Why be so concerned? On the plus side, GMOs may solve a key problem and enable global growth. They may solve the Malthusian conundrum, and prevent what people have been fearing for centuries -- namely that the earth cannot support more than a certain number of humans consuming what they consume. Still, GMOs are widely distrusted, even hated.

The animus toward GMOs is widely shared, and yet, the prevalence of GMOs has been part of the massive increase in agricultural production over the last few decades. Yes, that point in not without controversy. Critics of the biotechnological advancements in agriculture claim that decades of use have not increased yields and instead have weakened the organic food chain, eliminated crop varieties and actually decreased the resilience of the food chain worldwide by reducing natural diversity.

Still, it's undeniable that as the population has exploded in the last hundred years, so has our food supply. That is especially true in the last 20 years, which have seen the sharpest rise in acres planted with genetically-modified seeds. In 1992, there were about 5 billion on the planet; today that number is in excess of 7 billion and climbing. Yet far from there being food shortages, much of the world is in surplus. Not everyone has enough food, but it's not for lack of supply, but because of distribution. Potable water is a far greater issue.

Over the last two decades, crop yields have increased significantly in countries that have high levels of biotech crops. In the United States, close to 90 percent of corn and soybeans are genetically modified, with seeds made by Monsanto leading the way. Since 1992, yields have climbed as much as 75 percent. Similar effects have been seen throughout the world, from Brazil to Russia to South Africa.

It's true that agricultural productivity has been growing steadily in the past century, even before biotechnology produced seeds. And many of today's GMO seeds don't themselves increase yields; they are designed to reduce the need for pesticides. Proponents say that using fewer pesticides is not only good for health, it is good for the planet. In addition, some of the next generation of GMO seeds are being designed to deal with the pressing issue in the years ahead: climate changes and more drought. Drought-resistant seeds may be the key to avoiding large-scale famine as the global population grows and arable land shrinks. It's either that, or people getting by on less food.

Better to go with the former. And yet consumers seem to be struggling with the choice. Part of the mistrust around GMOs stems from the companies that make them - Monsanto, Dupont, Syngenta - companies that have not always engendered the support of farmers. Monsanto in particular, having produced the toxic deforestation chemical Agent Orange during the Vietnam War and taken a strong hand with price fixing for small farmers has been vilified as the worst of corporate greed and indifference. Though Monsanto's culture has changed dramatically in recent years, these images take a long time to fade, and as its recent Supreme Court case against a farmer who tried to copy its seeds demonstrates, it still has an adversarial relationship with its customers.