Hi 28° | Lo 16°  GMOs Seen as Playing Major Role in Battling
World Hunger  Many scientists argue that genetically engineered
crops have increased crop yield and reduced use of pesticides
and herbicides that can damage the environment. Just as
significant, they say, there is the potential for genetically
engineered crops to alleviate hunger and improve health in the
so-called developing world.  “Here’s the issue: a 7 billion
world population is predicted to go to around 10 billion (by
2050),” said Tom Jack, a professor of biology at Dartmouth
College. How will the world feed itself? “We could increase land
use or we could use land we’re already using to grow more crops”
by increasing their yield, Jack said. This is an area where
genetically modified crops can be beneficial, he said.  Because
of climate change, it wouldn’t be prudent to clear large swaths
of carbon-absorbing forests to make way for farm land, say Jack
and others who see a place for genetically modified crops,
commonly known as GMOs. Crops that