Today much of the food that we consume at one point through the food chain has been genetically engineered. Over the past several years, biotechnology crops have come to dominate the food industry. Genetically altered corn and soybeans were planted on more than 60 million acres of farmland last year alone. Countless debates over whether or not these genetically altered foods can cause any harm have never reached a concrete answer, it is a bad public relations issue for companies in the field. These grains are used in the production of breakfast cereals, vegetable oil, snacks, and numerous other products. In fact, the Grocery Manufacturers of America estimates that about 70 percent of grocery store food may have been made with biotechnology crops. Turning away from this phenomenon would require large and costly reforms to agriculture, as well as, various other food industries. Despite this fact, there has been some change. H.J. Heinz has dropped genetically altered crops from its baby foods, but not from its other products. McCain Foods, the world’s largest maker of French fries, said it also has decided to drop genetically engineered potatoes. This issue is still very up in the air, because there has been no evidence to whether or not it genuinely is a health risk. On the other hand, many businesses are hedging on the success of more and more genetically produced crops.

REFERENCE:

David Barboza. “Modified Foods Put Companies in a Quandary.” The New York Times, June 3, 2000