HELLO GMOS 

          The application of GMOs in agriculture and food production can boost the economy by drastically increasing the income of farmers while benefiting the environment by reducing carbon emissions (Conrow). Crop biotechnology allows farmers to grow more crops with fewer resources, for pesticide use is unnecessary when the crops have specific insect-resistant characteristics. When looking at the impact that genetically modified organisms can have on the economy, it is important to analyze the impact of agricultural biotechnology and the income of farmers who will be harvesting these GM foods. Studies show that the average yield gains over “the 1996-2014 period across all users of [insect resistant] technology have been +13.1% for insect-resistant corn and +17.3% for insect-resistant cotton relative to conventional production systems” (PG Economics, 2016). As a direct result of the increased yield of crops, the “net farm level economic benefit in 2014 was $17.7 billion, equal to an increase in income of $101/hectare)” (PG Economics, 2016).

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           When looking at how the agricultural community is impacted from a wider view, it is evident that more product produced will result in a surplus of income; however, it is also important to discuss who will be losing money in this scenario. The implementation of genetically modified crops indicates that there will no longer be a need for pesticides, for the crops will be insect resistant. If pesticides are no longer needed, many pesticide manufacturing, formulating, producing and registrant companies will have a drastic decrease in income that may result in bankruptcy. Pesticides could still be used for rodent control, however, the primary use of pesticides is “to prevent, kill, destroy, mitigate, remove, repel or any other similar action” against any pest that would interfere with successful crop growth (EPA, 2018). As the agricultural industry would economically benefit from GM crops, the pesticide industry would suffer a great loss of business. Not only do all industries need to be accounted for, but demographic changes over time also need to be taken into consideration when analyzing the economic impact of genetically modified organisms.

 

           As the population increases, agricultural advancements must be made to feed the growing population and to avoid food shortages. Even though many farmer’s abilities to produce food remain stuck in the past, the demand for food will exponentially rise within the upcoming years. To “double food production by 2050 to meet demand, new seed technologies must be utilized” (PG Economics, 2016). If some method of increased food production is not implemented and demand exceeds supply, there will a shortage of goods, putting an “upward pressure on the price” as there will be more buyers chasing the available goods (CFA, 2020). Higher food prices do not impact all communities equally, for poorer, developing economies feel a more extreme negative impact. To avoid excess demand, farmers can use genetically modified crops to increase crop production and successfully feed the rising population in years to come.