ARTICLE: Understanding the continued opposition to GMOs
The following is part two in a series on the website Devex examing issues surrounding the issue of genetically modified organisms.
The debate over the use of genetically modified organisms, or GMOs, in food production contains many sides and perspectives — all argued passionately by their advocates. With a food-secure future being far from certain, it is a debate that can have far-reaching impacts on the development space.
Large corporations producing genetically modified seeds dominate the debate, with activists questioning their motives and whether they have the ability to achieve social good while making a profit. But the technology to produce GMOs is becoming increasingly cheaper and democratized, opening the door to new plant varieties that are in the hands of the public, not just companies.
Devex is looking at various sides of the GMO debate to understand the continuing concerns and issues of this vital area. In part one of our series, we considered the perspective of the scientific community, which argues that there has been no evidence of GMOs impacting health or the environment and say they are a critical component for creating a food-secure future.
In part two we now examine arguments from those who strongly oppose GMOs in the development sector, and explore why they do not believe the use of GMOs are as inevitable as some scientists believe.
What is the GMO opposition?
Within the development sector, Greenpeace and Fairtrade International are the leading voices opposing GMOs. Greenpeace has been particularly vocal against GMOs, and was singled out in a June 2016 letter signed by 129 Nobel laureates urging the organization to re-examine and abandon their campaign against GMOs.
The arguments of both Greenpeace and Fairtrade against GMOs are similar — the risks that GMOs pose are still unknown, and they may have unforeseeable environmental, social, and health impacts.
“There is widespread public concern about the long-term effects of GMO crops,” Gelkha Buitrago, head of standards at Fairtrade International, explained to Devex. “Contamination of conventional crops and wild plants, potential damage to wildlife, and the uncertain effects on human health when consuming these foods.”
And there are social impacts, the groups argue, especially on the world’s poorest communities.
To read the entire article, please visit the Devex website.
