Mơ: Good morning, welcome to our program “ People ask, ministers answer”. We are going to talk about some problems of GM foods in agriculture. And today our guests are two professors, Dr Linh ( Linh: Hi, thanks for having me on the show) and Dr Thanh ( Thanh: A pleasure to be here), and two farmers Mrs. Ngân and Mrs. Chuyên ( Ngân and Chuyên: Thank you)

Now, we will start with a question from Mrs. Ngân. Mrs Ngân, what is your question for two professors?

Ngân: Oh, thank you. I know GM food is now popular and favourable. So can you give some different aspects between GM foods and traditional foods?

Linh: First of all, what I want to ask you is that what feature do you think conventional foods have when you work as a farmer?

Ngân: Well, to me, to conventionally breed a new plant variety two closely related plants are ‘sexually crossed’ to combine the favourable traits from both parent plants.

Chuyên :Oh yes, I have an idea. While GM foods allows breeders to use genes from unrelated plants and sometimes other organisms into a new variety.

Linh: Exactly, the key difference is that instead of randomly mixing genes, which occurs as a result of a sexual cross, a specific gene, which is associated with a desirable trait, is selected and inserted directly into the new plant variety.

Mơ: Oh, what about Dr Thanh? What do you think about this problem?

Thanh: Ok, One thing you easily find is that traditional foods are safe.When new foods are developed by natural methods, some of the existing characteristics of foods can be altered, either in a positive or a negative way.

We set up specific systems for the rigorous evaluation of GM organisms and GM foods relative to both human health and the environment. Similar evaluations are generally not performed for traditional foods. Hence there is a significant difference in the evaluation process prior to marketing for these two groups of food.

Mơ: Oh, yes. And do you mind provide other information for two farmers in here as well as viewers to understand more clearly?

Linh: That's ok, of course. GM products grow faster than the foods that are grown in the traditional manner. Dute to this, productivity increases, providing the population with more food.

Thanh: Moreover, GM food crops can be grown at places with unfavourable climatic conditions too while a normal crop can grow only in specific season or under some favourable climatic conditions.

Ngân: That's true. It's a advantage we like most in GM Pr. Right? Mrs. Chuyên?

Chuyên : Sure. We don't have to waste of too much time and efforts.Oh, and what about the cost for them?

Linh: Oh,Their cost of production is said to be lesser than that of the traditional crops. The main reason for this is that these foods have natuaral resistance toward pets and insects and so, it is not neccessary to use pesticides and insectisides.

Thanh: And it's a reason why GM foods are free from chemicals and environment friendly as well.

Chuyên: I see, as what you are saying, difference proves that GM foods are better than traditional food?

Ngân1: So what else difference??

Linh: Oh,uhm. About nutrient.yes, GM products are high in nutrients and contain more minerals and vitamins than those found in traditional grown foods. Moreover, these foods are known to taste better. People will feel safe and comfortable to enjoy them.

Mơ: Well, thank everyone. So through some questions below, we can see that GM foods have more outstanding benefits than traditional foods about many aspects such as safety, fast growth, nutrition for our health and costs. Oh, let’s continue the program with another question. Mrs Chuyên, do you have any idea?

Chuyên: Well, I have to admit that GM foods meet the demand to produce inexpensive, safe and nutritious foods to help feed the world’s growing population. The number of people consuming GM food is on a rise, so can you give me a reason explaining for this increasing number? Dr Thanh?

Thanh: It’s true that there are more and more people choose GM foods instead of traditional fod because GM foods provide inexpensive and nutritious food, like carrots with more antioxidants , foods with a greater shelf life, like tomatoes that taste better and last longer and food with medicinal benefits, such as edible vaccines - for example, bananas with bacterial or rotavirus antigens. GM foods bring us a lot of advantages. Do you agree? Dr Linh?

