Feeding the World

In order to feed the growing population of the world it will be necessary to utilize new food production techniques. By 2050 it is estimated that the world will contain 9 billion people and “that the world will need to produce 70% to 100% more food by 2050.” The bottom line is that we need to produce more food globally in order to feed the entire world. I believe this will need to be done through increased efficiency in food production including higher yields on crops. Unfortunately, this means the use of GMO’s. It is well known that GMO’s are a controversial strategy but there are many examples of the good that they can produce. “There are also hopeful signs that we will be able to improve fertilizer-use efficiency by genetically engineering wheat and other crops to have high levels of Glu dehydrogenase.”2 This strategy is two-fold however, because if the latter is possible we must also find a way to distribute it to the poorer countries. This strategy will contribute to the global food supply by creating more food and distributing it to the hungry in poor nations. The system will also maintain the integrity of natural systems in place by only increasing the yield of crops/resources and not exploiting new lands in order to produce more foods.

This strategy would have to be implemented globally, increasing food production not only in wealthy countries but also in the poorer countries. It is possible that this strategy could be feasible now, however there are many barriers to implementation including technology, health and political. In reality this strategy would not be feasible until more is known about the health effects of GMO’s because on a political level it would be very hard to introduce to the world markets. 3 There are many potential impacts of implementing this strategy, both negative and positive. On the negative side, there are the obvious health risks associated with GMOs. On the positive side, this plan could potentially end world hunger....