Golden Rice Group

Matt Sorensen
Justin Christoffrerson
John Barnett
Jordan Malovich
Ashlin Rohbock
English 1010
Wade Bentley
December 9th, 2015
Using GMOs as a Humanitarian Aid
Every year, the equivalent of the population of Utah (State and County Quick
Facts par. 1) (2.7 million children under the age of five) dies unnecessarily due to
vitamin A deficiency and to the lack of other vital nutrients (Mayer par. 1). But GMOs
(Genetically Modified Organisms) may be the solution. Simply taking one piece of DNA
and enhancing it produces a more fruitful and resilient product and at a lower cost. But
many people, especially in the developed world, are afraid of GMOs, fearing that
changing the genetic structure of these crops produces an unknown, a Frankenfood, not
to be trusted. Organizations such as Greenpeace even dispense biased and
unscientifically proven information. We believe the problem is the lack of education
among the population regarding the many benefits of GMOs. If we could alleviate their
fears and educate them, convincing them of the millions of people who would no longer
suffer from malnutrition and death, they could become an important force in getting
GMOs to the developing countries. In particular, the GMO Golden Rice, an important
source of vitamin A, would be an excellent product to make available to these farmers.

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As shown in the graph above, 98 percent of the worlds hungry live in

developing countries (Who Are the Hungry par. 1). More specifically, [t]he highest
number of malnourished people, 553 million, live in Asia and the Pacific, in countries
like Indonesia and the Philippines ("Quick Facts par. 7). We believe that having a
central geographic focus for initial humanitarian efforts is essential, and that the
Philippines, specifically, is an ideal location to begin the distribution of life saving
GMOs in mass quantities. One of the many stories that helped us come to this conclusion
is the story of a boy named of Jon. Jon is an eight-year-old boy who lives with his family
and six other families on a wooden platform suspended between the metal girders under a
car bridge. He and his family spend most of their day outside collecting recyclables in the
river to earn about two dollars a day, on a good day. The only food they can afford with
this small amount of money is white rice, which nutritionally lacks the vital elements for
good health. This is common among the poor in the Philippines, leading in particular to
vitamin A deficiency. Unfortunately, [a] severe case of vitamin A deficiency can produce
blindness. Statistics show that nearly 80,000 people lose their sight each year (Vitamin

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A Deficiency par. 1). In addition to blindness, it also leads to ulcers on the eyes, stunted
growth, a low immune system, and nighttime blindness (Vitamin A par. 18).
Unfortunately, the average yearly income for Filipinos is a meager $2000 (Philippines
Average Salaries par. 1). This salary is not nearly enough for one to support a family in
buying foods that will provide a well balanced diet, or in some cases, enough food at all.
This is where our efforts in distributing humanitarian GMOs will come into play.
For thousands of years, humans have bred plants selectively for more desirable
traits: resisting cold, requiring less water, improving taste and producing more nutrients.
Today, scientists producing GMOs use essentially the same process, changing how the
world faces hunger. One of the best examples is the crop called Golden Rice. Golden
Rice is a genetically modified variety of rice rich in the orange or red plant pigment
beta-carotene, a substance important to the human diet as a precursor of vitamin A
(Oxford Dictionaries par. 1). This rice is under a humanitarian patent, meaning
companies have agreed not to receive any royalties from the making or selling of the rice.
Unfortunately, other highly influential organizations dont agree with Golden
Rices efficacy or with its use in humanitarian work, having done everything in their
power to stop Golden Rice from being delivered to countries in need. So the Golden
Rice project has been slowed, almost to a standstill, by extremely well-funded groups that
hold dogmatic views and dont base their opinions on scientific journals or the
conclusions of the scientific community.
One such organization is Greenpeace. Their website is filled with strongly worded
opinions that lack scientific evidence and lack documented studies to validate these
opinions. Greenpeace (along with other European organizations) believes that Golden

