July 07, 2014 - Blogs
Food biotechnology advocates frequently claim that GMOs will feed the world. This, however, is an oversimplification that detracts from the technology’s current applications, its limitation and, most of all, its potential.
Most people, from scientists to the general public, understand there is no one-size-fits-all answer to the complicated problem of world hunger. Nutrition deficits are due to unpredictable climate, crop disease or pests, or simply a lack of resources or mechanisms to get food to places where it is needed most.
Biotechnology alone will not feed the world; it can’t. However, it will be part of an integrated plan that will bring welcome relief to many in critical need. That is, once it is finally allowed to realize that potential.
Biotechnology solutions now exist that can provide lifesaving assistance throughout the world. However, misinformation has erected a barrier of fear that has blocked technology from reaching those who need it.
These solutions are real, proven and on-the-edge-of-deployable technologies, and have yet to be realized because there are no funds to validate them for safety and efficacy in application—the next steps before moving them to productive use.
Biofortification is one such solution. You may recall the case of Golden Rice, which was developed to alleviate vitamin A deficiency. Vitamin A deficiency affects 125 million children, and causes as many as 500,000 to go blind annually. Despite its potential, Golden Rice was never adopted.
And this is just one instance of vitamin deficiency—50 percent of the world’s population suffers from symptoms of vitamin deficiency due to a diet lacking diversity and fresh food. However, as was the case with Golden Rice, efforts to correct the deficiencies have yet to come to fruition due to activist intervention.
For a closer look at how biotechnology can, if given the opportunity, feed a hungry world, read the original article, “GMOs, Failing to Feed a Hungry World," in the latest issue of the Boardroom Journal, A World Without Hidden Hunger.
Food biotechnology advocates frequently claim that GMOs will feed the world. This, however, is an oversimplification that detracts from the technology’s current applications, its limitation and, most of all, its potential.
Most people, from scientists to the general public, understand there is no one-size-fits-all answer to the complicated problem of world hunger. Nutrition deficits are due to unpredictable climate, crop disease or pests, or simply a lack of resources or mechanisms to get food to places where it is needed most.
Biotechnology alone will not feed the world; it can’t. However, it will be part of an integrated plan that will bring welcome relief to many in critical need. That is, once it is finally allowed to realize that potential.
Biotechnology solutions now exist that can provide lifesaving assistance throughout the world. However, misinformation has erected a barrier of fear that has blocked technology from reaching those who need it.
These solutions are real, proven and on-the-edge-of-deployable technologies, and have yet to be realized because there are no funds to validate them for safety and efficacy in application—the next steps before moving them to productive use.
Biofortification is one such solution. You may recall the case of Golden Rice, which was developed to alleviate vitamin A deficiency. Vitamin A deficiency affects 125 million children, and causes as many as 500,000 to go blind annually. Despite its potential, Golden Rice was never adopted.
And this is just one instance of vitamin deficiency—50 percent of the world’s population suffers from symptoms of vitamin deficiency due to a diet lacking diversity and fresh food. However, as was the case with Golden Rice, efforts to correct the deficiencies have yet to come to fruition due to activist intervention.
For a closer look at how biotechnology can, if given the opportunity, feed a hungry world, read the original article, “GMOs, Failing to Feed a Hungry World," in the latest issue of the Boardroom Journal, A World Without Hidden Hunger.
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