A CHANGE FOR THE BETTER?

Date: 2015-10-07; view: 1845.

Can you imagine a day when you will be able to buy a tomato the size of a grapefruit or a strawberry the size of a tennis ball? Believe it or not, that day is much closer than you may think. Nowadays, with so much research being done on Genetically Modified foods, or GM foods, it's very possible that in the very near future our whole way of eating will change.

Research and development into GM foods is not merely concerned with increasing the size of food products. It is also aimed at producing foods which will help fight disease, be resistant to insects and parasites, and boost the medicinal qualitiesalready found in fruits and vegetables. In the US, for example, potatoes have been modified in such a way that they now contain a protein from the Hepatitis B virus. The protein itself is harmless but it helps the immune system recognize the virus as soon as it enters the body. In this way the body can begin fighting the disease before it has had a chance to establish itself. Similar research is being conducted on bananas in the fight against cholera.

Some developments have already had very successful results. For instance, it has been found that by using modified crops as animal feed, the animals are not only healthier, but are far better protected against deadly parasites. Other GM foods help people fight disease and live longer. There is a margarine made from genetically modified corn which helps reduce the risk of heart attack by lowering cholesterol in the blood. Researchers say that very soon they will have developed a potato which requires very little oil during frying and an onion which will help stop the blood from clotting. People who are at risk from heart attacks will benefit from both these developments.

If the advantages of GM foods are so obvious, why is it that so many people in the West, especially in Europe, object to the idea of GM foods? Could it be that many people feel that nature is being interferedwith and believe it is harmful to do so? Or, could it simply be fear? Many people think that GM foods have been insufficientlytested and are unwilling to put their faith in them until evidence shows that they present no health risk.

It must be said, however, that the majority of those who are against GM foods are neither living in countries which suffer from food shortages, nor facing starvation. Many scientists believe that without GM foods, the Third World will never overcome its food problems. At present, over one billion people live on less than one dollar a day. The United Nations hopes that within the next fifteen years this number will be cut in half. They know, however, that this will not happen if food continues to be produced in the conventional manner. Foods produced by traditional farming methods do not last very long and often spoil during transport. Many times, food sent by the West to countries suffering from famine, rots before it reaches its destination. Now, scientists have found ways to preserve foods for much longer. For example, they have developed a preservative made from vitamins and minerals which can keep even cut fruit fresh for up to ten days if refrigerated.

Despite this, there are still people that believe agriculturalresearch should be moving in a different direction. They accept that there is no real proof that GM foods are dangerous, however, they believe that the solutions that GM foods provide are short-term and that it is necessary to find longer-lasting and natural means to solve the world's food problems.

It is well-known that people are resistant to change. It may sound silly now, but in the nineteenth century it was believed that tomatoes were poisonous and in New York people were not allowed to eat them. When a man named Colonel Robert Johnson announced he was going to eat a whole bag of them, two thousand people came to watch what they thought would be his certain death. As we know, Johnson proved them wrong and we now enjoy tomatoes as a delicious part of our diet. Perhaps the same will happen with the negative opinions about GM foods and they too will come to be accepted, even by those who are so actively campaigning against them.