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Rice, and other Genetically Modified Organisms, is dangerous because the long term
effects on consumers are unknown. So it feels that GMOs need to be tested for longer
than the current test span (seven to ten years) in order to determine possible negative
effects. This view is very problematic for scientists who have repeatedly tested Golden
Rice and believe it to be safe to consume. It is also problematic for those who are
waiting, starving and suffering.
Secondly, Greenpeace suggests that people just choose to not eat more foods
with vitamin A, purporting that vitamin A deficiency is a choice, and not a poverty
problem. They also state: GE Golden rice encourages a diet based solely on rice, rather
than increasing access to a diverse diet (Golden Rice par 6). We believe that people
will choose to add other nutritious foods to their diet if they have the means and
opportunity. Greenpeace also added the following in relation to current organic farmers:
GE [Genetically Engineered] rice contamination will affect traditional, conventional and
organic rice farmers because they will lose their markets, especially export markets,
which would negatively impact rural livelihoods (Special Report Golden Rice par. 2).
We strongly disagree with this because large portions of Americans already faithfully
shop organic products. And once we were to inform the community of all the benefits that
result from mass GMO production, we believe that this would eventually increase sales in
the organic market (as opposed to the accusation that GMOs hinder it.)
Lastly, Greenpeace maintains that golden rice has the potential to destroy.If
any hazardous, unexpected effects would develop from GE 'Golden' rice, the GE
contamination would affect countries where rice is an essential staple and put people and
food security at risk (Special Report Golden Rice par. 3). Not only is this statement

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undocumented, it is invalid because of the hundreds of scientific studies that have been
conducted, clearly proving that GMOs are safe. Consider the following: The EU, for
example, has invested more than 300 million (317 million US dollars) in research on the
bio-safety of GMOs. Its recent report states: The main conclusion to be drawn from the
efforts of more than 130 research projects, covering a period of more than 25 years of
research and involving more than 500 independent research groups, is that biotechnology,
and in particular GMOs, are not per se more risky than EG conventional plant breeding
technologies (American Association For The Advancement Of Science par. 2). Again,
these studies prove that there is no harm in Genetically Modified Organisms, or in, more
specifically, Golden Rice.
Greenpeace has introduced several solutions of their own, including health
education and seeds for fruits and vegetables for home gardens (Vitamin A deficiency
par.16). But these measures reach only a small percentage of consumers. Golden Rice
already provides the nutrients, especially vitamin A, making up for a lack of vegetables
and fruit. Other organizations, such as Helen Keller International and the World Health
Organization, believe that the solution is to provide vitamin A supplements. But these
programs cost tens of millions of dollars a year and lack the infrastructure to distribute
vitamin A capsules to reach poor farmers in remote locations (Is opposition to golden
rice wicked par. 5).
On the other hand, GMOs such as Golden Rice can be much more effective in
providing a solution to vitamin A deficiency. For starters, Golden Rice is incredibly easy
to produce in mass amounts. From one seed of Golden Rice, a rice plant that produces
1,000 seeds is created; within four generations (or less than two years), that single plant

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will have produced more than one trillion (1,000,000,000,000) seeds. This equates to 28thousand-metric tons of rice, feeding one hundred thousand people for an entire year
(Mayer, Bio fortified Seeds, a Sustainable Solution par. 2). It is even more exciting
when we realize that once that amount is doubled, tripled, quadrupled, millions of people
will also receive enough rice to last an entire year.
Secondly, Golden Rice is extremely inexpensive. All the farmer is paying for is
that single seed. After that, the effect of multiplying as described above will occur. This
will help keep this crop extremely inexpensive to produce. It will also stay inexpensive
due to the humanitarian patent that does not allow the farmers to earn more than the
equivalent of 10,000 US dollars before paying royalties. (Mayer, Contractual Issues
par. 1). Additionally, GMO technology has kept the price of staple crops lower by as
much as 15%-30% (GMO Products Lower Prices, Raise Yields and Concerns par. 1).
Finally, Golden Rice is nutritious, providing the vitamin A necessary to prevent
about a third of all under-five deaths. It will also lead to eliminating the other problems
that go with vitamin A deficiency, also described above.
The increased production of Golden Rice and other GMOs to solve hunger and to
end deficiencies will not be achieved by the cast of a vote or a small monthly donation.
There are small groups of extremely powerful people fighting against Golden Rice, and
this is our opportunity to stand against them. Its our time to match these powers efforts
by informing the communities around us of all the good that comes from Golden Rice,
and that the opposing side (i.e., Greenpeace) does not have credible arguments.
There are multiple ways we can spread this information to the masses. Some of
our short-term goals include the use of social media in the form of commercials and

