Stance on GMOs/Crop yield

 In our class Food, we’ve been going over all types of topics that were in the realm of food. We discussed things like punnett squares, substitution and nutrients. We recently went to a farmers market and talked with some of the vendors there.While it was hard to hear at times because I was online, I still enjoyed hearing about the farmers and seeing the different products they brought. We were then tasked with writing a position paper about GMOs. We were also tasked with finding the yield of a crop in a country. 

For the crop I chose wheat, and for the country I chose Morocco. To get the data, I used the website FAOSTAT and found data on Morocco’s wheat yield all the way from 1961 to 2019. I then downloaded and pasted the info onto a google spreadsheet, where I then graphed it and got an equation for it. The equation is 183x + 7196. I then predicted the possible wheat yield in 2030. I first did 2030 - 1961, which got me 69. This is the difference of years I will use to try and calculate the yield. I then placed that 69 into the x, which got me 183 * 69 + 7196. I then did 183 * 69, getting me 12,627. I then added 7196 to get 19,823. So the estimated yield in 2030 is 19,823.

Now onto my stance about GMOs. I am personally against them. This is because of the possibility of allergic reactions in the human body and the risks they pose to the environment at large. 

My first reason is allergic reactions. Many GMOs add proteins not already present in the food. This can cause a bit of a problem because people will not more than likely not know. Because of this, some people might not be able to eat certain foods or will have to risk an allergic reaction. 

My second reason is the risks they pose to the environment. With pesticides like Roundup being linked to various diseases, it’s not impossible to say that GMOs are dangerous to the environment. Not only that, but monocultures are very dangerous and can pose a threat if left alone.

Now, some people will say that GMOs are cheaper and easier to produce, but even then, why sacrifice land and people’s health for cheaper products? Even if it is cheaper, leaving things like health and the environment behind isn’t something we should aim for. 

In all, I do not find GMOs to be that good. They pose health risks and environmental ones, making them less favorable in my eyes. Even if they are cheaper, the risks they have do not sway me to think otherwise.