There are many ways you can think about the food you eat: its nutritional value, the number of calories, the aesthetics of how it's served, the advertising that convinced you to select that particular food, the route it took from seed to your plate. Some of these issues may affect your health, others may not. One food issue that is becoming a hot topic of discussion across the U.S. is genetically modified foods: are they a solution or a problem?

Genetically modified (GM) food is food that contains ingredients that have had their genetic structure modified in order for the crops to grow faster, to be bigger, or to be more resistant to disease or pests while they grow. The European Union countries have been concerned about GM foods for years. (See the Teaching the News article, "Europe is Concerned about GM 'Frankenstein' Food.") In the United States, even though 76 million acres of land are already planted with genetically modified crops, the subject is just now becoming one of public debate.

Many of the genetically modified crops grown in the U.S. have been altered to produce their own toxins against pests so that farmers do not need to spray the crops with pesticides. Critics question whether these toxins might also harm beneficial insects, and whether they may pose unknown dangers to humans who eat the resulting food products. Farmers claim that the chemical pesticides they use on conventional crops pose a greater risk to both beneficial insects and humans than do GM foods.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) currently requires testing how genetically modified crops affect four beneficial insects: ladybird beetles, wasps, honeybees, and green lacewing. An EPA advisory panel has recommended that testing be broadened to include additional species. This is the first in a series of proposed changes that would tighten the regulatory process on GM foods.

Another concern about GM foods is that the new proteins added during genetic engineering could trigger serious new food allergies. People who know that they are allergic to certain foods learn to avoid them; however, they may unknowingly be exposed to an allergen by eating a food that was genetically altered.

• Read more about the risks of GM foods in the CNN article: "Experts debate safety of genetically engineered foods."

The U.S. Department of Agriculture first proposed national guidelines for labeling and marketing organic foods in 1997. The guidelines would have enabled classification as "organic" for food grown from genetically modified seeds, if it met other criteria. Foods treated by disease-killing irradiation or fertilized with processed sewage sludge would also have qualified. Critics swamped the Department of Agriculture with protests, and the newly-revised guidelines have disqualified these three categories from being labeled as organic.

• Read more about labeling of organic foods in the CNN article: "Biotech foods not 'organic' under new rules."

Learn about the Problem

Learn how scientists modify seeds genetically in the activity: Biology Gateways: Genetic Engineering.

Think about the Problem

Many of the issues related to GM foods offer trade-offs, and it's not always clear which option is better or worse. Consider your stand on the following issues:

• Conventional pesticides are bad for human health and the environment. Some GM foods produce natural toxins. These toxins may be healthier for humans and the environment, but they may also pose unknown risks. Should GM foods be banned because of these unknown risks?
  
  
• Some foods are widely available in altered form so that people with allergies can safely eat them, e.g., milk that is altered to reduce lactose levels. GM foods may introduce new food allergies. If foods could be genetically engineered to remove allergy-triggering characteristics, should it be permitted?

One of the most publicized examples of GM foods already widespread in America is milk from cows who were given recombinant bovine growth hormone (rBGH). When this genetically engineered copy of a naturally occurring hormone is injected into dairy cows, their milk production increases by as much as 10-15%. The Food and Drug Administration approved use of rBGH in 1993. Read about ice cream maker Ben & Jerry's stand against rBGH products, and then write a position statement about your conviction to (1) eat dairy products with rBGH; (2) try to avoid dairy products with rBGH; (3) actively look for products marked "rBGH free" and even pay more for them.

The American Dietetic Association says, "Biotechnology techniques have the potential to be useful in enhancing the quality, nutritional value, and variety of food available for human consumption and in increasing the efficiency of food production, food processing, food distribution, and waste management." How can average citizens inform themselves in order to evaluate such statements?

For the Teacher: Extending the Problem

• Students can read more about both sides of the issues at the following two sites:
  
  
  • Supports GM agriculture: Biotechnology Industry Organization
    
    
  • Opposes GM agriculture: The Union of Concerned Scientists
  
  
  
• The FDA will likely require food labels to indicate that a food item contains genetically modified ingredients. Today's food labels already contain so much information that reading them requires a degree in nutrition and a calculator in hand! Have your students bring in packages of different types of food and discuss the information provided on the labels. You can prepare math exercises based on the nutritional information given (e.g., if the food item contains 300 mg sodium per 100 grams, how much sodium would you ingest if you ate the entire package?). For information about food labeling in general, see the FDA's Food Labeling and Nutrition section.
  
  
• One of the claims in favor of GM food is that it is hardy and can be enhanced nutritionally in order to help feed the world's hungry populations. Your students may or may not accept this argument. But there is something that can help the world's hungry now: The Hunger Site. This Web site was founded in 1999 to use the Internet to help curb world hunger. For each person that visits the site and clicks the "Donate Free Food" button (limited to one click per day), sponsors donate 1/4 cup of food each. The donations are distributed by the U.N. World Food Program. Have students bookmark the site and make it a point to donate food every day.
  
  
• Students who want to read more about the new national standards for organic agricultural products can find information at the USDA National Organic Program site.
  
  
• Listen to an Environmental News Network radio broadcast about why concern over GM foods is more widespread in Europe than in the United States. (Requires RealPlayer.)