Genetic engineering has been used to fortify a staple root crop grown in
poorer parts of the world with enough vitamins, minerals and protein to
provide a day's worth of nutrition in a single meal.
The genetically modified cassava can also resist infection by damaging plant
viruses.

It is easier to prepare than normal cassava, which must be soaked and dried
for days to remove cyanide-producing substances before being eaten.

Studies are also under way aimed at extending the plant's shelf life so it
can be stored or shipped.

Researchers plan to field test the product in at least two African countries
by 2010. It is hoped the GM cassava will help millions of people hit by
soaring food prices around the world and suffering from malnutrition.

The BioCassava Plus project is funded with more than ?6.1 million donated by
the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the charity set up by Microsoft
billionaire Bill Gates and his wife.

Professor Richard Sayre, from Ohio State University in Columbus, US, said:
"This is the most ambitious plant genetic engineering project ever
attempted.

"Some biofortification strategies have the objective of providing only a
third of the daily adult nutrition requirements since consumers typically
get the rest of their nutritional requirements from other foods in their
diet.

"But global food prices have recently gone sky high, meaning that many of
the poorest people are now eating just one meal a day, primarily their
staple food.

"So what we're working on has become even more important in the last year
than it was when we started, not just in regions where people are
malnourished, but across developing countries where food has gotten so
expensive that people can't afford the diverse diet that they're used to."

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