Humans have been manipulating crop genetics for thousands of years, crossing and selecting plants that exhibit desirable traits. In the last century, breeders exposed crops to radiation and chemicals that induced random mutations. These and other lab methods gave fruits and vegetables new colors, made crops disease resistant and made grains easier to harvest. Most wheat, rice and barley are descendants of mutant varieties, as are many vegetables and fruits. Hello, Star Ruby grapefruit! In the early 1980s, scientists discovered how to insert genes from other species into plants. The process led to the 1994 commercialization of the first GMO, the Flavr Savr tomato. It was tasteless and was pulled from the market. No GMO meat is currently for sale, though not for lack of trying. AquaBounty Technologies has been trying for 19 years to win approval for salmon engineered to grow twice as fast as conventional salmon, with less feed. The 1995 application remains pending before the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which has determined the fish is safe to consume. Advocates want it labeled.

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Engineered Food