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Gmos Argumentative Essay

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The 21st century is an age where scientific advances occur every day. Discoveries in technology and healthcare have radically changed the way people live their everyday lives. Genetically modified organisms (GMOs), specifically major crops, are changing the way food is grown and distributed. While GMOs have been around since the 1970’s, they have come to be a hot button topic in more recent years. It is not uncommon to hear about them in the news, read about them in scientific journals, and see them debated and discussed all over the internet. Because there is such an abundance of food in this country (the USA), one can find GMOs almost everywhere, from a cob of corn in the produce aisle to a fast-food quarter pounder. Consequently, if a person is concerned about what food they are putting into their mouth, the topic is GMOs is likely to show up at some point. Growing crops that have been changed on a genetic level to achieve a specific characteristic is now a commonplace practice by many commercial and non-commercial farmers alike. These enhanced species of plants have a variety of advantages over unmodified species. Genetically modified organisms can benefit farmers and consumers because of their increased durability and …show more content…

For example, there is an insect called the European corn borer, which is now prevalent in the U.S. and feeds on more than just corn. It also attacks peppers, potatoes, lima beans, and millet. An article on the University of Minnesota website describes a type of corn has been developed that contains a natural insecticide, called Bt. Bt, the article continues, stands for Bacillus thuringiensis, which is a protein that is released by Bt corn and kills the European corn borer (Witkowski). Having the insecticide naturally residing within the plant reduces the need for insecticide. This built-in pest protection is a definite advantage that GMO crops have over regular species of the same

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