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The question of nutritional quality has arisen in the International Community over the last few years along with other important issues such as population aging, multipopulation societies, and political conflicts. The nutritional issue is questioned both quantitatively and qualitatively. It is well known that the planet faces enormous problems with food that is available. Nowadays 20% of the population consumes approximately 80% of the produced energy and natural resources.
During the last 15 years, a series of food scares and crises (BSE, dioxin, foot and mouth disease, bird flu) have seriously undermined public confidence in food producers and operators and their capacity to produce safe food. As a result, food safety has become a top priority of the European legislative authorities. Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) is the new food safety concern which despite the intense reactions from Non Governmental Organizations and consumer organizations have entered our lives with inadequate legislative measures to protect consumers from their consumption. The GMO issue will be the issue for discussion in the long run not only for the European Community but also for the international community as far as scientific, economical, political, ideological, ethical, and human issues are concerned. These issues are discussed in this paper along with a case of study of GM fish.
Keywords GMOs, scientific, economical, political, ideological, ethical, human issues, GM fish
INTRODUCTION
What are CMOS? Myths and Reality
Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) can be defined as organisms in which the genetic material (DNA) has been altered in a way that does not occur naturally. The technology is often called "modern biotechnology" or "gene technology," sometimes also "recombinant DNA technology" or "genetic engineering." It allows selected individual genes to be transferred from one organism into another, also between non-related species. Such methods are used to create GM plants-which are then used to grow GM food crops.
GM foods are developed, and marketed, because there is some perceived advantage either to the producer or consumer of these foods. This is meant to translate into a product with a lower price, greater benefit (in terms of durability or nutritional value), or both. Initially GM seed developers wanted their products to be accepted by producers so have concentrated on innovations that farmers (and the food industry more...