Some statistics of past GMOs and their aid to the world (2006)
- a total of 252 million acres of GMO crops were planted in 22 countries by over 10 million farmers
- The majority of the crops were insect and herbicide resistant crops such as soybeans, corn, cotton, canola, and alfalfa
· Two crops planted were sweet potatoes that were resistant to a virus that could decimate most of Africa's harvest, and rice altered to produce increased amounts of iron and vitamins to Asian countries to help alleviate malnutrition
· In 2006, mainly industrial nations utilized GMOs, but this is beginning to plateau in these nations, yet continues to grow in poor nations
Some advances GMOs that are close to being solved and used for medicine and food stuffs:
· Bananas to produce human vaccines to Hepatitis B
· Fish with faster growth
· Cows resistant to “Mad Cow disease” (encephalopathy)
· Fruit and nut trees yielding product years in advance
· Plants producing new and cheap plastics
Many of the already recognizable benefits of GMOs
· Crops- enhanced flavor and quality, reduced maturation time, increased yields, improved disease resistance, new products
· Animals- Increased resistance, increased health, increased product
· Environment- eco-friendly bioherbicides and bioinsecticides, conservation of needs (water, energy, etc.), better waste management, more efficient processing
· Society- increased food capacity and security for an expanding global population
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