You should spend about 40 minutes on this task.
Write about the following topic:
As the world population increases, genetically modified crops are becoming essential to meet rising demands for food.
To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement?
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Write at least 250 words.
The human population has rapidly increased since the turn of the 20th Century, which has presented problems in maintaining an adequate food supply for the world’s population. To meet this challenge, genetically modified crops are an increasingly important tool, although there are also other technologies that could be used in their place.
Genetically modified (GM) crops offer a valuable solution that can reduce starvation in the face of a growing human population. These crops may be subject to a range of modifications, including drought resistance, salt tolerance and increased yield. This means that not only can more areas be cultivated which are currently unusable due to harsh environmental conditions, but the amount of food can also be increased. Clearly, this technology affords an opportunity to meet future food requirements and should therefore be widely employed.
However, it would be a mistake to assume that GM crops offer the only solution. Of the alternative techniques available, vertical farming is among the most compelling. In vertical farming systems, plants are grown in large stacked systems under controlled conditions. This has a similar impact on yield to GM crops and allows crops to be grown more widely. In many arid regions, this is being combined with desalination to ensure local food security and reduce reliance on food imports. While expensive, it would not be particularly difficult to roll this technology out in other areas where local food supplies are inadequate, offering a viable alternative to genetically modified crops.
In conclusion, genetically modified food is certainly a useful tool to combat hunger, and the technology should be used more widely. However, saying such crops are essential is an overstatement, given the availability of alternative cultivation systems that could solve the same problem.
(288 words)
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