GM TechnologyEthical and moral dimensions

Dr Bernie JonesAMASA 912/11/13

Ethical issues 1

• First, consider scientists’ ethics and conduct

• Evil scientists only* exist in Hollywood

Ethical issues 2

“Scientists are playing God”

• Is using science and biotechnology really “playing God”?

3

Playing God?

• No explicit instruction of prohibition in the sacred texts

– Holy Bible– Holy Quran– Sacred texts of other religions

Playing God?

• Species boundaries derive from the view of Plato and Aristotle about eternal and ideal forms

• ‘boundary-crossing’ prohibited to keep things separate for reasons of health, purity or cleanliness

• Historical arguments about the fixity of species and fear of new varieties (eg potato not in Bible).

• What we have heard about how the genetics and form of almost all crops (and some animals) have been altered over the millennia

Playing God?

• Insights into humans as ‘co-creators’ with God

• Contributing to, rather than usurping the divine work of creation through new technology.

Classical questions

GM and biotechnology:

– Is it safe? – Is it natural? – Is it fair? – Is it needed?

Is it safe?

• Questions of risks and risk assessment are notoriously hard to discuss rationally

• Individual perception of risk and benefit– Mobile phones– Surgery– Road travel– “Dangerous” sports

• Risks and benefits to wildlife and environment are no different from the introduction of any new plant variety or advanced hybrids derived from the well-established methods of conventional plant breeding

Some more about safety

Is it natural?

• More like “hijacking” living processes and turning them to new ends

• Which is what humans have been doing for millennia• …and what agrobacterium has been quietly and happily been

doing for even longer• But still troublesome• How do we feel about:

– in-vitro fertilisation– genetic testing during pregnancy– genetic technology to produce insulin, or vaccines

Is it fair?

• Public concerns expressed where they see science and its presentation shaped solely by commercial interests

• Commercial vs public benefit• Developed world vs developing world benefit• Regulation• Intellectual property• Technology is fair; its application depends tho

Is it needed?

• Achieving food security requires that benefits outweigh the costs– risks are likely to be dealt with by well-functioning markets– market failure needs to be identified and targeted– barriers may exist that prevent markets functioning

• Challenges that cannot (reasonably) be solved by other methods

• Impact of the European Union (need, activists, European institutions)

Country Vote

Germany 29France 29UK 29Italy 29Spain 27Poland 27Romania 14Netherlands 13

Portugal 12Belgium 12Czech 12Hungary 12Greece 12Sweden 10Austria 10Bulgaria 10Slovakia 7Finland 7Denmark 7Ireland 7Lithuania 7Latvia 4Slovenia 4Luxembourg 4

Cyprus 4Estonia 4Malta 3

Power Politics (Porter, 2010)

In favourWavering

Against

EU Member States general attitudes to GM

yes somewhat not sure no OK

Do you agree or not with use of biotechnology for food security?

77% of EU citizens are in favour of taking advantage of biotechnology in agriculture

Thank you!