One of the goals of agricultural biotechnology is that of creating a strain of wheat that can grow in drier climates. This would allow currently non-arable areas of the globe to be used for crop growth and food production. The increased food production will help feed millions of starving humans. There are several complex issues involved, however. If the new strain of wheat (let's call it superwheat) is developed by a company, that company will need to recoup its development costs and will have to charge a fairly high price for the seed. This might put it out of the reach of small farmers exactly the kind of farmer who lives in semi-arable climates in many third world countries. On the other hand, the company that develops the new superwheat has a right to recoup its development costs (and make a profit?) - if they could not do so, the superwheat would never be developed. Despite the human misery that might be alleviated by superwheat, someone has to pay for its development and production (people need to earn a living as scientists, administrators, distributors, truckers, shippers, carton manufacturers, etc.). Revenue might come from many different sources: from taxes in the "developer" country, from taxes in the recipient country, from new farm cooperatives in the third world countries (what happens to the single farmer?), from the UN (but who pays the UN?), and from many other possible mechanisms. State how you would address this problem of revenue and discuss the moral and ethical issues involved in you decision.
Danielle Unger (1996): Can Genetic Engineering End World Hunger?
Laura Heinichen (1996): Altruism - The Way to End Hunger
Meredith Johnson (1996): Biotechnology: Ideals or Possibilities?
Nada Payne (1996): Superwheat: How to Pass the Buck
Stephanie Little (1996): Possibilities for Sharing Biotechnology with Developing Nations
Zachary Stein (1996): Superwheat: The Biotech Bandaid That Couldn't