Havest on He Hoizon: Fture Uses of Agrultural Biothnology

Over the last decade, scientists' ability to alter the traits of plants and animals by moving genes from one organism into another has come out of the laboratory into mainstream domestic agriculture. To date, scientists have largely used this technology to create crops that benefit farmers, such as corn and cotton capable of fending off destructive pests, and soybeans resistant to chemical herbicides. Now, however, in numerous universities and company laboratories, the power of biotechnology is being used to modify agricultural plants and animals for a wider array of purposes. Among other things, scientists are exploring whether it is possible to increase cancer fighting ingredients in food, to harvest organs from animals for transplantation to humans, to deliver vaccines in fruit and to rescue threatened species such as the American chestnut tree. While many future applications will continue to be aimed at solving age-old agricultural problems like protecting crops from pests, genetic engineering may create new opportunities—and challenges—for the future. This report, the first published by the Pew Initiative on Food and Biotechnology, provides an illustrative overview of what could be the " next generation " of genetically engineered agricultural products. It should not be considered a comprehensive inventory of everything in the R&D pipeline, or a forecast of what is to come. Much of the research cited is at an early stage, and many of the applications face significant technical, economic, marketing and regulatory issues before they can be brought to market. Instead, this report is intended to underscore the broad scope of current agricultural biotechnology research and to illustrate some of its potential uses, many of which are dramatically different than those commercially available today. The report is not intended to be an endorsement for these future applications. Indeed, it is likely that many of them will generate strong debate on their relative risks and benefits. Harvest on the Horizon has deliberately avoided a discussion of those issues to provide a clear snapshot of the breadth of today's agricultural biotechnology research efforts. Future reports and activities of the Pew Initiative on Food and Biotechnology will examine the broader public policy issues raised by agricultural biotechnology. This report is intended to help inform that debate by illustrating the range of potential uses of agricultural biotechnology being explored by scientists. We would like to acknowledge the contribution of Joyce A. Nettleton, DSc, RD, who combined both published work and the …