Bio Ethics Issue on Gmf's

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Genetically Modified Foods If a product contains genetically modified food, should it be labeled? This is an ethical dilemma because people have a preconceived notion that genetically modified foods are not safe. Genetically modifying foods is a newer technology and with that, there is a possibility of the process not working exactly how it is suppose to which makes people hesitant to trust the outcome, as good as it may be. In the United States it is legal for companies to not have a label stating that they use genetically modified foods, for this reason many people feel like companies are trying to disguise that they use GMF's in their products. Many feel like they have the right to know what they are consuming on a daily basis because, with anything, it could be potentially dangerous to their health in the future (1). How does someone genetically modify food? In simple terms, scientists locate and isolate a specific gene that is from a different organism and then add it to the DNA of the organism that is being modified (2). Some problems with GMF's is that they can cause many health concerns such as a raised cholesterol [3], possible toxicity, antibiotic resistance, and even cancer [4]. An issue in the United States is that not many independent studies have been conducted to test the safety of genetically modified foods due to the a law that those techniques are patented [5]. Therefore, it seems too new and untested to be in 70% of the products at local grocery stores [6]. Although GMF's have many potential downfalls, there is no doubt that they help increase crop outcome, limit the use of pesticides, and reduce the price of production [6]. There has been such an increase in the usage of genetically modified foods from the 1990's to now; for example, genetically modified soybeans in 1997 made up around 17% of all the US soybean acreage and as of

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