Eradication of hunger across the globe has remained one of the biggest tasks in the twenty-first century. At present, there is a high growth and development of higher technology in managing agricultural lands and higher production of foods both animal and crops; however, millions of people around the world still encounter food insecurity and malnutrition. This challenge however has a tremendous solution in Genetically Modified (GM) crops, especially for increasing both the production and quality of crops. But this ability of GM crops to help combat hunger largely results from the manner in which they are grown.
The Promise of GM Crops
Genetically Modified crops are created to have the kinds of characteristics that may be valuable in improving growth and resistance to pests and diseases, and increase their nutritional value. These desirable characteristics include; resistance to pests and diseases, tolerance to frost and drought, and higher nutrient density. For instance, the Bt cotton and Bt corn have been genetically modified to produce toxicities to specific pests apart from using insecticide. Golden Rice another GM crop contains higher Vitamin A and it targets those societies where rice is the staple food and Vitamin A-deficiency prevalent.
However, potential of GM crops is quite big in meeting the battle against hunger. Through enhancing crop productivity and diminishing the losses due to biotic factors, global food security enhanced by GMO crops. However, crops with more nutrition density aim at tackling Nutrient deficiencies thus enhancing public health.
Sustainable Farming Practices
Much as the benefits of GM crops are huge, the impact of hunger thereon bears clear relationship with the farming systems practised. These risks of GM crops require that sustainable farming practices be employed to the maximum. Such practices include; shifting cultivation, mixed cropping and incorporated control of pests or IPM.
- Crop rotation and intercropping keep soil healthy and free from pests and diseases build up. Rotating the type of crops they grow in a specific piece of land in a particular period help to interfere with the pest’s breeding times as well as improve fertility of the soil. This approach minimizes on the use of chemicals with an added advantage of creating a healthy environment.
- Integrated pest management is a type of pest control derived from different biological, cultural, physical, and chemical procedures. IPM does not allow pest outbreaks to become resistant nor causes harm to the environment through things like spraying broad spectrum pesticides. For GM crops, it can complement the functionality by hindering the pest ability to develop resistance towards other modifications done genetically.
Various socioeconomic factors
The practice of GM crops also requires other factors to be addressed too in improving and sustaining food security. This will provide vulnerable seed and knowledge and resource-deficit smallholder farmers with access. As for the people who worked on the GM seeds – they have to be made cheap and available for farmers who will then adopt sustainable farming methods thus enhancing their production and living standards.
Also it means that all those who are involved in using GM crops benefits should balance their shares. There should be legal measures put in a way that will guarantee farmers from being not exploited by the big companies in the agri food chain. This entails Fair trade practices, innovation protection and promotes local seed distribution networks.
Environmental Considerations
Environmental sustainability is a significant reason why GM crops are successful. Despite the benefits that can be achieved through the use of GM crops in decreasing the use of chemical inputs the effects of the crops on BIODIVERSITY AND ECO-SYSTEMS must be well checked. It is imperative that buffer zones be developed, natural habitats protected, and that the germplasm base within agricultural ecosystems be considered for reducing some potential environmental impact.
Further, irrespective of any type of crops, particularly the GM crops, the effects on the soil health and ecosystem services must be constantly studied in the longer run. Government and private sector should invest on development of GM crops that are not only productive and resistant to pests but also to the environment.
GM Crops
Genetically Modified (GM) crops have been in the limelight of agricultural technology advancement with some of the key solutions to some of the challenges facing crop production. As a result of biotechnology, desirable such features have been inserted into crop through genetic manipulation as insect resistance, enhanced nutritional value, and climatic tolerance.
What Are GM Crops?
GM crops are plants with genetic make over through genetic engineering means. While conventional plant breeding may take several years to introduce or remove traits, recombinant DNA technology promises crops that possess the characteristic the breeder aims for. The key goals of GM crops include; an increase in production, decrease in crop losses and an increase in dietary quality.
Benefits of GM Crops
- Increased Yield: The GM crop possesses an ability to produce increased yields due to the integration of genes that promote or protect the plant against unfavourable conditions. This is important in being able to feed the increasing population across the world.
- Pest and Disease Resistance: By modifying GM crops, it becomes easier to build pest or disease preventing factors into crops so that crop yields do not have to be protected through the use of chemical pesticides hence high crop yields.
- Herbicide Tolerance: One of the types of GM crops that have been developed is specially built to be resilient to specific brands of herbicides to make the work of weeding easier for farmers.
- Nutritional Enhancement: Genetic engineering can improve crop nutritional quality in regard to staple food consumers whose main diet source lacks vital nutrients.
- Environmental Resilience: GM crops have a ability of developing one type of crop to be resilient to the adverse effects of climate change such as dryness, heat or cold in production of food crops.
Examples of GM Crops
- Bt Cotton: This type of cotton is produced by genetic engineering to produce a toxin that is obtained from Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt). This toxin is effective against some pests for example the cotton bollworm under reducing the need for pest control chemicals. Bt cotton is used in India, United States and China where it has helped farmers to increase their yields as well as minimizing on pest caused loses.
