Whatever we say, the statistics is clear : there has been more than one billion hectars seeded with GMO and there are about 15 million of farmers who use it. It it a low number or a high number? Well, it's about 10% of a world's soil used for agriculture so we can say GMO has it's stabil place between farmers nowadays.
I would like to try to explain what is it GMO. Well, genetically modified organisms are those organisms whose genes has been altered in order to have better characteristics such as stronger resistance against pesticids or insects. However, the higher production is also expected to obtain from these changes.
It is belived that ''improved'' plants such as those which doesn't need to be sprayed by pesticids, because they are resistant against insects and can maybe also carry some vitamins (like C or A)
can decrease hunger especially in developing countries, because they would have bigger nutric value - I mean for instance the vitamins which some people lack of.
The pros would be huge - less chemicals spread in the fields as well as bigger production. But nowadays only 20% of world's GMO has all of these aspects, the other has (despite the efforts of genetic engineers) only either one or the other.
It is true that we must be careful, because if these anti-insects plants would proliferate from fields in its surroundings - they could kill insects which normally live there and therefore endanger the local ecosystem - but I think it's the only real thread.
The fears of GMO comes from adverts of many food chain stores : They started to mark their products with ''GMO-free'' label in order to increase their profits. As a result, many people started to think that GMO is something bad and to be afraid of - this problem has lasted till today. Nevertheless, this campaign is successful and businessmen have huge profit from it :-) tomatos with fish tails and potatos with eyes are funny, but it is sad that many people (who otherwise did not study this field) really believe it.
My opinion? (thanks to my biology teacher)
Some people are afraid of eating genetic material, but to be honest, their fears are totally useless! Imagine you eat a normal tomato, in no way altered - you eat it and maybe you say it's tasty, right? OK, then you know that this tomato has some genetic material in it and you eat it without fear! Every organic material has within its cells genetic material, because it's the only way how to make possible their growth and shape and color and everything!
Then, you take GMO tomato and you are afraid of it. But why? You eat the same genetic material although maybe 0,00001 % of genes were altered - this genes are maybe taken from a potato or a maize - but they are the same as if you ate a ordinary potato or a maize!
Moreover, there is another argument, which has emerged - you can't be anyhow ''altered'' or ''modified'' by eating GMO - that's because when you eat, you dissolve and digest your food - in a stomach there is a hydrochloric acid which definitely disintegrates these genes into polynucleoids and then you gradually digest single aminoacids. But even if this wasn't true that you dissolve genes from f.e. a GMO tomato, there is no way or a ''channel'' by which you could bring this foreign genetic material into your cells. (this can be strenghten by the fact that anyone hasn't been harmed anyhow by GMO so far)
Finally, there has been research which concluded that the weigh or the mass of genetic materials in our food is so much low that it can be almost omitted.
I know that my opinion is only a opinion, but I think it has been reached by logic and several important facts. There are still etics problem with GMO for instance they clash with some religions around the world, so I think GMO will continue to be a hot thema for many next years....
Sources: http://www.novinky.cz/veda-skoly/226815-geneticky-modifikovane-organismy-zachrana-nebo-strasak.html
http://radovan.bloger.cz/o-lidech-trendy/GMO-aneb-rajce-z-ryb-nebo-olej-z-krys
http://www.zea.cz/kukurice/amoroso-a-zidane-univerzalni-hybridy-kukurice/
http://www.phototravelpages.com/wallpapers/field.html
http://www.skrewtips.com/2008/05/07/what-is-the-world-saying-about-genetically-modified-food-safe-or-deadly-you-decide/
http://earthcovenant.cua.edu/images/EC%20website%20photos%207.jpg
http://foodfreedom.wordpress.com/2010/06/19/ten-good-reasons-why-gmos-are-not-compatible-with-organic-agriculture/
http://globalvoicesonline.org/2008/11/24/environment-sa-bloggers-sound-off-on-gmo-foods/