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informative videos. Spreading this information to everyone and gaining mass support will
give us the means we need to fight against these extremely powerful opposing groups.
For example, we have approached the CFO of Smiths Foods in Salt Lake to incorporate a
program to help the consumer understand the benefits of GMOs and to support the
Golden Rice Project. It would provide a flyer at each checkout stand to pique the interest
of consumers and provide a scan for their smart phone that will send them to a website.
This website includes a short video from a mother explaining why she supports GMOs
and feeds them to her children. Below the website there are answers to common
questions and leaves the readers more links that will more thoroughly explain these
topics. (See the attached flyer in the Appendix.)
After educating multiple communities of the incredible benefits of Golden Rice,
we can transition into the long-term solution. We would approach foundations, such as
the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (who already contribute to the creation and
production of GMOs), to help fund Golden Rice. We would do this by building on the
support of the community members, having them help us petition foundations and create
other means of raising money through such crowd funding sources as Kickstarter and
Indiegogo. These funds will also help us educate our supporters who then through blogs
and other websites can dispute Greenpeace and other European organizations that are
keeping Golden Rice from getting to these struggling countries.
Just as todays media and technology bring the world to us, informing us and
showing us great beauty, it also reveals the suffering of others. We are more aware and
affected, determined to solve this problem of world hunger and stop the suffering of
fellow human beings. Golden rice is inexpensive, easy to mass produce, and a nutritious

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alterative for struggling countries. After hundreds of studies that have been conducted,
scientists have proven that GMOs (like Golden Rice) are safe and life saving,
notwithstanding the opposing organizations opinion. And through a widespread effort to
educate the community of the benefits of Golden Rice, we can get people involved to
help in the production and shipment of Golden Rice to countries in need. The potential is
there to save millions of lives from the terrible effects of vitamin deficiency. Now the
responsibility is in our hands.

Appendix

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Do you want to help starving children?

YOU alone can make a difference.
Further expansion in GMO production is the solution!
Foods that are genetically modified are cheaper to produce, more
reliable due to weed, pest, and disease resistance,
And have high nutritional value
Scan this QR code for more information

Works Cited

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"Definition of Golden Rice in English:." Golden Rice. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Nov. 2015.
http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/golden-rice.
"Genetic Engineering vs. Natural Breeding: What's the Difference?" Grist. N.p., 16 July
2013. Web. 27 Nov. 2015. http://grist.org/food/genetic-engineering-vs-naturalbreeding-whats-the-difference/.
"GMO Products Lower Prices, Raise Yields and Concerns." WSJ. N.p., 18 Aug. 2014.
Web. 27 Nov. 2015. < http://www.wsj.com/articles/letters-gmo-products-lowerprices-raise-yields-and-concerns-letters-to-the-editor-1408384087>.
"Golden Rice Project." Vitamin A Deficiency. Jorge Mayer, n.d. Web. 24 Nov. 2015.
http://goldenrice.org/Content3-Why/why1_vad.php.
"Philippines Average Salaries & Expenditures." Philippines Average Salary Income.
N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Nov. 2015. < http://www.worldsalaries.org/philippines.shtml>.
Maxmen, Amy. "GMOs May Feed the World Using Fewer Pesticides." PBS. PBS, 24
July 2013. Web. 30 Nov. 2015. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/next/nature/fewerpesticides-farming-with-gmos/.
"Quick Facts: What You Need to Know about Global Hunger." Mercy Corps. N.p., 18
Mar. 2015. Web. 27 Nov. 2015.
http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/49000.html.
"Special Report: Golden Rice." Greenpeace International. N.p., 2009. Web. 24 Nov.
2015.
<http://www.greenpeace.org/international/en/campaigns/agriculture/problem/Gree
npeace-and-Golden-Rice/>.

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"Summit Disappoints UN Food Chief." BBC News. BBC, 16 Nov. 2009. Web. 07 Dec.
2015. < http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/8363555.stm>.
"Utah QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau." Utah QuickFacts from the US Census
Bureau. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Nov. 2015.
<http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/49000.html>.
"Vermont to Require Labeling of Genetically Modified Foods?" Biotechnology Law
Report 31.4 (2012): 368. AAAS Board of Directors. 20 Oct. 2012. Web. Nov.
2015. http://www.aaas.org/sites/default/files/AAAS_GM_statement.pdf.
"Vitamin A." Health Professional Fact Sheet. N.p., 05 June 2013. Web. 24 Nov. 2015.
https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/VitaminA-HealthProfessional/.
"Vitamin Deficiency | Symptoms, Causes and Treatment." Vitamin A Deficiency. N.p.,
2008. Web. 27 Nov. 2015. http://vitamindeficiencysymptoms.net/vitamin-adeficiency/.
"Who Are the Hungry? | WFP | United Nations World Food Programme - Fighting
Hunger Worldwide." Who Are the Hungry? | WFP | United Nations World Food
Programme - Fighting Hunger Worldwide. N.p., 2015. Web. 07 Dec. 2015.
http://www.wfp.org/hunger/who-are.