GMO's

What are some popular traits that are being engineered ?

-Herbicide tolerance -insect resistance -"Stacked traits" (combination of both)

California Proposition 37 ( 2012)

If passed, would require food companies to label food products that are genetically modified, cannot label them as "natural" Some exceptions: foods that were served for immediate consumption, alcoholic beverages, processed with little genetic modification Did not pass with only 48.6% of votes

Issues with Determining Direct effects

Limited publicly available studied on effects of GMOs GMOs are widely distributed so it is difficult to determine what is caused by GMOs directly in humans

Popular Genentically modified crops and percentages

Soy beans 81% cotton 81% Maize 35% Canola 30%

FDA's Stance on GMO labeling

"FDA has no basis for concluding that bioengineered foods differ from other foods in any meaningful or uniform way, or that, as a class, foods developed by the new techniques present any different or greater safety concern than foods developed by traditional plant breeding" - FDA Draft: Guidance for Industry

What are the benefits of genetic engineering ?

-Enhance quality and taste -Increase nutrients -Improve resistance to pest and disease -Conservation of natural resources (less water and energy to process).

Vermont Signs labeling into GMO into Law

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How are GMO's made

A gene from another organism is inserted into the crop of interest Refer back to Slide 15

Campaign Spending

Both sides spent around $55 million dollars total but the oppositions sent almost 5 times as much as the support

Top 10 GM foods ?

corn soy cottonseed papaya Rice Canola Potatoes Tomatoes Dairy products peas

Pros of GMO's : A consumers perspective

enhanced nutrient composition medical benefits the world's growing population production of foods with better flavor that expire less quickly

Some GMO's may have increased nutrient composition

●"Anti-nutrients" are substances that block essential metabolic pathways, particularly in digestion ●GM soy has increased glucosinolate, which may lead to goiter

Safety Assessment for GMO's

(a) direct health effects (toxicity), (b) tendencies to provoke allergic reaction (allergenicity); (c) specific components thought to have nutritional or toxic properties (d) the stability of the inserted gene; (e) nutritional effects associated with genetic modification (f) any unintended effects which could result from the gene insertion.

Is organic always GMO free?

-In 2008, the USDA was putting 15 out of 30 federally accredited organic certifiers they audited on probation, allowing them 12 months to make correction or lose their accreditation. -At the heart of the audit for several certifiers were imported foods and ingredients from other countries including China. -Certified organic ginger was found to be contaminated with levels of a pesticide called "aldicarb" - Sold under the "365" label at Whole Foods Market. -Inadequate funding for enforcement, including for organic imports from countries like China, guarantees it will be easy for unscrupulous farmers to cheat.

History of GMO

1980 The U.S. Supreme Court in Diamond v. Chakrabarty rules that genetically altered life forms can be patented. The decision allows the Exxon Oil Company to patent an oil-eating microorganism. 1982 The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approves the first genetically engineered drug, Genentech's Humulin, a form of human insulin produced by bacteria. This is the first consumer product developed through modern bioengineering. 1986 The first field tests of genetically engineered plants (tobacco) are conducted in Belgium. 1987 The first field tests of genetically engineered crops (tobacco and tomato) are conducted in the United States. 1992 •The FDA declares that genetically engineered foods are "not inherently dangerous" and do not require special regulation. •Calgene's Flavr Savr tomato, is approved for commercial production by the US Department of Agriculture. 1994 •The European Union's first genetically engineered crop, tobacco, is approved and labeled in France. 1996 •A total of 35 approvals had been granted to commercially grow transgenic crops. 2000's As of 2004, genetically modified crops were being grown by 8.25 million farmers in 17 countries (James, 2004). Soybeans , maize , cotton , and canola are 4 genetically modified crops that dominate biotech agriculture.

Health Effects of GMO's

According to the World Health organization GM foods currently available on the international market have passed risk assessments and are not likely to present risks for human health. In addition, no effects on human health have been shown as a result of the consumption of such foods by the general population in the countries where they have been approved." According to the American Association for Advancement of Science ( AAAS ) "crop improvement by the modern molecular techniques of biotechnology is safe."

What are GMO's Used for?

Crops and plants -Blue rose -Algea / Duckweed Biopharmaceuticals -resistance to herbicides and pest -increase nutritional value Mammals -research for human diseases -Pets ( glow in the dark cats) (hypoallergernic) Enhanced food quality ( enviropig) -Improve animal health Fish -Glofish ( zebra fish ) -glow depending on the environmental pollutant Aqua Advantage salmon -fish matures in half the time and grows twice as much

Country with GMO food Labeling Law

Europe

Current Issues and awareness programs

Examples of Anti- Gmo propaganda Europe A new wave of awareness programs via social media. ( facebook , twitter, etc... )

Pros of Gmo's : A Farmers Perspective

Farmers choose to adopt the use of GM foods for ease of operation and time savings Reduced costs for food production Resistant to pests and disease Increased crop yields

Genetic Engineering

Genetic Engineering is the deliberate , controlled manipulation of the genes in an organism through the use of biotechnological procedures.