Linh: Oh yes, I absolutaly agree. Moreover, advocates argue that GM foods are potentially better for the environment. By using genetically engineered crops that are resistant to attack by pests or disease, farmers and primary producers do not have to apply large amounts of pesticides and chemicals to the surrounding environment. Developing crops that are resistant to particular herbicides and pesticides may reduce the amount of pesticides used in food production and the residual pesticide levels in the environment.

Mơ: Oh,Thanks for your information. Mrs Ngân, what do you think about this? Ngân: Oh, I have recently read an article about how GM foods cam harm human’s health. The article says that new allergens could be inadvertently created - known allergens could be transferred from traditional foods into GM foods. For instance, during laboratory testing, a gene from the Brazil nut was introduced into soybeans. It was found that people with allergies to Brazil nuts could also be allergic to soybeans that had been genetically modified in this way. For this reason, I don’t think GM food is a good idea when it can cause bad effect on our health.

Chuyên: I agree with you. Moreover, I know that bioengineers sometimes insert a ‘marker’ gene to help them identify whether a new gene has been successfully introduced to the host DNA. One such marker gene is for resistance to particular antibiotics. If genes coded for such resistance enter the food chain and are taken up by human gut microflora, the effectiveness of antibiotics could be reduced and human infectious disease risk increased.

Mơ: Oh, according to newspaper I read yesterday, for this problem, research has shown that the risk is very low. However, there is general agreement that use of these markers should be phased out. This belongs to potential risks that GM foods bring. GM foods pruducing process is very complex. The potential risks are unpredictable. However, the risks that have already been found out are not so dangerous to our health. After all, many experts state that GM foods is a still a good choice for consumer. Ok, so which aspects of GM foods do you two need to have more information ? Mrs Ngân, can you ask first?

Ngân: Oh well, some people said that genetically engineered plants are generated in a laboratory by altering their genetic make-up and are tested in the laboratory for desired qualities. Is that right? Could you talk about this method of production GM foods?

Linh: Oh, it’s true. This is usually done by adding one or more genes to a plant's genome using genetic engineering techniques. Most genetically modified plants can be modified in a directed way by gene addition (cloning) or gene subtraction (genes are removed or inactivated). Plants are now engineered for insect resistance, fungal resistance, viral resistance, herbicide resistance, changed nutritional content, improved taste, and improved storage.

Thanh: Oh, yes, I agree with you, Dr Linh.

Mơ: Oh, I see your point. This process to create GM foods is quite complicated. So could you tell us about some kind of plants which is applied in this way?

Thanh: Yes, sure. The best example is golden rice, or genetically modified rice that now contains a large amount of A-vitamins. Or more correctly, the rice contains the element beta-carotene which is converted in the body into Vitamin-A. So when you eat golden rice, you get more vitamin A.

Chuyên: And what about other plants? I really want to know to make my farm become more productive.

Linh: Oh yes. Another example is Beta-carotene which gives carrots their orange colour and is the reason why genetically modified rice is golden. For the golden rice to make beta-carotene three new genes are implanted: two from daffodils and the third from a bacterium.

Ngân: Oh, I have an idea. Long-lasting and genetically modified tomatoes are also famous, right?

Linh: Exactly. This kind of tomatoes came on to the market in 1994 and were the first genetically modified food available to consumers. The genetically modified tomato produces less of the substance that causes tomatoes to rot, so remains firm and fresh for a long time.

Mơ: Oh, thank everyone. And, do you two have any other questions for our professors? Mrs Ngân and Mrs Chuyên?

Ngân: Oh thanks, I don’t have any other questions. Thanks for your help, Dr Linh and Dr Thanh.

Chuyên: Oh no, now I totally understand about GM foods. I think answers from two professors today are really useful for me to develop my farm in the future.

Dr Linh: You’re welcom.

Dr Thanh: Good luck to you.

Mơ: So I think we have enough time for the program today. We will continue the show in next weekend. Thanks everyone once again.