Scientists are carrying out extensive research to come up with appropriate
methods and technologies to ensure food security in the world.
Most people think that it is the duty of the ministries of agriculture and
lands to ensure food security for the country.

National Biotechnology Authority of Zimbabwe Acting Chief Executive Officer
Abisai Mafa says it is important to note that Scientists are critical in
ensuring food security since they are the ones, who do the preliminary jobs
like making the seed to be grown, and plan for the crop?s harvest before
even it is grown.

According to scientists Food is any substance, usually composed of
carbohydrates, fats, water and/or proteins, that can be eaten or drunk by an
animal or human for nutrition or pleasure. Items considered food may be
sourced from plants, animals or other categories such as fungus.

Mafa added that most farmers have a problem with transporting foods that get
rotten or spoiled on the way from the farm to the market.

Scientists say they have come up with technologies that will ensure that
crops like tomatoes have genes that will allow them to take long to ripen.

One such research has led to a flavor savor tomato.

Flavor Savor tomato has been genetically altered by introducing into it
genes from a fish, so as to reduce freezer damage, to enable it to have a
longer shelf-life, to ripen longer on the tree while remaining firm at the
time of picking and transporting.

No layman can make out the difference between Flavor Savor and a normal
tomato.
The research is set to help farmers maintain the quality of their produce so
that it does not spoil before they get to the market.

However research is not yet complete on how safe the tomato is to human
consumption.

Mafa pointed out that Nitrogen, one of the 16 elements necessary for plant
growth and production, is absorbed into the plant from the soil or through
foliage.

He says, scientists are therefore engineering microorganisms so that they
can harness nitrogen from the air and convert it to usable form, as a way of
supporting food security since this process will ensure that plants get the
necessary nutrients needed.

He said such methods, also called Genetic engineering help increase food
security.

Genetic engineering is a sub-field of biotechnology, which in turn is a
sub-field of a very broad area called bioengineering. It is process of
manipulating genes, usually outside the organism's normal reproductive
process.
www.checkbiotech.org