ethicalness of GMO's Flashcards
Examples of ways in which genetic modification could make crops more useful
. Improve resistance to pests
. Improve resistance to pathogens
. Improve resistance to herbicides
. Remove allergens from crops that currently contain them
. Enable crops to resist cold or drought
. Produce salt tolerant crops
. Improve storage time
. Enable plants to produce pharmaceutical substances eg edible vaccines
. Enhance the production of vitamins and anti-cancer substances by plants
For GMO’s
. None has found any reason to consider GM technology as unacceptable in principle.
. All technologies if handled properly benefit humankind. It is unethical to deny the exploration of the potential of such beneficial technologies
For GMO’s
. GM offers exciting opportunities for a more sustainable future, hope of alleviating hunger around the globe, and a way of coping with the projected major increase of the world’s population.
. We have an obligation to evaluate all avenues that may achieve these goals.
For GMO’s
. GM crops provide an opportunity for increasing food supply to malnourished people.
. Two-thirds of the farmers currently growing GM crops live in resource-poor countries, including those in Africa.
Against GMO’s
. Humans have always ‘tampered’ with nature – but GM represents a fundamental change in the way we deal with nature.
. Some people believe that GM is unethical. Food containing GM material must be labelled so that these people can avoid GM if they wish.
Against GMO’s
.The unknowns surrounding GM and the risks that have not yet been fully understood ,we may be leaving a worrying legacy for the future.
. We could be posing major environmental, socio-economic and even health problems for future generations.
. There is no strong evidence that GM offers a more sustainable future.
Against GMO’s
. Africa is being used as a dumping ground for GM foods.
. The people who benefit are not the poor but the biotechnology companies and the seed distributors.