- Bt Corn: As with any other Bt crop, Bt corn is bio-engineered to produce Bt toxin which enables it to withstand pests for instance the European corn borer. This modification averts crop damage and at the same time cut down the use of chemical insecticides in farming. Currently Bt corn is being cultivated in United States, Canada and several other countries which has led to high yields and less pollution.
- Herbicide-Tolerant Soybeans: glyphosate-resistant soybeans help the farmers fight weeds without harming the beans. This trait has a feature of making weed control easy and also it increases the yield. In countries such as United States, Brazil and Argentina herbicide-tolerant soybeans are widely grown.
- Virus-Resistant Papaya: The Rainbow papaya, enhanced to resist the papaya ringspot virus (PRSV), is a success of GM crops. This papaya is resistant to this virus called PRSV which had greatly affected the Hawaiian papaya industry. It has been playing a crucial role in making continued production of these papayas possible in the sea areas.
Challenges and Considerations
Although growing GM crops is very rich in benefits, it has not come out of controversies. Due to their effects on the environment or harm unknown in the long run, their ethical usage has been grossly discussed. It is only through regulatory measures, quality testing of GMO crops that safe consumer products are produced. Moreover, the concerns concerning patents and trademarks, as well as the problems of fair distribution of the opportunities that GM crops offer should be considered during their successful utilization.
In what way and to what extent GM crops can contribute to enhancing food security in the countries
Hunger, which refers to the immediate physical access to and adequate, safe, healthy and satisfactory quality food within a given society and for its population in general, remains a definitive issue shaping the destiny of a large number of countries. Readily available options to tackle this problem include genetically modified (GM) crops which have the potential to increase agricultural yield, increase crop resistance and combat nutritional inadequacy. Let’s look at how GM crops can serve to food security within the countries with some of the example:
Raising Productivity in Agriculture
The first of the positive effects of the Bt crops is the enhancement of yields in agricultural production that in turn would help avert a repeat of the current global food insecurity. They contain characteristics that increase their productivity and also guarantee higher yields given the same area of land that the farmer has. It is particularly important for countries with small land suitable for cultivation or relatively large population. In a way, GM crops allow for reproducing more food given the world’s tendency to replenish its population base.
- Example: Bt cotton, which is a modified cotton genetically engineered to produce a toxin from the bacterium named Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) that effectively repels certain pests such as the cotton bollworm. This pest resistance discourages the use of chemical pesticide, make cheaper and provide relative high yield of cotton. Success achieved by Bt cotton in India can highlight such advantages as the growth of the cotton production with the consequences of the increasing farmer’s income, and the perspectives for food’s economic stability.
Improving Crop Resilience
There is every danger that climate change may further pose serious challenges to agricultural practices through acts of God such as droughts, floods and other unfavourable weather conditions. GM crops can be developed to endure these unfavourable weather states so as to guarantee production and food security. The benefits of GM crops include enabling crops to be developed with higher- level of resistance, hence cutting on the losses caused by crop failures.
- Example: Some examples of GM crops include drought-tolerant maize; this is a type of crop that has been generated to survive in regions where water can be limiting. This type of maize is genetically engineered to ensure it can produce good yields despite the worst affects from the environmental factors such as drought. Some of the nations in Sub-Saharan Africa that are always affected by this problem of droughts have benefited from improved food security through growing drought-tolerant maize. These innovation enables farmers minimize risks that may come along with variation in climate and also ensures adequate supply of the staple food.
Malnutrition Treatment
Micronutrient, sometimes referred to as ‘hidden hunger’, is a global issue that increasingly blights millions of people, mainly in the developing world. GM crops can be bio-fortified to produce higher nutrient densities to increase nutritive value of the food crops to meet particular nutrient needs. And since food is one of the basic human needs it is right to argue that GM crops, if used to upgrade the nutritional value of staple crops, have enormous potential in enhancing public health and food security.
- Example: Golden Rice is a recombinant New Rice which is rich in beta-carotene, a precursor to vitamin A. Vitamin A Deficiency is a common issue, in most developing third world countries and causes blindness as well as increases susceptibility to diseases. Golden Rice has been bred to contain pro Vitamin A carotenoids to help combat this necessity through a staple food. Since global access to golden rice may be attained rapidly, there is a likely capability of enhancing the improved nutrition and health of needy folk.
Reducing Post-Harvest Losses
Those losses include those that results from pests, diseases, and deterioration after the crops have been harvested to help feed the people. Gain from pest and diseases could be lowered through GM crops which possess improved pest and diseases resistance mean that more food gets to the markets and ultimately to the consumers.
- Example: Bt Brinjal is also developed for resistance against eggplant fruit and shoot borer which is a big problem which hampers crop production. Bt brinjal has given lower pest incidence, less usage of pesticides, and more yield. This has enhanced food security since consumers can afford it due to the limited crop losses when compared to the past.