What is a GMO ?

Genetically modified (GM) foods are foods derived from organisms whose genetic material (DNA) has been modified in a way that does not occur naturally, e.g. through the introduction of a gene from a different organism. Currently available GM foods stem mostly from plants, but in the future, foods derived from GM microorganisms or GM animals are likely to be introduced on the market ( WHO, 2014).

GMO labeling in the European Union

The labeling of GMOs in the EU stemmed from historical differences, political party influences, and an underdeveloped biotech industry. ●Austria, Greece, Poland and Switzerland are GMO-free (are they?) ●Russia and Peru have banned the import of GMOs, for fear of the unknown

Current Public Opinion of GMO's:

•A clear negative stigma is attached to GMOs •Apart from certain medical applications, what actual right do we have to experiment, Frankenstein-like, with the very stuff of life?" - Prince Charles Windsor, heir to the British throne (Windsor, 1998) •Millions of ordinary people are very worried about genetically modified foods and I am one of them...with genetically modified foods I believe we have reached the thin edge of the wedge, we are messing with the building blocks of life and it's scary - Malcolm Walker, Chairman and Chief Executive of Iceland Foods •GMOs are a form of tinkering with the very essence of the life force, so it lends itself all sorts of ominious metaphors - Michael Pollan, UC Berkeley School of Journalism Professor

Overuse of Roundup ready leads to Resistance

●A study at Purdue University found that reliance on Roundup, an herbicide, made by Monsanto leads to weakening of its effectiveness against weeds.

Adverse Effects of GMO's

●Allergic Reactions: o Scientific study showed people with Brazil nut allergies got reactions to modified soybeans because it had a gene inserted from the Brazil nut product not released into the market o UK study showed rise in soy allergies since modified soy was introduced skin prick test showed allergies not modified soy but not natural. BT corn Workers handling Bt Corn in India developed skin and respiratory problems and have to take antihistamines almost daily Could also be due to pollution highly correlational Antibiotic Resistance: Research has shown that the barriers for this gene to "jump out", spread, and incorporate are very low. Spread of resistance due to overuse of antibiotics are higher Pesticide Resistance Many crops have been engineered to be pesticide resistant or "Round Up Ready" can be sprayed with a strong Roundup pesticide and not be killed active ingredient is glyphosphate Fear that glyphosphate is in the food Glyphosphate and Autism Stephanie Seneff at MIT did a study on the effects of glyphosphate Saw a correlation of glyphosphate use with autism Experimentally Determined effects Rats fed GM potatoes had smaller livers, hearts, testicles, brains, and had damaged immune systems, more vulnerable to infection and disease stomach lining of rats fed with GMO potatoes showed excessive cell growth

Cons of Gmo's : A Farmers Perspective

●Altering the genetic makeup of an organism can have unforeseen consequences ●Monopolization of seed industry by a few biotech firm giants (i.e. Monsanto) ●Prolonged use of GM seeds can lead to an increased use of herbicides

Transgenic Salmon in Massachusetts almost approved

●Genetically engineered Salmon that grow twice as fast as normal Salmon are created by over expressinga growth hormone gene.

GMO's can create increased crop yields

●Genetically modified potatoes can be engineered to have a gene from a cold water fish (that is, a gene from the fish is inserted into the potato's genome) so that the potatoes become resistant to cold temperatures and harsh weather conditions.

Golden Rice Debate

●Infusion of beta-carotene, a precursor to Vitamin A, is inserted into rice to help prevent blindness into rice to help prevent blindness, a prevalent issue in third world countries.

Cons of Gmos: A consumers perspective

●Possible health consequences later in life (allergies, toxins, new diseases) ●Alteration of nutritional content of the foods (increase in "antinutrients") ●Insertion of antibiotic resistance genes may render some antibiotics ineffective

"Flavr Savr" Tomato

●This was the first genetically engineered crop to be commercialized ●Produced tomatoes that would remain firm longer ●Ironically, were less flavorful than normal tomatoes

Why are people so afraid ?

●When you google GMO, the first thing that comes up is the Non-GMO Project ●People have a strong desire to ban GMOs without being informed of its use and production

Starlink Corn Recall

●recall of over 300 products that contained genetically modified corn that was unsafe for human consumption ○most publicized was the recall of Taco Bell taco shells ●reported by Genetically Engineered Food Alert, critical of the FDA for not doing its job test food in a lab called Genetic ID ●Blood was sampled from the people who ate the contaminated corn and it was shown that there was a possible increase in sensitivity to the Bt protein Later incidents with Starlink: ○ food aid was sent to Latin American countries from the US and UN that contained Starlink corn; they rejected the aid (2005)