Many experts and policymakers believe that genetically modified organisms, or GMOs, are critical for the future of human food and animal feed. However, GMOs are not without controversy (1), and concerns remain about the potential long-term risks to human, animal and environmental health and safety and many countries prohibit GMO imports.
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Climate Change and Population Growth as a Driver of GMO
Genetically modified crops are intended to produce plants that are better equipped to deal with issues like insect and weed infestations and achieve better drought resistance. GMO crops include corn, soybean, canola, sugar beet, and their by-products such as granulated sugar, cornstarch, corn oil, corn syrup, soybean oil, and canola oil. More recently, scientists have achieved between 3 – 10% yield growth in corn by changing a gene that controls plant growth. However, while GM crops appear as a key solution to future food needs, their impact on human health and safety, as well as the environment's well-being, remains a controversial topic (2).
The Evolving Debate: Gene Editing Versus GMOs
Unlike in Europe, gene editing in the United States is not subject to the same regulatory framework as GMOs. The biotech industry is adamant that a naturally occurring process should not be classified as a GMO. A GMO is when a foreign gene is inserted into the crop, whereas gene editing is when the crop's own DNA is 'edited.
Regulatory Oversight
According to the European Commission, 19 of the EU’s 27 member states have either partially or fully banned GMO’s (3). Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, and Slovenia have all chosen a total ban. Other countries that prohibit GMO’s include Turkey and Saudi Arabia while only 4 of the 47 African countries allow GMO crops (4). Notably, recent research (5) found that the risk of detecting non-compliant food and feed in the European Union is relatively high, and that testing frequency should be increased.
The regulatory oversight for GMO can be quite complex and must ensure close coordination across government agencies.
Organic and GMO Fraud
In 2018, a Missouri farmer and his Nebraska suppliers pleaded guilty to a massive organic grain fraud estimated at US$ 140 million (6). The ringleaders’ company was accused of defrauding his business customers and selling approximately 7% of all organic corn in the United States in 2016. The scam revealed insufficient regulatory oversight and poor governance within the organic sector itself. These factors were exacerbated by an organic certification and auditing firm that claimed they were misled for a decade. While opportunists will always find a way to game a system, focused analytical science approaches can raise the barriers and make detection easier.
Consumer Choice
In addition to label-based claims such as USDA Organic, which prohibits the use of GMO ingredients, consumers increasingly place their trust in the NON-GMO Project Verified label. According to a recent New York Times (7) article, the certified organic or non-GMO market has grown 70-fold since 2010. Bad actors in the food chain will try to take advantage of this massive market growth by making false claims about organic products.
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References
- Are G.M.O. Foods Safe? New York Times (2018) https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/23/well/eat/are-gmo-foods-safe.html
- Genetically Modified Foods: Breeding Uncertainty https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1280366/
- Several European countries move to rule out GMOs https://ec.europa.eu/environment/europeangreencapital/countriesruleoutgmos/
- Where are GMO’s banned? https://gmowatch.com/where-are-gmos-banned/
- Areal, F.J., and Riesgo, L. EU Inspections of GM Content in Food and Feed: Are They Effective?. Agriculture 2021, 11, 842, https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture11090842
- Missouri charmer led double life, masterminded one of the biggest frauds in farm history https://www.kansascity.com/news/local/crime/article239079858.html
- Learning to love G.M.O.s https://www.nytimes.com/2021/07/20/magazine/gmos.html