GM Foods: The "Magic Bullet"

Wow, speaking of incredibly biased readings... Mike Davis has nothing on Miguel Altieri. In his short book, "Genetic Engineering in Agriculture: The Myths, Environmental Risks, and Alternatives," he completely shuts down the idea of genetically modified foods for the time being. Altieri explores the effects of GM crops on the health of people, crops and animals, the welfare of farmers, and the upkeep of thousands of ecosystems, and basically concludes that we'd be better off without GM foods.

Altieri talks about how biotechnology companies are merely making false promises pertaining to the effects of genetically engineered crops. This innovation in technology is NOT a "magic bullet," and cannot reduce our dependence on pesticides, reduce environmental problems, or even solve world hunger. GM foods are NOT "substantially equivalent" to standard crops, and the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) research on these foods is not adequate enough to start stocking our shelves with them. Also, we have plunged into making these genetically modified foods without fully investigating short and long term effects that they will have on us and the world around us. In essence, we are the rats in a giant experiment, testing these foods before its even entirely positive if they are safe. This is not fair to us, and there are many alternatives available - so why even consider genetically engineered foods?

Even more so, Altieri talks about how these technological innovations are profit driven rather than created for the good of mankind and our ecosystems. As a result, we cannot expect GM foods to truly benefit us, or solve problems with foods scarcity in other nations. Altieri states, "The real thrust of the genetic engineering industry is not to make agriculture more productive, but rather to generate profits" (5). I view this take as WAY too cynical - sure, profit is always a consideration in making choices, but that doesn't mean that decisions can't also be made to help others.

I really found this book to be interesting, but I do not agree with Altieri's close-minded attack on GM foods. Sure, he considers both sides of the debate, but writes the benefits off almost immediately. Now that I've read his take, I feel like I should read up on the other side that is pro-GM foods. I agree that more research should be conducted, but GM foods could potentially help us out in so many different ways. I'm sure we could use alternatives, but the idea of a "magic bullet" just seems too good to pass up.