The laboratory also is working on ways to turn what is now farm waste into valuable products. Farmers might one day sell their corn stalks, cobs and starch to be used for chemicals to make clothing fibers or plasticlike material. Genetic engineering offers other possibil ities. Plants may be developed that efficiently produce large quantities of enzymes, which now are typically produced in expensive fermentation methods. Potatoes, for example, might be engineered to produce enzymes in their leaves but not in the tubers, giving farmers two crops from one plant.
Efforts also are under way to develop plants capable of manufacturing blood proteins.
The proteins could be given to people without the risk of transmitted diseases from human blood. Consumers could benefit from proposals to find better ways to detect contamination in food. Traditionally, colonies of pathogens are grown for several days until there are enough to be easily detected - an impractical method for protecting diners. Scientists are optimistic technologies might be adapted to allow large quantities of food to be scanned quickly for contamination. That might include looking for byproducts of microbes.