by Tamu Browne

Created on: April 16, 2009   Last Updated: March 31, 2012

What's for dinner?

The first commercially-grown, genetically-modified food crop was a tomato created by Calgene called the FlavrSavr. Calgene released it into the market in 1994, where it met with little public comment. Considered to have a poor flavor, it never sold well and was off the market by 1997. So what is on our supermarket shelves today? Surprisingly most supermarket processed food items now test positive for the presence of genetically modified ingredients. In addition, several dozen more genetically engineered crops are in the final stages of development and will soon be released and sold in the marketplace.

According to the biotechnology industry, the majority of United States of America's food and fiber will be genetically engineered within the next 5 to 10 years. More than 80 percent of the soy and 40 percent of the corn raised in the United States is a GM variety. Global plantings of biotech crops mostly corn and soybeans and much of it for animal feed grew to about 200 million acres last year, about two-thirds of it in the United States alone. Japan is however the largest importer of genetically modified food, and has taken the bold stance of labeling foods that contain genetically engineered ingredients in an effort to calm consumer concerns about the safety of genetically engineered foods.

That common question what's for dinner may not be so easily answered anymore. The fact is that genetically modified foods may soon be making their way onto our plates and into our stomachs. Genetic engineering techniques allow scientists to insert specific genes into a plant or animal without having to go through the trial-and-error process of selective breeding. Wikipedia.com defines genetic modification (GM) as "a special set of technologies that alter the genetic makeup of such living organisms as animals, plants, or bacteria. Combining genes from different organisms is known as recombinant DNA technology, and the resulting organism is said to be genetically modified, genetically engineered, or transgenic".

As we stir our pots, genetically modified foods are creating a stir among consumers and lobbying groups and organizations such as Greenpeace opposed to genetically engineered foods. The main concern being raised is regarding the safety of these GM foods. In August 1998 widespread concern, especially in Europe, was sparked by remarks by a leading nutrition researcher (with 270 published scientific papers to his name), Dr Arpad Pusztai, regarding some

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