The Major Problem with GMO Seeds Engineered to Solve 3rd World Vitamin Deficiencies | Alternet

A view from the other side. A very naive one at that,

"Big Ag and biotech firms spent more than two decades developing Golden Rice. That gusher of money, time and resources could have solved some of the broader, overarching and easy-to-fix problems peasant farmers face.

"By focusing on the real, underlying problems instead of a narrowly defined nutrient deficiency, countless numbers of people could have enjoyed a higher standard of living."

Why do I say this is naive, because throwing money at a problem doesn't work either, especially in countries with corrupt regimes. The OP is so blinded by her hatred of anything GMO that she wants to ignore the immediate benefits. Most of the countries mentioned do not have the infrastructure necessary to carry out her grand plan.

Now I do not fully grasp this whole GMO-NonGMO argument; the "it's bad" versus it's safe brouhaha. And to be honest, from a personal standpoint I don't care. I accept that science will do it's best to keep me safe. But throwing out the baby with the bath water, I do have an issue with. That is what I take away from this OP.
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A recent Scientific American blog post blamed environmentalists for costing poor, malnourished people an estimated 1,424,000 life years in India alone. Why? Because they presumably kept Golden Rice off the market for over a decade when it could have been helping the world’s poor during that time.

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Nobody I have met in developing countries gets vitamin A from eating staple grains. Neither do Americans. Like us, they eat varied diets full of fruits and vegetables, many of which are rich in vitamin A.

Vitamin A isn’t rare in food. And it’s not the only nutrient that malnourished people worldwide lack.

The malnourished people I met in my travels did not only lack this nutrient or that one — they simply lacked food. Like a Kenyan school where many kids did without breakfast and lunch every day. Some had to work in a quarry after school just to earn money to eat. Good bet those kids needed vitamin A — and every other vitamin, mineral, protein, fat and just plain old calories.

Golden Rice isn’t the best solution in such cases. It’s solving the root causes of poverty and hunger. That means ending injustice and corruption, providing access to water, secure land tenure and birth control, taking on the climate crisis and dealing with HIV/AIDS, among other things.

Big Ag and biotech firms spent more than two decades developing Golden Rice. That gusher of money, time and resources could have solved some of the broader, overarching and easy-to-fix problems peasant farmers face.

By focusing on the real, underlying problems instead of a narrowly defined nutrient deficiency, countless numbers of people could have enjoyed a higher standard of living.

The Major Problem with GMO Seeds Engineered to Solve 3rd World Vitamin Deficiencies | Alternet