GM food is not proven to be unsafe, so stop the fearmongering

In her letter, Sara Wong made an attempt to show that genetically modified (GM) foods might be dangerous (“Why GM foods are not the solution to world hunger”, April 10). However, while millions of servings of GM food have been consumed, there has been no large well-documented scientific study to show that this food is unsafe.

Ms Wong starts well by pointing out that GM foods increase yields and reduce the need for pesticides and herbicides, but then digresses to talk about food distribution, which has nothing to do with the benefits or dangers of GM food.

She then talks about the possibility that GM foods would pass on antibiotic resistance in some way, citing “some studies”. However, any study of merit would already have been taken into account by the United States Food and Drug Administration, which approves the safety of GM food.

Ms Wong admits that GM crops are partially effective in resisting attack. This is surely better than a crop with no resistance, and must reduce some chemical use. Farmers who pay for the very expensive seeds must think their yields would go up, or they would not buy GM seeds.