Bio-engineers are concentrating chiefly on commercial crops, but research should not ignore tropical food staples. The last quarter of a centuiy has witnessed such breathtaking strides in biology, biochemistry and genetics that a new scientific discipline has been bom which, for some, borders uncomfortably close on divine prerogative. Biotechnology-the ability to produce in the laboratory microorganisms or plant species which will do specific jobs in the natural world-is set to modify the way we live and work and has already been widely adopted in manufacturing, notably in the fermentation, health and chemical industries.
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