If the 20th century is known as the century of physics and chemistry, the 21st century will be known as the century of biology. This is because current technology allows scientists to use the basic building blocks of living matter itself, genes, in order to create modified and new forms of living matter “We are in the midst of a great historic transition in the Biotech Age. The ability to isolate, identify and recombine genes is making the gene pool available, for the first time, as the primary raw resource for future economic activity on Earth” (Rifkin, 1998, 1). The ability to do so offers the world and humanity a host of benefits, from the ability to cure diseases to the ability to tailor-make offspring. One of the biggest benefits, according to scientists, is the ability to genetically engineer foodstuffs, particularly agricultural crops like soybeans, wheat, corn and others. Yet, many contend that these genetically engineered foodstuffs are not the savior of humanity they are touted to be by biotech scientists. Many argue the potential hazards of these altered foodstuffs, where both human health and environmental health are concerned, outweigh the benefits. Many argue that we know too little about tampering with the very stuff of life to be able to ensure that these genetically altered agricultural products do not pose a threat to human health and the environment. Despite this debate over the merits of genetically altered foods, hundreds of millions of acres in the U.S. and abroad have been seeded with the products and many currently sit on supermarket shelves. This analysis will discuss some of these new agricultural products that have been genetically altered in order to examine the purported benefits and dangers of their use.
There is no denying that genetically altered foodstuffs offer potential benefits to consumers, farmers, pesticide manufacturers and seed producers. One of the largest agricultural staples ...