Global Food Crisis Presentationx

Global Food Crisis

•
Genetically modified food
: Foods that have been modified by genetic
manipulation, also known as GM foods, genetically engineered foods or
biotechnology
-
derived foods (Health Canada definition).

•
In 2002, 6 southern African countries were plagued by a drought that left
more than 14 million people at risk of
starvation (
Conko

and
Prakash
,
2004)

•
In
2009, The World Bank


estimated
a global annual


growth
rate of 1.2% which


will
put our population at


around
9.3 billion by
2050



(The
World
Bank, 2011
)


Global Food Crisis

•
Almost all of this growth will occur in
developing countries, which already
account for 4/5ths of the world’s
population (
International Food Policy
Research
Institute, 2001).

•
Malnutrition affects 792 million people
across the world today. Africa is expected
to have 180 million unnourished citizens
in 2030.

•
Nearly 40 000 people die every day due
to hunger or malnutrition related causes
(
Conko

and
Prakash
, 2004).

•
The annual rate of increase in food
production has gone from 3% in 1970 to
1% in 2008 (
Conko

and
Prakash
, 2004).


What is Genetic Modification?


Nutrition

•
Deficiencies in iron, iodine, vitamin A and zinc are the main problem.

•
5 % of gross national product in South Asia is lost each year due to
deficiencies in intakes of iron, vitamin A and iodine.

•
Transgenic methods may be used to improve the micronutrient content
and/or bioavailability of commonly eaten foods in developing countries.

–
By reducing the level of antinutritients in food staples.

–
By increasing the level of nutrients and compounds that promote the
bioavailability of minerals and vitamins.

–
By increasing the mineral and vitamin content
–

‘
biofortification
’.




Source:
Bouis
, 2007

Nutrition

•
Nutrient dense varieties of crops can be developed for a fraction of the
recurrent estimated annual costs of supplementation programs and can
reach far more people, as the benefits can be extended across countries
and time.

•
Mineral
-
dense
seeds can assist plants in resisting disease and other
environmental stresses.

•
Biofortification has the potential to provide coverage for remote rural
populations, which supplementation and fortification programs may not
reach
.





Malnutrition Statistics

Year

1990

1995

2005

2008

Undernourished people in
the world (millions)
[68]

843

788

848

923

Muller, 2005

Health and Safety

•
No proven health risks of GMO’s

•
A 2008 review published by the Royal Society of Medicine noted that GM
foods have been eaten by millions of people worldwide for over 15 years, with
no reports of ill effects.

–
Key S, Ma JK, Drake PM (June 2008). "Genetically modified plants and
human health".
J R
Soc

Med

101

(6): 290
–
8

•
Similarly a 2004 report from the US National Academies of Sciences stated: "To
date, no adverse health effects attributed to genetic engineering have been
documented in the human population."

–
NRC. (2004). Safety of Genetically Engineered Foods: Approaches to
Assessing Unintended Health Effects. National Academies Press
.



•
http://www.fao.org/english/newsroom/focus/20
03/gmo7.htm

Environmental Aspects of
GMO’s

•
Due to the increased productivity gains from GM crops, we will be able to
save millions of acres or wildlife that would be otherwise used for new
farmland to feed an ever increasing population (
Conko

and
Prakash
, 2004).

•
In many cases, pesticide application has been directly responsible for
specific incidents in which large numbers of birds have been killed
(
Paoletti

and Pimental,2000) . The introduction of GM crops can reduce
the amount of pesticides used.

•
There are a variety of solutions to many of the concerns facing cross
pollination of genetically modified crops and natural crops.

•
Non
-
Cash crops can be used to actually clean up the environment through
Phytodetoxification

(Whitman, 2000)
.


Economic Impacts

•
It is estimated that close to 40% of crop yield is lost to insects, weeds, and
poor weather in Africa and 20% in Asia (
Conko

and
Prakash
, 2004
).
The
use of GMO’s can significantly improve crop productivity, improving
nutrition and leading to growth in agriculture industries in developing
nations.

•
Genetically modified foods are in development that have the ability to be
grown in unfavorable growing conditions such as soil high salinity or
alkalinity or arid environments.
(
Whitman, 2000)

•
Non
-
Staple food
items that are needed for proper nutrition are too
expensive for most in developing nations. The relative unavailability of
cheap, non
-
staple GMO’s high in nutrition is crippling aggregate growth in
these nations.(
Howarth

E.
Bouis

2007)