Safety Assessment of Foods Obtained from Crops Developed Using Biotechnology

The current chapter discusses historical perspectives on the development and commercialization of genetically engineered (GE) crops developed using biotechnology, and the safety assessment of foods obtained from these crops. Most currently commercialized GE crops express transgenic proteins that confer agronomic traits, including insect resistance and herbicide tolerance that are intended to increase crop yield. Methods to assess the safety of transgenic proteins used in GE crops for potential allergenicity and toxicity are discussed. Additionally, the principles of substantial equivalence as applied to the safety assessment of foods obtained from GE crops are discussed. Numerous examples are presented to emphasize the comprehensive nature of the safety-assessment process conducted for these products prior to commercialization to demonstrate that the transgenic proteins are safe and that the foods obtained from the currently marketed GE crops are as safe as those obtained from non-GE crops. Keywords: biotechnology; food; Bacillus thuringiensis; risk assessment; qualitative risk assessment; substantial equivalence; pleiotropism; allergenicity