Genetically Modified Foods: Legal and Scientific Overview of Manipulation Techniques Application and Public Policy Challenges

Genetically Modified foods are a unique point of convergence between biotechnology, law, and policy, providing answers to food security issues globally with the challenges of climate change. The article is a scientific summary of the manipulation practices, both traditional selective breeding and the latest CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing, and how precise they are when it comes to improving crop characteristics such as pest-resistance and nutritional values. It looks at applications, such as Bt corn to enhance yields and Golden Rice to add Vitamin A levels, highlighting application advantages in terms of hunger reduction and environmental efficacy. Juridically, the analysis compares international policies such as the Cartagena Protocol with national policies such as the precautionary approach of the EU to the product-based regulation of the U.S. and reveals trade and labelling conflicts. Issues of public policy such as safety tests, ethical concerns of playing God, and consumer distrust are also discussed using recent 2025 statistics of a 300 percent increase of AI-assisted biotech scandals. Based on the analysis and comparison, the article suggests harmonized international standards, compulsory transparent labelling, and the involvement of all stakeholders to strike a balance between innovation and risk reduction. By ensuring these aspects these GM foods can be transformed into non-debatable resources, ensuring good accessibility and protecting biodiversity and human health. This synthesis calls on policy-makers, in conjunction with scientific evidence, to combine scientific and ethical governance with resilient Agri-systems.