GMO foods have a huge potential to make food cheaper to produce and more nutritious.
The most common GMO foods have at least one gene added to them that makes the plant resistant to pest. An herbicide makes the farmers bale to grow their crops with much less intensive labour and at the same time keep the plants healthy.
- Crops (e.g. BT corn, soy beans, potato, sugarcane) can be genetically modified to become herbicide-tolerant, drought-resistant, virus-resistant or insect-resistant, amongst other things. When farmers plant such GM crops, crop yield naturally increases due to the decreased susceptibility to natural elements and pests/ viruses,
Other GMO foods can make the crops more resistant to drought, disease or insects. This might enable crops to be grown in unfavourable areas and or with longer growing seasons. This is a big advantage for thirsty crops like tomatoes or rice.
Most of the concern surrounding GMO’s relates to their potential for negative effects on the environment and human health. Because GMO’s that could directly effect human health are primarily products that can enter the human food supply, this website focuses on genetically modified food.