An Assessment of Relative Risks to Human/Ecological Health Biotech Crops versus Other Human Activities

Journal Title: Current Investigations in Agriculture and Current Research - Year 2018, Vol 1, Issue 2

Abstract

The regulation of GM crops has been a subject of intense debate during the last two decades. These crops are being grown globally and the area occupied by these crops has been steadily increasing from a mere 1.7 million hectares in 1996 to a record level of >180 million hectares in the year 2014 covering 28 countries (for the first time the area decreased to 179.7mha in 2015). During the 20 years period of cultivation, no harmful effects of these crops have been reported anywhere. Despite this, there is a vehement opposition against cultivation of these crops, and unfortunately, this opposition is not based on science; those opposing the cultivation of these GM crops include civil society groups (CSGs), NGOs and a group of scientists. These groups constitute an anti-GM lobby, which doesn't seem to be concerned about other human activities, which are more alarming and causing a major harm to human and environment health. Therefore in this communication, the current status of GM crops, along with the impact of their cultivation is being presented first and then the effects of other human activities on human health and environment health described. While presenting this information, the question is being addressed to these groups (constituting an anti-GM lobby) that if they are really concerned about human and environment health and the future of mankind, why are they not addressing the problem of adverse effects of other human activities on human health and environment health, which are much more alarming

Authors and Affiliations

Gupta PK

Keywords

Related Articles

Evaluating the Impacts of Development on Agricultural Land

In developing nations like the Kurdistan region in Iraq, experience shows that, during the initial phases of development, urban expansion becomes a top priority and as a consequence agricultura...

On the Role of Systems of Small Intensive Irrigation in Solving the Problems of Mineral Farming in Azerbaijan

The total area of the Republic of Azerbaijan is 8 641 500 hectares of land, of which 55 per cent (4 756 500 ha) are suitable for agriculture, and that 16.6 per cent of the total area or 1432 600 ha of irrigated land acco...

Impact of Government Agricultural Expenditure on Agricultural Productivity in Nigeria

The study examined effect of government agricultural expenditure on agricultural output in Nigeria using time series data from 1981 to 2014. Having analyzed data using unit root test, co-integration test...

Organic Fertilizers and Natural Pest Control versus Chemical Fertilizers and Pesticides

The use of chemical substances especially chemical pesticides to enrich the soil for growing plants like vegetables and fruits has greatly affected the farmland ecosystem, degraded the quality of farmland and decreased t...

Forest Degradation Instigate Necessity of Launching Moratorium on Principle Loggings in Georgia

Mountain forests exploitation is problematic in all countries of the world. Among many other problems are logging and extraction of logged trees. These problems are sharpened according to the steepness of terrain. As ste...

Download PDF file
  • EP ID EP569489
  • DOI 10.32474/CIACR.2018.01.000110
  • Views 118
  • Downloads 0

How To Cite

Gupta PK (2018). An Assessment of Relative Risks to Human/Ecological Health Biotech Crops versus Other Human Activities. Current Investigations in Agriculture and Current Research, 1(2), 51-62. https://europub.co.uk./articles/-A-569489