Sunday, May 20, 2018

GMO...Are you confident in your knowledge?


Image result for GMO crop picturesWhat comes too your mind when you hear the term GMO? Do you feel like you have a solid understand or are there somethings that make you nervous? I know for me, I don't get uptight about GMOs but I do have my own set of questions. What has caused such an uproar about GMO's? Is there a reason to be nervous about GM crops? One that I would like to focus on for the next few blog posts is how the public view of GMO's effects a farmers ability to produce their crops. I would like to focus specifically on the crop of corn and wheat since both of them are the base of a lot of our foods now but before we go too far I would like to look at where GMO crops came from. 
GMO's began over 10,000 years ago when prehistoric farmers used natural selection to produce the most productive crops in order to increase yield and production. It wasn't until the middle of the 1900's that scientist looked closer at DNA strands and found the double helix. It wasn't until 1977 that scientist found that they could change these DNA strands. A DNA molecule called plasmid began to enter the nucleus and produce a tumor. Scientist developed a DNA molecule by splicing a double helix that was resistant to plasmid and the world of genetically modified organism began with the intent to produce food that would be more productive and insect resistant. (GMOHistory)
While this is a quick historic over view of Genetically Modified Organisms from my research there was one thing that I wanted my readers too keep in mind while we look at Genetically Modified Organisms. The farmers and engineers that produce genetically modified organisms eat the same food that the general public eats. They wouldn't put something that would be harmful in their own bodies so we can trust they wouldn't put something in the market that would be harmful too us. There is a lot of research and work that goes into produce genetically modified organisms. They are simply trying to find a way to feed an ever growing world on less of our valuable resources like land and water. (GMOsUnderstood)


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