GMO

Friend or Foe?

Genetically Modified Organisms

Designed by Nina Murray
For OSSTF
Image credit: Microsoft clipart

What are genetically

modified foods?
Also called genetically modified organisms (GMO), or
GE foods (Genetically engineered).
Created by inserting DNA from one organism into
another (I.e. fish genes into apples) OR modifying an
organisms DNA to attain a desirable trait. (I.e. a tomato
with reversed DNA to slow down ripening).

Image credit: Microsoft clipart

Examples of GMOs
In 1994, the Flavr Savr tomato was introduced as the first GM
food. It is supposed to betastier, firmer and fresher than the
average tomato.
Golden rice enriched rice containing beta-carotene (Vitamin
A). This vitamin is not found in normal rice.
Bt corn corn containing a chemical normally found in
bacteria (Bacillus thuringiensis). This is toxic to insects, not
humans. Insects try to eat the plant and die.
Herbicide resistant plants (roundup ready corn). These
plants are immune to a certain herbicide, so they live while all
the other plants in the field are killed.

Image credit: Microsoft clipart

GMO foodsare common

According to Greenpeace, up to 70% of processed

foods in Canada contain GM ingredients. Most
common are corn, soy, canola and cotton.
Image credit:http://www.usda.gov: US Dept of Agriculture

What is grown
globally?
In 2001 the area of genetically modified crops grown globally
was 52.6 million hectares. That is an area the size of France
or Spain. This includes food and non-food crops (I.e.cotton)
4 countries produced 99% of the world's genetically modified crops.
These are:

USA (68%)
Argentina (22%)
Canada (6%)
China (3%)

More than 80% of canola grown in Canada and a high

proportion of the countrys soybean and corn crops are
genetically modified.

Image credit: Microsoft clipart

From ( U.S. Dept. Agriculture 2001)

From ( U.S. Dept. Agriculture 2001)

GM foods in Canada
Health Canada groups GM foods into a category called Novel Foods.
Foods
Foods resulting from a process not previously used for food;
Products that have never been used as a food; or
Foods that have been modified by genetic manipulation, also known as
genetically modified (GM) foods, genetically engineered foods or
biotechnology-derived foods

70 novel
foods have
been
approved
for sale
in Canada.

Potatoes
Canola
Corn
Tomatoes
Squash
Soybeans
Flax
Sugarbeets
Are all
examples!!

These crops are

processed into the
goods in grocery
stores.
Fries, cakes, oils,
sugars, sauces
Animals that feed on
GMOs
And more all
without mandatory
labeling.

Benefits #1
Increased crop productivity
This includes herbicide tolerance,
pest and disease resistance
E.g. Roundup ready crops, and BT corn.
Could mean using less spray

Image credit: http://www.public-domain-photos.com/ & Microsoft clipart

Benefits #2
Cold tolerance
plants developed to tolerate cold
temperatures
& withstand unexpected frost
could destroy seedlings

Drought & salinity tolerance

currently inhospitable regions can
now be cultivated

Image credit: http://www.public-domain-photos.com/

Benefits #3
Improved nutrition
crops like rice are a staple in
developing countries
nutritionally inadequate!

GM "golden rice" is high in betacarotene (vitamin A)

Reduces eye-related problems like
blindness due to malnutrition
Image credit: http://www.public-domain-photos.com/ & Microsoft clipart

Benefits #4
Phytoremediation
(f't-r-m'd-'shn)

plants like poplar trees

clean up the heavy
metal soil
contamination
GM plants with higher
tolerance for heavy
metals like mercury.

Benefits #5
Future benefits might include:
food without allergens; (I.e. anyone could eat nuts)
grains, fruit & vegetables with improved nutrition (multivitamin potatoes=healthy fast food french fries!)
longer shelf life and better taste (reduced food waste due to
spoilage)
rice enhanced with iron (prevent anemia)
foods used as vaccines (bye-bye needles)
Many more possibilities
Image credit: Microsoft clipart

Challenges #1
Environmental possibility of unintended harm to
other organisms:
potential risk of harm to non-target organisms, e.g. a
pest resistant crop that produces toxins that may harm
both crop-damaging and non crop-damaging insects
E.g. The pollen of BT corn on milkweed is thought
to affect (slow or kill) the larvae of Monarch
butterflies. Further studies are underway.

