Home Health and Nutrition OGM tra leggende e realtà

OGM tra leggende e realtà
Read in 10 min.
Listen in 13 min.
Learn the key ideas of the book by Dario Bressanini

OGM tra leggende e realtà

What are GMOs, and what role will they play in the future?

In his book, GMOs – The Myths And Facts: Discovering Genetic Modifications in The Food We Eat, Dario Bressanini aims to redefine the meaning of the term GMO by exploring the history of this innovative technique. GMOs are mostly used in agriculture and are potentially able to solve many of the world’s serious food problems. Today, they provide an opportunity for the future, and with the introduction of biotechnology, are able to create plants that are resistant to insects, viruses, and weeds. This is extremely beneficial for farmers, and reduces the use of pesticides, insecticides, herbicides, and other chemicals which have a harmful impact both on the environment and the economy. Bressanini takes the reader through the real potential impact of GMO technology in an attempt to dispel the common misconception that GMOs are harmful to human health.

OGM tra leggende e realtà
Read in 10 min.
Listen in 13 min.
IDEA CHIAVE 1/7

What do we mean by GMOs, or Genetically Modified Organisms?

GMOs have always been a hot topic: for many people, they are a cause for concern, while others believe that they offer hope for the future. Although the issue of GMOs is widely discussed and debated in many countries, it remains somewhat taboo in Europe, where the use of GMOs in agriculture has been heavily criticised.

The acronym GMO stands for Genetically Modified Organisms. They are created using biotechnology, which is the science of applying technology to biological systems, in other words living organisms, in order to create or modify products. In recent decades, these processes have been used in the food industry to produce bread, cheese, and beer.

In reality, however, biotechnology has simply copied what has always occurred in natural evolutionary processes, which are the result of the metabolism of microorganisms, such as yeasts and bacteria, or crosses between different species of the same type. The wheat that is cultivated today, for instance, is the result of crossing different types of wheat with each other gradually, over time.

Science has now surpassed nature, however, and is now able to transfer genes, which are pieces of DNA, from one species to another. Today, GM animals and plants are more widespread than we might think: the first genetically modified salmon has already been marketed in Canada, for instance, and many countries introduced GMOs into agriculture several years ago. These innovations are the result of new agricultural varieties developed by scientists, laboratories, and large corporations.

  

The key ideas of "OGM tra leggende e realtà"

01.
What do we mean by GMOs, or Genetically Modified Organisms?
02.
The first examples of GMOs using irradiation
03.
The main GMOs cultivated around the world today
04.
The European Union’s stance on GMO cultivation
05.
The future of GMOs in the food and non-food industries
06.
Quotes
07.
Take-home message
 
 
4books preview

Try 4books Premium for free!