An Inquiry Into Roundup Ready Crops

Or

Samantha Brewington
Instructor: James Roller
CO 302-001: Writing in Digital Environments
December 9th, 2016

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In recent years the growing terminology in the USs agriculture industry has
turned in to a world full of big and scary terminology that to a lot of the general public
of America screams dangerous and toxic. In reality all of the current terminology that is
showing up on food labels across the country represent the new technology and processes
of food production in the industry. These terms dont have association with health or
nutrient requirements, but the general public seems to have formed these negative
connotations of the biotechnology used in food. The biggest concern and connection to
the food market to consumers has been the Genetically Modified Organisms or GMOs;
more specifically a type of GMO Roundup Ready Crops. While the growing concern
people have lately for what they are eating and the food they are consuming is a good
concern for them to have, the lack of correct information that the public receives leads to
misconceptions about production and the effects that these products could/do have on
consumption. To understand and fully communicate these concerns on food safety and
the effects these types of crops could potentially have on the environment three main
points that need to be addressed prior; information on what GMO and Round up ready
crops are and how they are regulated in the US, from there, how they are made and work,
and then why they are used in the US toady. After discussing these main points on the
background information, the conversations can move onto discuss the safety of these
crops on human consumption, and the safety potential of these crops yield on the
environment.
The biggest reason there is such a negative backlash on these crops is that there is
a lack of knowledge and widespread information on these types of in the US; a large
portion of consumers lack the pertinent information on what these crops are, and lack the

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information to know what the regulations the US has on these crops. The International
Service for Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications (ISAAA) defines a GM Crop
(Genetically Modified) as a crop that has a novel combination of genetic material
obtained through the use of modern biotechnology. It is important to recognize that
these crops can be produced through modern method such as artificially inserting these
genes into the genome, but that crops and plants have been genetically modified for as
long as we have been cultivating domesticated crops (ISAAA). Roundup Ready crops
are a specific type of GM crop that are produced by Monsanto (a plant and crop seed
production company and researchers), and are designed to build plants that are resistant
to the specific herbicide Roundup. These crops are genetically modified to protect the
enzyme that allows them to be resistant to the herbicide containing glyphosate and
continue growing. It is the glyphosate that takes the main action in the herbicide by
inhibiting an enzyme that is essential to plant growth, but this enzyme is not found in
humans or animals according to the Monsanto webpage on their glyphosate products.
The gene for the plant to produce the glyphosate resistant gene is inserted into the
genomes of the crops, and then when this herbicide is used, the crops with the resistance
gene are able to block the inhibition of the growth enzyme, and allow the plant to
continue to grow (Monsanto).
The next part of knowing what these plants and crops are is to understand how
these crops are regulated in the US. On the Monsanto website when researching their
glyphosate and roundup products gives links to find more information on the United
States Department of Agricultures (USDA) and Environmental Protection Agencys
(EPA) regulation of these ingredients. According to an article written by Tony Yang, and

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Brian Chen there are no current regulations or current federal legislation specific to
GMOs. The public can tend to take this information to mean that the government is not
paying attention to the food being produced but, in actuality it means that there is not any
specific laws or legislation surrounding the production or use of GMO products. Instead
these food products are held to the same standards and production regulations that are
enforced on conventional food products from the USDA, FDA, and the EPA (Yang,
Chen). According to the USDA the governments regulations on these include the safety
of the plants on consumers health, and risk towards the environment. The Animal and
Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), and the EPA, are responsible for reviewing the
safety and environmental impacts of crops with pest-resistant biotechnology (examples
include all round up ready crops), and the EPA and USDA both perform risk assessments
on to evaluate potential consequences of these plants as well (USDA Biotech).
Moving on from the what of these crops, it is important to acknowledge and
understand the methods by which they are made and then how they work. There are
several steps to the production of genetically engineered (GE) crops, or GM crops. The
University of Nebraska Lincolns Ag Biosafety Education center breaks the process down
into five simple steps. The first step is extracting the DNA from a sample of the
organism desired to change; this moves through an additional series of steps to extract
and remove the DNA from the organism (University of Nebraska, Lincoln). The next two
steps are the gene cloning and gene design; those changing or modified make a clone,
which basically copies the DNA that was extracted earlier, and then they design the gene
they want to work in the new organism (University of Nebraska, Lincoln). According to
the Education Center the next step of this process is transformation; this part of the

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procedure includes inserting the new gene into some of the cells using various
techniques. These plants are then grown to maturity and the seeds produced from them
are the seeds that contain the changed genetic information (University of Nebraska,
Lincoln). The final step according to the Ag Biosafety Education Center is the breeding
the transgenic plants with elite lines using traditional plant breeding methods to combine
the desired traits into one line. Engineering these plants is the same basic process for
all modifications, but the time and resources vary for the type; so to make the Roundup
Ready crops the same general process applies, and the genes inserted are those that allow
for the resistance to build (University of Nebraska, Lincoln).
The next facet of background information on these Roundup Ready crops is why
they are used in our industry today. Today the industry uses GM crops for a variety of
multiple reasons, but Roundup Ready crops are used for four main reasons; the
environmental benefits gained from its use, to avoid and manage resistant weeds, crop
yield and hardiness, and the growing populations need for food. The use of round up
ready crops has brought about some unintended benefits to the environmental process of
production agriculture by allowing for methods such as conservation tillage (Monsanto).
According to the Minnesota Department of Agriculture the process of conservation tillage
is any method of soil cultivation that leaves the previous years crop residue on fields
before and after planting the next crop. This method of tillage and farming in production
reduces soil erosion and runoff (Minnesota Department of Agriculture). The use of these
roundup ready crops requires less passes across the field and crops in equipment and thus
less use of the equipment, which is how this method is so easily implemented
(Monsanto). Not only does it reduce soil erosion by 60-90 %, but also it can improve the

