Agrobiotechnology

Agrobiotechnology is a range of tools, including traditional breeding techniques, that alter living organisms, or parts of organisms, to make or modify products; improve plants or animals; or develop microorganisms for specific agricultural uses. Modern agricultural biotechnology includes the tools of genetic engineering. The research on and development of agricultural products such as crop varieties and crop protection products by modifying genes to confer desirable properties such as pest resistance or improved nutritional profiles.
The first genetically engineered product went on the market in 1994. The FDA determined that a new tomato, which could be shipped vine-ripened without rotting rapidly, was as safe as other commercial tomatoes. Since then, more than 50 other genetically engineered foods have been determined by the agency to be as safe as their conventional counterparts.

The Grocery Manufacturers of America estimates that between 70 percent and 75 percent of all processed foods available in U.S. grocery stores may contain ingredients from genetically engineered plants. Breads, cereal, frozen pizzas, hot dogs and soda are just a few of them.

Soybean oil, cottonseed oil and corn syrup are ingredients used extensively in processed foods. Soybeans, cotton and corn dominate the 100 million acres of genetically engineered crops that were planted in the United States in 2003, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Through genetic engineering, these plants have been made to ward off pests and to tolerate herbicides used to kill weeds. Other crops, such as squash, potatoes, and papaya, have been engineered to resist plant diseases.

More than 50 biotech food products have been evaluated by the FDA and found to be as safe as conventional foods, including canola oil, corn, potatoes, soybeans, squash, sugar beets and tomatoes.