Evaluation of GMOs safety.

The mention of the acronym GMO arouses immediate interest and triggers discussions that are often contradictory. However, do our fellow citizens know what lies behind these three letters, what genetically modified organisms are, what types of GMOs are today anything other than laboratory curiosities, what are their different types of use, what are their possible and probable developments? Finally, do GMOs, and in particular genetically modified plants used as food sources, present any health risks? These are just some of the questions this article sets out to answer.

Enzymes derived from genetically modified microorganisms (GMMs) have been used for over fifteen years in the manufacture of many fermented food products, such as cereal cooking products, beer and cheese. While these enzymes have been assessed for their absence of health risks (France is one of the few countries to have food enzyme regulations), the public has not shown any negative reaction to their use. We can imagine that this is due to ignorance and also, and perhaps above all, because the GMMs from which enzymes are derived are not disseminated in the environment.

For the time being, genetically modified animals are no more than research tools and have yet to provoke any real reaction, while the consumption of cloned animal products is beginning to be contested in consumer circles across the Atlantic.

Today, the debate in society essentially concerns genetically modified plants (GMPs), whether as food, a source of food or a source of molecules of pharmaceutical or industrial interest. Given the importance of the development of GM plants as foods or food sources, and the specific nature of the assessment of their safety for human or animal consumption, my comments will be limited to GM plants.

In 2007, GMPs were grown on more than 114 million hectares worldwide (see figure ). ): 101 Mha on the American continent, around 6 Mha in India and 4 Mha in China, and very little in Europe (less than 300,000 ha, including 100,000 ha in Spain and Romania, and around 22,000 ha in France). Worldwide, the species concerned are mainly soya (51% of cultivated areas), followed by maize (31%), cotton (13%) and rapeseed (5%). In 2007, these GMPs were therefore field crops grown in major agricultural countries.

The applications correspond well to the objectives of these countries: herbicide tolerance for 63% of cultivated areas and insect resistance, mainly to Lepidoptera, for 18%. Both traits have been introduced simultaneously in GMPs grown on 19% of acreage. .

So, for the time being, other plant species and other novel traits in GMPs are little more than laboratory...