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soil and water quality, conserve water and energy, and it can reduce the potential air
pollution from the dust and diesel emission of the equipment (Minnesota Department of
Agriculture). The next main reason why these seeds and types of crops are planted and
produced is the ability to be resistant to the herbicides and to be able to avoid and manage
resistant weeds (Monsanto). These resistant weeds are refereed to as super weeds and
reduce the amount of resources the plant receives, thus requiring the farmer to spend
more money providing more nutrients and water to their crops for a lower yield. Using
these roundup seeds is just one step in a multistep process of reducing the amount of
super weeds and weeds in general. A third reason for the use of Roundup Ready crops is
the option for farmers to be able to lose less of their crops while still managing to
eliminate the weeds. The resistance to the herbicide in these plants allows for the farmers
to spray or apply the necessary amount to the field to kill the weeds without killing the
crops (Monsanto). The final reason for the use of these crops is a combination of all three
reason to fit one major aspect that is constantly facing this industry; the growing
population of the world. According to the United Nations (UN), the world population is
over 7.3 billion people and is expected to reach 9.7 billion by the year 2050. This
growing population is the critical reason to use these types of biotechnology in
production agriculture because, it not only allows for the crops to develop higher yields
in production but, also does so in the most efficient way, while remaining as sustainable
as possible with current means. This type of technology and research is what will be the
ability for farmers to feed this ever-growing population of the world.
The major concern from this point forward with these crops though is the safety
or risks they pose to consumers in their health and nutrition. As mentioned earlier there

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are several US government agencies whose responsibilities it is to monitor and regulate
the food going into production in this industry. According to the FDA (Food and Drug
Administration), these plants that are either fed to animals intended for human
consumption or available for human consumption are safe, as foods from genetically
engineered plants must meet the same requirements, including safety, as foods from
traditionally bred plants. The main area of concern when it comes to health issues with
the roundup ready crops is the issue of glyphosate, which in false media and propaganda
has been referred to as a carcinogen. According the EPA (Environmental Protection
Agency) in their Glyphosate Issue Paper, The Cancer Assessment Review Committee of
the EPA, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), the Food and Agriculture
Organization (FAO), and World Health Organizations Joint Meeting on Pesticide
Residues (JMPR) all in similar words reported that glyphosate was an unlikely
carcinogen to humans or is unlikely to pose a carcinogenic risk to humans. Another
argument of safety has been the effects of long-term use are not seen, but these products
have been in production since the late 1980s and early 1990s. While initial tests and
studies on humans health are not ethical and allowed, there are always studies on similar
animal species prior to use. Another piece of information that adds to the safety of these
crops is an article written by Liang Chen, in which the result of a multi-year study
through the life of miniature pigs and the effects of GE corn modified with specific genes
is shown. Through this article is was shown that there is no long term health effects of
toxicity by the feeding or eating of these modified crop products.
After human and animal safety of consumption of these products the other large
issue consumers have with these GM products and roundup ready crops is the potential

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negative effects it could have on the environment and surrounding ecosystems. In an
article published in Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment, Maria Arias-Martin and a
team did a study on the effects and impact of Bt maize (biotechnology corn), which is
another term for GE or GM corn, on the soil and Microarthropod communities. While
the study was not conducted in the US the results are still applicable for the impacts of
GE crops on soil communities. In this study Arias-Martin and her team were able to
conclude, Continuous cultivation of Bt Maize does not negatively affect soil
microarthropods. As mentioned earlier using these crops actually have a beneficial
effect on the environment by improving soil quality and life, and reducing the air
pollution of equipment involved in this production agriculture.
After evaluating what these crops are, how they are regulated, how these types of
crops are mad and finally why they are used in the USs agriculture industry, the major
concerns of these crops was evaluated. With the two major concerns of health and safety
risks to humans and animals with consumption, and the environmental effects they could
hold addressed, there is enough information presented to be able to say that not only are
these roundup ready crops useful to the production industry, they are safe for the
consumers and public, and only aide in the battle to feed a growing population in coming
years.

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Works Cited
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<https://www.tikkun.org/nextgen/obamas-deregulation-of-gmo-crops>.
Arias-Martn, Maria, et al. "Effects Of Three-Year Cultivation Of Cry1ab-Expressing Bt
Maize On Soil Microarthropod Communities." Agriculture, Ecosystems &
Environment 220.(2016): 125-134. Academic Search Premier. Web. 28 Oct. 2016.
Chen, Liang, et al. "Long-Term Toxicity Study On Genetically Modified Corn With
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ISAAA. "Pocket K No. 1: Q and A About Genetically Modified Crops." Q and A About
Genetically Modified Crops - Pocket K | ISAAA.org. International Service for the
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Minnesota Department of Agriculture. "Conservation Tillage." Conservation Tillage.
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