Ethics and Genetically Modified Foods

Much of the food consumed in the United States is genetically modified (GM), i.e. derived from microorganisms, plants, or animals that have been manipulated at the molecular level to provide them with traits that farmers or consumers desire. These foods often are produced using techniques in which " foreign " genes are inserted into the microorganisms, plants, or animals. Foreign genes are those taken from sources other than the organism' s natural parents. In other words, GM plants contain genes they would not have contained if researchers had only used traditional plant breeding methods. Some consumer advocates object to GM foods on ethical grounds, and in such cases they typically have reasons for their opposition. In scrutinizing their reasons, we are practicing applied ethics. Applied ethics involves identifying peoples' arguments for various conclusions, and then analyzing those arguments to determine whether they support the conclusions. A critical goal here is to decide whether an argument is sound. A sound argument is one in which all of the premises are true and no mistakes have been made in reasoning. Ethically justifiable conclusions inevitably rest on two kinds of claims: (a) empirical claims, or factual assertions about how the world is—claims ideally based on the best available scientific observations, principles, and theories, and (b) normative claims, or value-laden assertions about how the world ought to be—claims ideally based on the best available moral judgments, principles, and theories. Is it ethically justifiable to produce genetically modified crops and foods? There is an objective answer to this question, and we will try here to figure out what it is. But we must begin with a proper, heavy, dose of epistemic humility, acknowledging that few ethicists at the moment seem to think that they know the final answer.