GM food - Good or bad? Media's influence on public opinion

[Ben K]

Hey all I'm sure you guys would be really awesome an answer this quick survey for me, right? It's for my university dissertation...

 

Just give the best answer you can!

 

And I apologise if I've posted this in the wrong thread. It's sort of an ethical dilemma...

 

Thanks.

 

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/Z2MS6N9

[jeskill]

Hi Ben,

 

Can I make a suggestion? Given that there are many reasons why people prefer organic to GM food, you might want to ask a question that gets at that. Your questions seem to suggest that the only aspect of GM foods which is ethical or unethical is the scientific technique used to create them. But that's actually not why many detractors, including myself, think GM foods are unethical. I have no problem with genetic modificiation, per se. However, I do think that the current crop of GM foods are unsustainable from an economic and ecological perspective. I'm concerned about the manner in which large corporations make it difficult for small peasant farmers to save seeds or buy local varieties. I'm concerned with the legal and ethical ramifications of "escaped" GM seeds given that there are already plenty of examples of Monsanto destroying the livelihoods of small farmers in order to protect their patent. There are also potential ethical issues surrounding the ecological ramifications of planting monocultures of GM crops, most of which either require one herbicide or are infused with one pesticide. This method of agriculture increases the likelihood of super-weeds developing and can actually lead to more -- not less -- toxic herbicides being used.

[Ben K]

Hello,

 

Thanks for the response, Jeskill. I should probably have explained that I'm a journalism student, therefore my focus is specifically on the non-scientific, misinterpreted and often falsified account given by journalists when they report on what GM food is and how it is produced. Given news media predominantly report that that GM food can cause serious health risks for any who consume it and that, somehow, altering the genetic structure of an organism in order to allow it to grow in a less constricted environment is an act against nature (Coining the phrase "Frankenstein Food"), this is why my questions have not considered the other ethical dilemmas behind GM food. However, you raise some very good points, so I will certainly include them in my study work around this subject.

 

Hi Ben,

 

Can I make a suggestion? Given that there are many reasons why people prefer organic to GM food, you might want to ask a question that gets at that. Your questions seem to suggest that the only aspect of GM foods which is ethical or unethical is the scientific technique used to create them. But that's actually not why many detractors, including myself, think GM foods are unethical. I have no problem with genetic modificiation, per se. However, I do think that the current crop of GM foods are unsustainable from an economic and ecological perspective. I'm concerned about the manner in which large corporations make it difficult for small peasant farmers to save seeds or buy local varieties. I'm concerned with the legal and ethical ramifications of "escaped" GM seeds given that there are already plenty of examples of Monsanto destroying the livelihoods of small farmers in order to protect their patent. There are also potential ethical issues surrounding the ecological ramifications of planting monocultures of GM crops, most of which either require one herbicide or are infused with one pesticide. This method of agriculture increases the likelihood of super-weeds developing and can actually lead to more -- not less -- toxic herbicides being used.