GMO PRODUCTS

Genetic Modified Organism (GMO) Products



Genetic Modified Organism (GMO) Products

Introduction

Genetic modification (GM) is the manipulation of a living organisms' genetic material by the elimination, alteration or addition of specific gene-encoding DNA sequences. Genetic modification often involves the transfer of genetic material from one organism to another so that the recipient may express traits that are naturally characteristic of the donor. "Technology is ruining our food" Genetic engineering, food irradiation, food labeling are technologies which are ruining our foods. These are all creating unneeded health risks because the outcomes are unpredictable. Not that many years ago, consumers were able to go to the local shop or market and know what they were buying and be assured that it was fresh and had no hidden ingredients. These days, the story is completely different, as today's foods are full of unknown ingredients and processing methods.

Discussion

The use of genetic engineering in agriculture and food production has impacts, not only on the environment and biodiversity, but also on human health. he hazards that may be introduced into foods through genetic engineering are three, (1) allergens, (2) toxins, and (3) reduced nutritional quality. Therefore this paper emphasizes that products which contain GMO (Genetic Modified Organism) or Genetically Engineered Organism (GEO) must be labeled because it is not safety not only for us and our offspring, but for environment also.

Background

The use of biotechnology to aid the production of crops and livestock has a longstanding history. Genetic modification of plants and animals was practiced through domestication and controlled breeding long before the heritability of traits and the role of DNA was fully understood. Recent advances in our understanding of DNA; since its identification as the 'transforming principle', the discovery of its double-helical structure and the analysis of its genetic code, have led to major developments within the field of genetics and the advent of genetic engineering. Recombinant DNA technology was successfully implemented to produce the first genetically modified organism (GMO) in 1973 by the combined research of Herbert Boyer and Stanley Cohen (Yoon 2000).

Boyer and Cohen engineered a recombinant E. coli bacterium which contained a plasmid vector insert into which a piece of foreign DNA had been spliced. The foreign DNA sequence included a marker coding for resistance to the antibiotics tetracycline and kanamycin, the resultant recombinant organism demonstrated acquired resistance to these antibiotics thus confirming successful integration of the foreign genetic material (www.fao.org). In 1980 scientists engineered the first genetically modified animal (Charles 2001), a transgenic mouse, and in 1983 the first transgenic plant, an antibiotic resistant tobacco plant was created. Since these pioneering breakthroughs there have been rapid expansions in the production of transgenic organisms particularly for commercial use in medicine, food and agriculture. The first GM food crop to be grown commercially was a tomato dubbed FlavrSavr® created by Calgene, which was put on the US market in 1994 after approval by the US Food and Drug administration (FDA). This made its way on to British shelves as tomato puree in 1996 ...