Genetically Modified Organisms

What is a genetically modified organism (GMO), and is it dangerous?

The GMO:

Genetically modified organisms are bacteria, viruses, fungi, plants and animals in which genetic material has been altered. The change is brought about in a way that does not occur naturally by mating or natural recombination. The use of GMOs in Ireland is licensed by the Environmental Protection Agency.

GM foods:

Increasingly, genetically modified organisms are being used in food production. This is one of the most controversial uses of GMOs, though animals will soon be altered to produce vaccines, medicines or possibly even replacement organs for humans. Modification of foodstuffs and crops has gone on naturally for thousands of years by cross-breeding, but the developers of GM crops insist their technology is a very precise and safe method of improving foodstuffs. Where problem lines arise, the companies say, they are simply not developed for commercial use.

The first generation of such foods are in the form of crops with a single gene added to confer a desirable characteristic, such as resistance to insecticides, herbicides or diseases. These are mainly maize- or soya-based within the Irish context, though modified foods on sale in Britain include tomato paste and vegetarian cheese.

Opponents of GM foods say the effects of using the technique to cross species barriers have not been sufficiently evaluated, either from an environmental or human health point of view. Such a practice, they say, could carry risks because of a likelihood of genetic instability.