Franken-Corn

Moral and ethical dilemmas are everywhere. They are on television, the radio, podcasts, movies, and so much more. They consume the thoughts of everyone from politicians to plumbers to businessmen, and for good reason. Any issue with no clear answer tends to be polarizing and controversial, inviting a wide variety of opinions from an even wider variety of people. As a result, it is hardly surprising that genetically modified foods, and corn in particular, have garnered so much attention.

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When driving around rural State College, Bellefonte, or virtually any of the region’s communities, it is almost impossible to avoid seeing a field of corn somewhere along the way. Corn is incredibly popular, both among consumers and producers. Demand for corn is exhibited when buying everything from cereal to E85 ethanol gasoline to plant-based drywall. Due to the high demand for corn, it is a relatively lucrative crop for farmers to plant. The result: lots and lots of corn in Centre County fields.

Modern corn, however, isn’t as ethically sound as its forefathers. Consider, for example, the prevalence of genetically modified corn. According to an article featured in the Chicago Tribune this past May, “genetically modified corn, soy and other crops have become such common ingredients in processed foods that even one of the nation’s top organic food retailers says it hasn’t been able to avoid stocking some products that contain them.” Some of the most esteemed brands in healthy eating, such as Kashi and Tofutti, use genetically modified corn in their products because it has become almost inescapable. And if genetically modified corn has found its way into organic products, you can be quite certain that it is exponentially more prevalent in products made by less meticulous companies.

AllergyKids.com

Although crops are generally modified to produce a better tasting, hardier plant, many people remain skeptical of the merits of GMO’s. On the government-sponsored webpage www.ornl.gov, scientists elucidate some of the most common concerns regarding the consumption and production of GMO’s in this country and abroad. For example, it is possible for an altered version of corn to pose human health impacts, including allergens and the transfer of antibiotic resistance markers. Additionally, the genetic modification of a crop can be patented, resulting in the “domination of world food by a few companies.” Without question, this poses very real risks to the people of State College and beyond. Should those few companies decide to increase the price of their seeds, then virtually every product with corn on its list of ingredients will be more expensive. Furthermore, this domination of seed distribution means that there are fewer and fewer varieties of corn in existence. This narrows the diet of the average Centre County citizen, exposing him or her to less genetic variety.

On a conspiratorial level, the site also lists the “increasing dependence on industrialized nations by developing nations, biopiracy, and foreign exploitation of natural resources” as potential side effects of genetic modification. If any of these potential side effects came to pass, the result would likely be the skewing of new genetic advances in favor of the world’s more established, wealthy nations. While this may seem like a non-issue given that the readers of this blog live in one of the world’s wealthiest nations, it is a problem of considerable magnitude in third world nations with underdeveloped resources. On an economic and political level, the world benefits from cooperation because it can lift societies out of poverty, some of which can then purchase goods from other nations while exporting their own. The addition of another prosperous country means that more goods will be produced and more will be consumed. Therefore, exploitation of third world countries serves only to retard global economic development.

So how prevalent are GMO’s? To answer this question, a further examination of the nation as a whole is necessary. According to the aforementioned government website, approximately 53% of the world’s transgenic crops are grown in the United States. Given that 252 million acres of transgenic crops were planted in 22 different countries by 10.3 million farmers in 2006 alone, this is a startling statistic. Additionally, a study conducted by Santa Clara University revealed that as much as 75% of processed foods made in America contain at least some GM ingredients. The study also states that “almost everything that contains soy or corn…has been genetically modified.” To make matters worse, over “40% of the corn grown in the U.S. is genetically modified.”

But it doesn’t end there. It is also possible for genetically modified crops to cross-pollinate with ordinary crops, resulting in the transfer of foreign genes and proteins into the human food chain. These hybrids could easily outperform the varieties lacking the GM traits, resulting in a natural selection of sorts. The corn less resistant to droughts, sharp changes in weather, or pests would be far less likely to survive.

In spite of the promise held by GM corn to feed the mouths of a hungry world, the crop grown in our backyard has a tarnished reputation. For many, the possibility of tastier, healthier corn with a longer shelf life doesn’t outweigh the possibility of a seed oligopoly, increased dependence on industrialized nations by underdeveloped countries, potential human health side effects, or the unintended spread of GMO’s through cross-pollination. And yet, these risks have not tempered the expansion of GM corn into nearly every facet of daily life. Present in everything from protein powder to canned soups to barbecue sauce, corn is an ingredient that cannot be ignored. If an ethical change is to be made for the gastrointestinal benefit of Centre County and beyond, GM corn would be an excellent place to start.

-Ian