Blaisdell, Aaron

Maxwell, Max

English

Salem State University: Digital Commons

History 
Corn was domesticated over 10,000 years ago in Mexico. It is 
considered one of mankind’s “oldest inventions”. Without the 
selective breeding done years ago, we would not have the corn we 
know today. As science became more advance so did the 
modification of corn. It wasn't until Bacillus thuringiensis gene 
was introduced that GMOs became a big Ethical issue. Bacillus 
thuringiensis is a gene that is deadly for some common crop pests. 
The ethical issues are still a debate to this day.
Despite this Farmers still grow GMO corn with the most common 
being Derived insect resistance and herbicide resistance.
Pros
1) Leads to less hunger and lower food prices 
worldwide
2) Can reduce water need and pesticide use
3) Can let corn grow in areas where it once wasn't 
possible
Corn and the Environment
There are a few concerns evolving GMOs and the environment. Such as corn 
spreading the modified genes to wild crops making them potentially dangerous to 
wild animals, there are also concerns on GMOs increasing antibacterial reticence in 
animals we use for meat like cows and chickens, but this risk has yet to be studied 
a lot and there are still learning new things. Over all GMOs are still a very new tech 
and there is a lot we have to learn
An impact GMO plants have on their environment is when you consider the 
renewal of cropland. That being said, with the large production in U.S there is a 
need to cut down some forest areas for this process. In cutting down that area all of
the stored carbon is released into the atmosphere adding to the ozone.
Cons
1) There have yet to be any long-term test on human health, while scientist are pretty sure there 
are no negative affects there haven’t been major studies
2) In certain areas Corn is know to increase the number of pesticides uses
3) We do not know if there are any long-term environmental affects yet
4) There is also the idea that without GMO crops food supplies in America would cost roughly 
.81 percent more
Corn Started as a the far-left plant with few kernels, This was a small grass called teosinte it wasn’t until cross 
breeding we got the hardy many kernel corn we know today, Selective breeding was done to try and fulfill the 
amount of food the growing Mexican population needed and has evolved over years to keep up with the 
amount of corn we need as a society 
Gmo: Genetically modify organism, A crop or animal which has been changed by genetic engineering is one of the most common examples of a modern GMO
This chart of shows s few of the big pros of GMOs and 
their benefits  to natures including less water  and better 
soil health   
Citations 
Acker, Rene Van, et al. “Pros and Cons of GMO Crop Farming.” Oxford Research 
Encyclopedia of Environmental Science, 26 Oct. 2017, 
oxfordre.com/environmentalscience/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780199389414.001.0
001/acrefore-9780199389414-e-217. 
Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition. “Science and History of GMOs and 
Other Food Modification Processes.” U.S. Food and Drug Administration, FDA, 
www.fda.gov/food/agricultural-biotechnology/science-and-history-gmos-and-
other-food-modification-processes. 
Gewin, Virginia. “Genetically Modified Corn--Environmental Benefits and Risks.” 
PLoS Biology, Public Library of Science, Oct. 2003, 
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC212689/. 
“What Are High-Risk Crops & Inputs?” Non, www.nongmoproject.org/gmo-
facts/high-risk/. 


Corn as a GMO: History, Pros and Cons, and Environmental Affects

https://digitalcommons.salemstate.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1003&amp;context=earthday

Corn as a GMO: History, Pros and Cons, and Environmental Affects

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