Genetically Modified Foods

            I have decided that most of you are probably getting bored with my rambling on about food, so what better to talk about this week than something controversial.  Today I will be discussing the pros and cons of genetically modified foods.  My view of genetically modified foods has recently changed after some research into the topic, so I will first discuss why I don’t like it and then discuss why it is inevitable.

            For the most part, I tend to live my life as natural as possible.  I feel as though God created animals for us to hunt, not genetically modify.  On the flip side, I feel that if God didn’t want us to genetically modify animals, we wouldn’t be able to.  I also try to stay away from things like irradiated meat.  I know that from a food science perspective there is no research stating that irradiated meat has any negative side effects, but I feel like my body wasn’t designed to ingest anything that has been treated with radiation.  I am also concerned with what effect that genetically modified foods have on the environment.  While they are “better” for the environment in the short term by eliminating the use of pesticides, I am most concerned about the long term effects.  Genetically modified plants and animals will eventually alter the balance of the ecosystem, and if there is one thing you don’t want to mess with it is Mother Nature.  Despite these serious and possibly harmful effects, genetically modified foods are inevitable.

            It is said that the Earth’s population doubles every fifty years, and that over half of the people that have ever lived are alive today.  At this rate there will be around 14 billion people in the world in the year 2062, and by the year 2112 there will be over 27 billion people on this planet.  There is no way that our current food production systems will be able to handle those numbers, and I don’t see us moving to Mars anytime soon.  If scientists can convince the general population and government that it is absolutely necessary, disease-free animals and plants could take the place of wasted crop space.  Animals could also be engineered to be bigger and produce more meat.  While ideas like these are certainly frowned upon in today’s society, it will eventually have to happen.

            If any of you want to know where to find more information on this topic or want to ask me more in depth questions on why I feel the way I do, please let me know in the comment section.  I hope to hear from all of you!