Genetically modified crops include a wide variety of foods: plums, soybeans, canola oil and vegetables such as corn, sugar beets and zucchini. Papaya is another fruit that is genetically modified, which is the result of crop devastation due to a fungus in the 1990s. As of 2013, approximately 77 percent of all papayas grown in Hawaii are genetically modified.Continue Reading
As of 2008, scientists are working on genetically modified projects, such as attempting to add beta-carotene to rice to boost the food's nutritional value and finding ways to increase resistance to pests. While not in use in the United States, China is growing genetically modified rice. Researchers are also attempting to increase growth rates in coho salmon by injecting them with growth hormones.
In the 1990s, growers introduced the Flavr Savr tomato, a genetically modified tomato that inhibited the production of a particular enzyme that produced rot, enabling stores to keep fresh tomatoes on the shelves for longer periods of time. Unfortunately, scientists raised concerns about the modified tomato's cancer-causing potential, which resulted in the end of the popular tomato within a few years.
Approximately 85 percent of all corn grown in the United States is genetically modified. While some of the corn is for use in livestock feed, genetically modified corn is sometimes present in food products, such as cornflakes cereal.Learn more about Botany