What Are The Disadvantages Of A Gmo?

The pros and cons for using genetically modified organisms, or GMOs, are vast and varied, but there's little argument over the uncertain consequences of this relatively new science. The pace at which GMOs have found their way into the food supply is what frightens many opponents, as long-term risk assessments won't be available for many years.

Long-term Health Effects

The science of genetically modifying organisms is in its infancy, coming online in earnest in the mid-1990s. Pressure from agricultural interests and the scientific community eager to prove the viability of the process has led to what some would call an irresponsible rush to market of these products. More than 60 percent of the products in most U.S. grocery stores are derived from some sort of genetically altered plant or animal, notes Nina Fedoroff, a molecular biologist at Penn State University, in the spring 2007 issue of Science Journal. There simply hasn't been enough time to study the long-term health effects on humans from eating genetically altered foods.

Gene Spilling

Many of the arguments against bioengineered foodstuffs focus on the law of unintended consequences. It is unclear what effect, if any, genetic pollution from inadequately sequestered populations of genetically modified crops would have on the surrounding wild varieties. Releasing pollen from genetically altered plants into the wild via wind and insects could have dramatic effects on the surrounding ecosystem, but there is no long-term research yet available to gauge the impact.

Reduced Biodiversity

Biodiversity, even within a species or genus, keeps plant and animal populations viable. If a particular virus, for example, affected corn in northern Iowa, but the slightly different variety of corn grown on an adjacent farm was immune, only the portion of the crop susceptible to the virus would be lost.

As genetically engineered crops consume more and more acreage, the number and variety of wild species is reduced. Such an alignment threatens the entire supply as pests and diseases repelled by just one or a few genetically altered varieties develop resistance to those defenses. In a doomsday scenario, a lone pathogen could wipe out an entire harvest nationwide and spawn years of underproduction as the agriculture industry struggles to recover and combat the threat.

Intellectual Property

Genetic engineering is expensive. It requires highly trained specialists engaged in time-consuming processes using highly specialized equipment to achieve the desired result, thus marginalizing the small farmer who can't afford such pursuits. As genetically engineered crops begin to outperform their natural cousins, the seeds used to grow them, kept in the hands of powerful agribusiness and claimed as intellectual property, could have the effect of monopolizing the food supply, or at least placing the power of food production in the hands of the very few.

Butterfly Effect

In spring 2000, a preliminary report published in the journal Nature indicated that some 20 million acres of genetically modified corn planted in the United States could have a devastating impact on Monarch butterfly populations. The corn was engineered to resist moth larvae and appeared to have the same effect on Monarchs. The U.S. Department of Agriculture determined that one variety of genetically engineered corn did indeed poison monarch larvae. That corn subsequently was phased out of production.

The implication that one positive trait, in this case moth resistance, could spawn unforeseen and far less desirable outcomes gave opponents ammunition against unleashing genetically modified organisms. They argued that the science and its impacts are not fully understood and even minor changes to the genetic code of corn in the U.S. could set off a global chain reaction in the wild.