scientists,” is against the use of this law because it “is weak on the environment and allows zero public participation (Smithson).” With this law public interest groups will not be able to voice there opinions due to the fact that they will be unaware of what is going on until the GM animal is put on the market. This is a poor choice since public interest groups are able to provide a slue of scientific research and valuable public opinion. The use of this law would also be detrimental because it would not be a process in which the public would place their trust. A secretive system such as this breeds mistrust and skepticism two things that should be avoided at all costs. A new law focused upon the regulation of GM animals needs to be put in place for the good of the environment and society as a whole
The selling of unapproved GM crops to countries around the world has brought about more controversy and concern when it comes to GMO’s. The most well known case of such an incident was “the revelation last March by Switzerland-based Syngenta AG that it had inadvertently sold an unapproved GM strain of corn in the United States and Britain for four years (European).” The corn is thought to be harmless to human health but the realization opened the world’s eyes to the new possibility of the unlawful distribution of GM foods. In response a registry has been launched which “traces food, seed and plant contamination caused by genetically modified organisms (European).” This registry hopes to open the world eyes to this problem and help in its avoidance in the future.
This site was created as part of the honors course: The Ideal at Monmouth College in Fall 2005