Food Evolution

The film has two main points. One is that activists, often with a vested interest, have been saying anything they can for years to scare people over this breeding tool. The second is that genetic engineering is just a tool. No one says it is a miracle cure for world hunger, but it should be in the toolbox when needed. For example, conventional breeding cannot be used on diseased bananas. GE breeding can.

I'm a scientist in this field, and it has always driven me nuts that the GMO debate was often carried out through documentaries, but there wasn't one that made sure to get the science right. This one does. It shows both sides, as well as the faults that go along with them. If you are unsure at all about food, GMOs, or the science around it, this is an excellent place to go. It's funded independently of all sides of the issue, so they are unbiased, just led by the facts. It's a truly excellent film.

For years discussions of GMOs, or genetically modified organisms, have been clouded by a fog of terrible cherry-picked documentaries that opponents use as "proof" that there are scary things under the bed that are lurking for us. All the while scientists stayed in their labs, doing the actual work, that showed GMOs have great benefits and potential for solving real problems of food security and environmental challenges we face.

Finally a science-based look at genetic engineering and its applications helps explain the situation better. But it's not a nerdy lecture. It's a compelling story of papayas, bananas, and people in this drama. The heroes are the scientists and science advocates finally out of the labs to discuss this, the villains are charlatans peddling their detox potions and fear-mongering.

And I could listen to Neil DeGrasse Tyson all day long.

Disclosure: I am a scientist, and friends with many of the science participants in the film. But I had nothing to do with the film. I've just been lucky enough to see it ahead of release.

Edit to add: beware of the folks who are talking about this film who haven't seen it. They are wrong about the contents of the film, I assure you.

I saw this last week. It's really great to see a science-based look at this topic, rather than the emotional, non-science viewpoint of those who don't understand it, which has been the typical Hollywood presentation of this subject. I wish it could have covered some topics in more depth, but movies have their limitations. A large portion of the population has been misled into believing genetically modified crops are inherently bad, and poor people around the world suffer because of the influence of westerners who have more money than they have science education. The only reason I gave 9 stars instead of 10 is that there should have been more subtitles for those of us English-speakers not adept at understanding heavy accents.

Where are the GMO risks - noone has ever shown any. Really a good documentary among all the hysteria about GMO.