Since the 1994 introduction to supermarket shelves of Calgene’s Flavr Savr tomato, the first genetically modified food item to be offered to consumers, transgenic foods have made a quiet transformation of the food production system in America. The amount of farmland planted with transgenic crops exploded from barely over 10,000 acres in 1994 to approximately 200 million acres in 2004. The Grocery Manufacturers of America estimate that transgenic crops—primarily corn and soybeans—now appear in approximately 75 percent of all processed foods found in grocery stores. While many in the industry applaud this transformation as a beneficial use of technology that will improve products and profits, many observers are concerned that the long-term effects of these transgenic foods are still poorly understood.

Humans have been modifying food since the dawn of agriculture. The difference between conventional selective breeding and biotechnology is that instead of relying on natural but targeted reproductive processes, biotechnology relies on the tools of recombinant DNA technology, primarily restriction endonucleases and ligase enzymes, to alter the genetic codes of organisms in ways that could not occur in nature. One transgenic food organism, the “Bt potato,” combines the genetic code of a regular potato with that of the Bacillus thuringiensis bacterium, resulting in a potato that is poisonous to many types of insect pests, but still edible by humans

Critics of bioengineering warn that we have no long-term studies on the effects of such manipulation of food organisms. Modified foods might have unintended consequences for the health of people who eat them. The modifications introduced into domesticated crops might spread into wild plant species, fundamentally altering the ecosystem. Many critics have argued that the introduction of bioengineered foods gives biotechnology companies undue power over the processes of food production, and thereby leaves small farmers and farmers in the developing world at the mercy of large corporations. Perhaps the most common criticism leveled at transgenic foods is that they are “not natural.

Despite these criticisms, the agricultural industry in America has continued to move ahead with further research into and planting of transgenic crops. Government regulatory agencies, such as the EPA, the FDA, and the Department of Agriculture, have essentially given biotechnology companies free rein as long as they can establish that transgenic crops are “substantially similar” to conventional crops, and biotechnology companies have so far successfully fought off all efforts to have transgenic foods labeled as such. To date, no confirmed case of harmful health effects from transgenic foods has been documented. American consumers, although they consistently voice doubts about transgenic foods when asked about them on surveys, are apparently unconcerned that they eat, on average, several genetically modified foods each week.

1. Which of the following statements best summarizes the main idea of the passage?

A. The tools of recombinant DNA technology have spurred a fundamental transformation in the way in which food is engineered and grown.
B. A majority of Americans now eat transgenic foods because of the benefits in nutrition and cost offered by these new products.
C. Despite the fact that transgenic foods have been proven unsafe for human consumption, biotechnology companies have quietly achieved widespread distribution of these foods.
D. Genetically modified foods, although they face criticism from those who doubt their safety, have become a significant part of the American food production system.
E. Biotechnology offers a solution to the growing levels of hunger and malnutrition in the developing world, although critics worry that transgenic foods may have unintended health consequences


2. The passage mentions each of the following as concerns raised by critics of transgenic foods EXCEPT:

A. Transgenic foods might affect the health of consumers in unforeseen ways.
B. Transgenic foods may be more resistant to insect pests than conventional crops.
C. An agricultural distribution system based on genetically modified food will leave small farmers dependent on biotechnology conglomerates.
D. There is no data on what the health effects may be for humans who eat transgenic foods over a period of several decades.
E. Plant species in the wild might become contaminated by genetically modified species


3. Which of the following inferences drawn from the statements in the final paragraph, if accurate, might best explain the apparently contradictory finding that Americans voice concerns over transgenic foods in polls but consume these foods on a regular basis?

A. Government regulatory agencies have approved the sale of transgenic foods to consumers as long as the producers can establish that the transgenic foods are “substantially similar” to conventional foods.
B. American farmers planted over 200 million acres with transgenic crops in 2004, a substantial increase from the acreage planted with transgenic crops a decade earlier.
C. American consumers may be unaware that they are eating transgenic foods because of the biotechnology industry’s success in preventing the labeling of these foods.
D. Critics of genetic engineering have been unsuccessful in their attempts to impose bans on transgenic food through the EPA and FDA.
E. As of the writing of the passage, no deaths or other adverse health effects had been documented in connection with the consumption of transgenic foods.


4. The relationship between a conventional potato and a “Bt potato” is most similar to which of the following?

A. The relationship between a conventional automobile and one that has been equipped with a revolutionary new engine technology that allows it to fly.
B. The relationship between a regular hamburger and one that has been made poisonous through the addition of bleach.
C. The relationship between a laptop computer and a similar computer that is twice as fast as the first computer because it has a more powerful central processing unit.
D. A wild chicken and a domesticated chicken that has been bred to gain weight three times faster than a wild chicken.
E. A boiled potato and a baked potato with all the fixings.


5. The second paragraph plays what role in the passage?

A. It presents the first of two arguments discussed in the passage.
B. It suggests that the hypothesis advanced in the first paragraph is incomplete.
C. It refutes an argument and suggests an area for further study, which is discussed in the rest of the passage.
D. It suggests a new way of looking at a topic that differs from the conventional view presented in the first paragraph.
E. It provides background information relevant to the topic discussed in the following paragraphs.


6. The author’s attitude toward transgenic food can best be described as which of the following?

A. Angry and concerned.
B. Accepting and optimistic.
C. Enthusiastically ambivalent.
D. Interested but uncommitted.
E. Hopeful but suspicious.