Biotechnology Unzipped: Promises and Realities. Rev. ed.

Alan Belk is a sessional instructor in the Philosophy Department at the
University of Guelph.

The main conclusion I drew from reading this book is that in North
America the public is out of the loop when it comes to biotechnology.
Did you know that biotechnology is applied in many ways to crop
production, livestock production, pharmaceutical production, fish and
seafood production, tree production, mineral refining, pesticide
production, environmental remediation, and the creation of medical
research subjects such as the oncomouse (not patented in Canada)? Not to
mention its applications in detecting and preventing genetic diseases.

The author presents an accessible and comprehensive overview of genetic
manipulation, focusing on the cell and how we are well on the way to
being able to create cells that do (or don’t do) anything we want them
to. What is striking is the breadth of our activity, which Grace
describes in a clear and straightforward manner, augmented with a few
effective pictures, diagrams, and tables.

There is no doubt that much biotechnology is of benefit to everyday
Canadians. Our bacon may soon come from an enviropig whose excrement
contains less phosphorus than that of your common hog. Our milk is
produced by cows that could be (but aren’t) producing maximally
courtesy of genetically modified bovine growth hormone. Short of buying
only fresh organic produce and cooking all our food from raw
ingredients, it seems we have no influence on the intrusion of genetic
engineering into our lives. The best interests of Monsanto and other
biotech companies are not necessarily our best interests. Until there is
a more-informed public debate over the use of biotechnology, we cannot
be sure that our interests are being served. If you need or want to
bring yourself up to speed on where biotechnology is at, then this is a
must-have book. But read it quickly, for biotechnology is moving very
fast.