The question is, are genetically modified organisms good or bad? The answer is that it all depends on how the technology is used. The issue of genetically modified plants or animals is very complex as is any new technology.

Actually, the GMO issue is just a new twist on what we humans have been doing for centuries. By hybridizing, creating, and selecting advantageous mutations, we have created thousands of varieties of orchids, citrus, bananas and many others.

Let’s take a look at just one example. Papayas have been valuable food and medicinal plants throughout the tropical world. In the early 1950s, a devastating disease called Papaya Ring Spot Mosaic wiped out the papaya industry in Florida and many areas of tropical America including the Caribbean. Later, the disease hit Hawaii. Luckily some scientists were working on the problem and were able to develop a genetically modified papaya that was resistant to the mosaic virus. Today we can grow papaya plants in regions that were previously virus infested thanks to those efforts.

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