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Monitoring issues affecting the produce industry.

Article Excerpt
The Produce Marketing Association (PMA) monitors concerns of the produce industry and informs its membership. From nutrition to food safety, PMA strives to give its members the information they need when they need it, with insight and analysis. Some of the issues PMA actively monitors include biotechnology, fresh-cut produce and lab testing for microorganisms.

BIOTECHNOLOGY

People have been eating foods processed through biotechnology for many years. These biotech processes include breeding and selection techniques and fermentation, which have been used for centuries to produce cheese, bread, wine, and many other foods. In fact, virtually all plants used for food have been genetically modified to create new plant varieties with desirable traits.

Foods developed through biotechnology are in the marketplace. Some of the earliest food crops were soybeans, field corn, canola and wheat. More recently, the Rainbow variety of papaya from Hawaii was genetically engineered to resist a virus that was destroying the crop.

Techniques

In discussing biotechnology or genetic engineering, it is important to understand basic genetics. All genes--both plant and animal--are made from the same four chemicals, known as A, G, C, and T. They are arranged in a few to hundreds of thousands of combinations to form genes or the DNA of living organisms. Genes are then formed together to make chromosomes.

Traditional breeding and selection methods have been used successfully for years. However, the process is very time-consuming, sometimes requiring up to 20 years to develop a new plant variety. This is because traditional methods are random and imprecise, involving the passing of thousands of genes with each generation. It is difficult to guarantee that the undesirable traits will not be passed along with the desired traits and to screen for all possible trait combinations. This results in the tedious effort of selecting out those varieties that are most desirable and continuing the process until the final plant variety is achieved.

New biotechnology techniques--specifically genetic engineering--are an extension of older techniques and apply the same principles that have been used for years. However, new biotechnology is more precise and direct than traditional breeding and selection and allows for the transfer of genes from one species or genus to another. This is because new biotechnology allows for the transfer of a single genetic trait--rather than thousands as in traditional breeding--in a predictable and controllable manner. A wider range of new traits can be introduced into food without the introduction of extraneous and undesirable genes and in a more timely fashion.

The following are all examples of genetic tools that fall under the term biotechnology: genetic engineering, enzyme and protein engineering, cell and enzyme immobilization technology, fermentation technology, biosensor, monoclonal antibody and DNA probe technology, plant and mammalian cell tissue culture, polymerase chain reaction, and anti-sense RNA and DNA technology.

Benefits

Genetic engineering has been used for many years in health care research. Most of the human insulin currently on the market is produced by genetically engineered bacteria.

For food, biotechnology also holds great promise in revolutionizing old processes like fermentation and crossbreeding. Biotechnology allows for the development of crops that resist disease and pests and, in turn, reduce our dependence on agricultural chemical controls. Genetically engineered products could exhibit improved nutritional content, better taste and texture, longer shelf life, or better tolerance to processing. They could be faster...