Genetically
modified foods, also known as transgenic foods, are the kind of nourishment which
composition has been altered by adding some element provided by the genes transferred
from another organism; this helps not only to prevent disasters caused by drought
or plagues, but also to resist against herbicides. Furthermore, this genetic
manipulation enables an increase in production—in both harvests and aliments
for livestock—and durability, which means that it is possible for more people
to obtain their provisions.
However,
many of us are aware about the controversy that transgenic foods have caused
even from their beginning; production may have increased, yet costs have as
well. In addition, these transformed products are the main cause of ecological
disasters such as the death of numerous pollinators, resistance to antibiotics
or secretion of toxic waste.
According
to a research conducted by the French scientist Gilles Eric Séralini,
genetically manipulated food is not only potentially harmful for humans or
insects, but it also is for animals such as rats; in the University of Caen, an
experiment was being held with these little creatures who turned out to develop
shocking tumours which had a size similar to a ping-pong ball.
These
laboratory rats had been fed their whole life with genetically altered corn
from Monsanto (an American agricultural biotechnology industry) which grew from
NK603, a variety of seeds that is resistant to herbicides such as “Roundup”—Monsanto’s
own product. Unlike the lamentably diseased group, the rats that were fed with
their usual diet lived longer.
Given
this concrete—and recent—state of affairs, do you still think that transgenic
foods should stay in the market? Rats were the first grievous victims; what
comes next? We cannot even trust in what we eat
nowadays.
