7- Eucalyptus?

Dear FDA:

ArborGen Co. has created a pitch pertaining to planting genetically modified eucalyptus at FGCU. The seeds for this project are genetically modified. The company is testing the ability to grow eucalyptus that is cold tolerant. Below is how we feel about this project. Please get back to us with a counter.

Before I go more in depth about the pros and cons of genetically modified crops, let me first give a definition of what genetically modified crops are.

Genetically modified crops (often abbreviated as GMOs) are simply crops, whose genetical material has been modified.  There are two ways to do this:

1. Traditional selection and breeding (much like breeding animals),
2. Modern, scientific modification of the crops.

Intrinsic Concerns:

Disadvantages of GMOs

• Harm to other organisms. For example genes and their effect included in a crop may turn out to be poisonous to insects (monarch butterfly poisoned by GMO corns).

Advantages of GMOs

• More informed customers, because they need to make more informed decisions in regard to nutrition, agriculture and science.

• Taste of GMOs are not as good or "natural".

• Less pesticide is needed to be used due to insect pest resistant plants.

• Cross-pollination with traditional, organic plants. Cross pollination can occur at quite large distances. New genes may also be included in the offspring of the traditional, organic crops miles away. This makes it difficult to distinguish which crop field is organic, and which is not, posing a problem to the proper labeling of non-GMO food products.

• More economically friendly as pesticides do not go into the air, soil, and water (especially freshwater supplies). Their production hazards to the environment also decreases.

• Decrease in costs of growing and farming, due to the reduced use of pesticides.

• Spread of new, more resistant "super weeds

• Higher crop yields.

• Spread of new, more resistant "super pests".

• Farmers have more income, which they could spend on such things as, for example, the education of their children.

• Major trading countries that obtain most of the benefit from the production and trade of genetically modified crops. This might cause more geopolitical conflicts.

• Less deforestation needed to feed the worlds growing population (UN projections say that the world population will reach 8.15 billion compared to 6.18 billion in year 2000). This decreases carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, which in turn slows global warming.

• New trade, tariff and quota issues may arise between countries, regions.

• Decrease in food prices due to lower costs and higher yield. As people in poor countries spend over half of their income on food alone, lower food prices mean an automatic reduction of poverty.

• Critics say GMOs may cause health problems.

• Less starvation in the world due to decreased food prices.

• More nutritious. This has been proven and tested many times.

• As the USA is the biggest producer of GMO crops, their exports may rouse more anti-American feeling, due to “Americanization” worldwide.
• Possible damages to the environment.

• Rigorous testing of ALL GMO crops and products. This makes GMOs much safer than organic (the traditional) crops.

• Possible greed of GMO manufacturing firms.
• Unharmonized test-, and safety standards around the world.

• ALL GMOs that are sold in the market, due to the strict tests. If the slightest chance of health hazard, a GMO is NOT allowed to enter the markets.

• GMOs are made because it is possible to make them, not because consumers feel their need.

• Strict and very complex standards that GMOs have to fully meet.

• More thoroughly understood crops due to the rigorous testing.

• Possible creation of new kinds of weapons; genetic food and beverage weapons.

• Scientific development of agriculture, health and related sciences due to the better understanding of the products. For example, the development of new medicines.

• Additional costs of labeling whether products are GMOs or not. This might increase costs of foods.

• Creation of “super foods” due to better knowledge. Super foods are types of food that are cheap to produce, grow fast in large quantities, highly nutritious.

• Widening corporate size gaps between food producing giants and smaller ones. This might cause a consolidation in the market: fewer competitors increase the risk of oligopolies, which might increase food prices.
• Larger companies might have more political power. They might be able to influence safety and health standards (example: less stringent regulations, standards and requirements).

• New products. For examples, scientist identified the gene responsible for caffeine in coffee beans; by excluding this gene, decaffeinated coffee beans can be grown naturally.

• Reduction of sicknesses and illnesses, as GMO crops are more nutritious. Vitamins and minerals can be provided to children and to people, where they were inaccessible before (i.e.: the world’s poorest and/or most secluded areas).

• Activists’ increased ability to boycott and influence food market, food retailing, and food prices.
• Unforeseen risks and dangers due to the complexity of nature.

• Allergies may become more intense, and also, new allergy types may develop.

• Developments of new kinds of crops that can be grown at extreme climates, for example, dry or freezing environments (like deserts). For example, scientist developed a type of tomato that grows in salty soil.

• Reduction of world starvation due to increased production.

• Discrepancies in information flow. GMO producers stress the benefits, but are reluctant to talk about risks and dangers.

• As more crops (plants) can be grown and at more places, this decreases global warming through the increase of oxygen in the environment, decreasing the proportion of carbon dioxide. Two British economists note in a study that GM crops have also made significant contribution to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by over 10 million tonnes. This is equivalent to removing five million cars from the road every year. In effect this means that people would have to choose between growing GMOs and giving up their vehicles.

Extrinsic concerns we have about planting new seeds on our campus: The government will have to be a part of this process in the following ways: Measuring for Safety, Testing, Regulation, International Policy and Labeling. (This will be time consuming).