Image credit: http://www.public-domain-photos.com/ & Microsoft clipart

Challenges #2
pesticides become less effective as pests become
resistant to modified crops.
Different varieties and strengths of pesticides will be
needed once weeds have adapted to the existing
effective pesticides.

Image credit: Microsoft clipart

Challenges #3
Superweeds
gene transfer to non-target species where
herbicide tolerant plants crossbreed with weeds
potentially creating herbicide resistant weeds.
Some Western Canadian farmers are calling
Monsantos round-up ready canola a
superweed.

Image credit: Microsoft clipart

Challenges #4
Human health risks
introducing a gene into a
plant may create a new
allergen or cause an
allergic reaction in
susceptible individuals
For example, inserting
genes from a nut into
another plant could be
dangerous for people who
are allergic to nuts
Image credit: Microsoft clipart

Challenges #5
Economic Hazards
Elimination of competition
GM seeds are patented (must buy each year)
This presents problems for poor farmers in both the developed and
developing worlds.

Large companies like Monsanto have resorted to suing small

farmers found to be using their seed without paying.

Suicide seeds
Plants with sterile seeds that are infertile are created
Farmers are forced to buy seeds every year

However, some companies have reduced costs or

donated GM seeds to impoverished nations.
Image credit: Microsoft clipart

Impacts of Genetic
Modification
1.4 billion farmers in developed countries depend
on saved seeds and seed exchanges (50% of
crops)
1998 Monsanto sued 100 US soybean growers and
hired Pinkerton agents to track down seed
savers
Pineland Seed Company was granted patent in
1998 for terminator technology
seeds do not germinate if planted for second time

Image credit: Microsoft clipart

Image credit: Greenpeace Canada http://www.greenpeace.org/canada/en/

Image credit: Greenpeace Canada http://www.greenpeace.org/canada/en/

Image credit: Greenpeace Canada http://www.greenpeace.org/canada/en/

Image credit: Greenpeace Canada http://www.greenpeace.org/canada/en/

About the previous

picture..
Greenpeace activists have created a 61-metre crop circle in
a corn field in Abbotsford, British Columbia. The field
contains Monsantos NK603 genetically engineered (GE)
corn, which scientists recently linked with liver and kidney
toxicity in rats. Greenpeace is calling for mandatory
labelling of GE foods across Canada.
Canada grows over 5.8 million hectares of GE crops,
including 820,000 hectares of GE corn. Thats an area of
GE crops more than twice the size of Vancouver Island. We
are one of the top producers of GE worldwide along with
USA, Argentina, and Brazil. Forty countries around the
world already have mandatory GE labelling in place.
Image credit: Greenpeace Canada http://www.greenpeace.org/canada/en/

What we know now

What do you know
about GM Foods?
Take an online test by
clicking on the link
below and determine
your GMF smarts!
GM Foods Test
Media clips at:
http://www.krafty.org/flash/
Image credit: Greenpeace Canada http://www.greenpeace.org/canada/en/

References

Information:
http://www.cpma.ca/en_gov_biotech_factsheet.asp
http://www.greenpeace.org/canada/en/campaigns/big-question-marks-on-genetica
http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/sr-sr/biotech/food-aliment/index_e.html
http://www.bionetonline.org
http://www.uoguelph.ca/news/2006/11/runaway_gm_crop.html
http://www.exploratorium.edu/theworld/gm/test.html

Pictures from:
Greenpeace Canada (verbal permission via phone conversation June 2008)
http://www.greenpeace.org/canada/en/

www.microsoft.com
http://www.public-domain-photos.com/
http://www.usda.gov

Image credit:

Image credit: Microsoft clipart