Quote:
Originally Posted by carve
Plants have been modified since the dawn of agriculture. Direct gene manipulation is just the latest way to do this. It's using a scalpel for what we used to use a hammer for. The way your crop is modified is not inherently good or bad; the end results are. This is analogous to how a book written on a computer isn't inherently better or worse than one written by hand; it's just a lot easier to do on a computer.
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Exactly, the methods have changed but the results are the same. Instead of modification by breeding and selection of desirable traits over generations, it is now faster.
There are some questionable GMO products (plants modified so you can't grow more than 1 generation at a time without buying new seeds) but the majority are good and make for more durable plants and allow them to grow in places that they couldn't before. With modern crop rotations to maintain soil nutrition and durable and more nutritious plants, you can grow a lot more than ever.
Not to say organic plants and products are bad... it just isn't the solution to a starving world.