GMOs make war on mosquitoes

For several years now, we’ve watched the quarrel over genetically modified organisms and their use in the food industry to make products more disease resistant, enhance their flavor and give them longer shelf life.

Opponents have argued there are health risks to the surge in GMOs: that they can trigger allergic reactions; some say they can cause cancer — although the American Cancer Society says there is no evidence of that — or lower resistance to fight over illness.

In just a few decades the scales have tipped in favor of GMOs. By 2014, 94 percent of soybean crops in the United States were genetically modified; 90 percent of the domestic corn crop and 91 percent of cotton crops. Close behind are apples, squash, potatoes and papayas. They’re used for corn starch, corn syrup, along with corn, canola and soybean oil.

Farmers like them because they can increase productivity; consumers like them because they lower food costs and they can also ensure that more people have access to top quality food.

Given that recent record, we were a bit surprised to read that there was a ruckus over genetically modified mosquitoes going on in the Florida Keys.

More related to this:

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Let’s say we can force the mosquito into extinction — should we do it?

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Release 750 Million Genetically Modified Mosquitoes Into the Wild, They Said