The Pros of Genetic Engineering

Genetic engineering has made a colossal impact on the way we live.  If not for genetic engineering mass production of crops such as corn, wheat, soybean and rice would be an increasingly difficult task.  Genetic engineering allows farmers to grow crops quicker and in more mass by adding certain DNA strands which give crops immunity from certain pests.  One could look at this as our very own version of Darwin’s Survival of the Fittest, with a bit of human implication.  Genetically engineered crops are not good for only mass-producing products such as corn or wheat; we can also use genetic engineering to make crops healthier.  According to Pollan, potatoes were not originally edible.  The wild potato was too toxic for human consumption.  However, by planting the seed of an offspring he was able to discover an edible potato.  Another example of where genetic engineering has made a crop healthier is in Asia.  Asia has been farming rice for over a century; a common problem has been that because this crop is one of the few that Asians can farm they are unable to get other key vitamins in order to sustain their health such as vitamin A.  Vitamin A deficiency is common throughout the undeveloped parts of Asia.  With genetic engineering scientists were able to add vitamin A to a rice crop.  By genetically engineering crops farmers are able to grow mass quantities of crops without having to worry about pests destroying valuable crops.  Farmers can also genetically engineer crops to be capable of growing in environments and soil which organic crops would not be able to survive.