Harvest of Fear

Should we Grow GM Crops?

Instructions: Read the page and click YES or NO, reach the next...click YES or NO...etc until you’ve read all the arguments -- You will need to do this 12 times in order for your votes to be tallied. Navigate the site, each of the bold headings below are links within the site

1. What is a GM Crop?
GM stands for genetically modified (although that's a very misleading acronym, and one that probably shouldn't be used).  Genetically modified crops have had genes added, removed or modified.


2. List 2 arguments FOR the growing of GM crops

• Genetically modified food potentially means less pesticide and herbicide.
• Genetically modified food is one of the best hopes for feeding a rapidly expanding world population.

3. List 2 arguments AGAINST the growing of GM crops.

• Genetically modified food is believed to present a potential health risk.
• Genetically modified food may have small farmers be indentured to large farms.

*Read some of the reader’s responses.



Engineer a Crop

4. Practice this simulation until you get the largest ears of corn. How many times did it take you?

Fourteen.

What’s for Dinner?

*Click on the foods on the table to see what research is being done to bioenginner the foods.

5. List two foods and desribe how they are being modified.

Corn is being modified to have "altered oil profiles, amino-acid compositions, seed color, starch content, and ability to tolerate drought."

Cotton is being modified to have altered fiber quality that is also moth resistant and drought tolerant.


Viewpoints

*Read the article titled “Is GM Food Sufficiently Regulated in the US?”

Do you think food should be labeled if it has been genetically modified? Why or Why not?

There doesn't seem to be any serious reason to not label genetically modified food, besides consumers rejecting the food solely on the basis of being modified, rather than for any known health risks (which is pretty absurd, but apparently this happens often).  So, if consumers are responsible enough to not reject a product solely based on being modified, for the sake of "transparent" government and science, genetically modified food should be labeled in the U.S.