Consolidation, GMO and food security: what’s the connection?
Citation
Le Hoa Tan, Bahram Samanfar, Elroy Cober: Consolidation, GMO and food security: what’s the connection? Germination, 2019, March edition.
Résumé en langage clair
According to the Food and Agriculture (FAO) of the United Nations, hunger is on the rise from
804 million people being malnourished in 2016 to 821 million people in 2017 [5]. Research is
quickly moving towards genetically modified organisms (GMO), regenerative agriculture, and
other proteins that are more sustainable than the current livestock we grow today. When it
comes to GMO, it has the potential to increase the food yield that can sustain the growing
world’s population. Compared to traditional breeding, GMO are much faster to develop. It can
be done with fewer resources and provide bigger and more nutritious selections of the original
counterparts. As of today, no other option is as impactful as GMO, as we try to stay ahead of
pests, diseases, constant extreme weather change and depleting resources used to grow crops
while still achieving the high yield and nutrition required. GMO has taken a hold of a large
portion of our current food supply, but most people are unaware. An estimated 75% of
processed foods contain genetically modified ingredients [6]. Genetically modified soybeans
account for 94% of cultivated soybeans in the USA in 2014, and Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt)
resistant corn now dominates the farmlands at 82% [7]. Still, there is fear and uncertainties
surrounding this topic.
Résumé
The Green Revolution occurred between the 1950s and 1960s and significantly increased
agricultural production worldwide. This revolution was the result of research and
development initiatives pushed by Norman Borlaug to address the world’s food shortage crisis,
and included the development of high-yielding varieties of cereal grains with dwarfing genes, chemical fertilizers, new cultivation methods and pesticides. The most prominent high-yield variety of grains developed was the IR8 rice. This is a semi-dwarf rice that significantly improved yield simply by its architecture. The taller varieties are top heavy resulting in lodging where the plants fall over and affect huge yield loss. Unfortunately, the Green Revolution was not sufficient and was limited by many factors with a major one being: unstoppable population growth. Additionally, the intensification of agriculture was established in many areas that were in favourable regions and the marginal production lands were neglected which continued to persist in poverty and food insecurity. As a result, the revolution enjoyed a temporary success, and the problem is now bigger than ever.