What are Biotechnology Foods?

On By Mei Cooper

Food biotechnology, also known as Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) or Genetically Engineered (GE) foods, are food products developed in a laboratory through the genetic modifications of plants, animals, or microorganisms.2 More specifically, GMOs are organisms in which the genetic material (DNA) has been altered in a way that does not naturally occur in nature. This method, also known as gene technology or recombinant DNA technology, allows individual genes to be transferred between organisms, whether between the same species or not.5

Biotech foods, or GM foods, have been around for thousands of years: since long ago, people have been fermenting fruit juice into wine, transforming milk into cheese, and more.2 Before gene editing, conventional crossbreeding techniques were used to improve crop yield from ancient civilizations to the 19th century.2 This refers to the random recombination of genes through sexual reproduction of plants, which leads to an organism with different traits from its parent plant. Crossbred plants may require several generations for a particular trait to come to fruition due to the randomness of gene transfer. These traits may be crop yield, color, shape, or tolerance.2

The origins of crossbreeding began in the 1860s, with scientist Gregor Mendel. He discovered the genetic principles of gene transfer between parent and offspring. These principles were then used to breed hybrid crops to increase plant yield, like corn and wheat. The method of cross-breeding plants to increase yield accounts for much of the surge in crop productivity during the 20th century. 

While this method involves mixing all the genes from two different sources, producing a GMO is much more targeted- only one or two genes are inserted into individual cells in a lab.3 The process of creating a GMO starts at a microscopic level- a scientist begins by inserting a gene into the DNA of a single cell’s nucleus. In the massive amount of DNA already present in the nucleus, the scientist only inserts a very small piece, leaving the vast majority of the organism’s genetic code untouched. 

Once the single cell has been modified, the scientist treats it with plant hormones to stimulate growth and development. The cell then begins dividing, with the resulting cells taking on the newly inserted functions until they become an entire plant. The new plant derives entirely from the edited single cell, resulting in all of the genes in the regenerated plant containing the new gene.3

Modern techniques of food biotechnology, such as genetic modification, are much faster and more precise than traditional methods- rather than depending on the randomness of genes over several generations, scientists can quickly implement a gene of interest. 

Today, GM foods are developed for multiple reasons to benefit consumers and farmers. Biotechnology crops can be genetically modified to tolerate specific herbicides, making weed control much simpler and more efficient..1 Some crops have also been engineered for resistance against pests by incorporating the gene for toxin production into plants.5 GM crops that inherently produce this toxin reduce the need for synthetic pesticides.1 Genetic modification can also enhance nutrition in some crops. In addition to plants, GMOs are also used to produce multiple medicines and vaccines to help prevent diseases with a lowered risk of transmission of disease and inconsistent quality.5  

References

  1. Biotechnology faqs. (n.d.). USDA. https://www.usda.gov/topics/biotechnology/biotechnology-frequently-asked-questions-faqs
  2. Food biotechnology. (n.d.). Www.Fmi.Org. https://www.fmi.org/blog/view/food-safety-backgrounders/2013/04/01/food-biotechnology-general-scientific-principles-safety-and-regulations
  3. Food, genetically modified. (n.d.). https://www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/food-genetically-modified
  4. What are GMOs? (n.d.). Purdue University – College of Agriculture. https://ag.purdue.edu/gmos/what-are-gmos.html
  5. Why do we use GMOs? (n.d.). Purdue University – College of Agriculture. https://ag.purdue.edu/gmos/why-gmos.html