An Irish scientist is a leading figure behind a revolutionary new kind of rice that could improve the lives of the poor around the world.
Genetically modified “Golden rice” contains beta-carotene, the source of vitamin A. According to National Public Radio (NPR) reports, millions of people in Asia and Africa don’t get enough of this vital nutrient. A single bowl of this new golden rice can supply 60 percent of a child's daily requirement of vitamin A.
Dr Gerald Barry is the project leader for the International Rice Research Institute in the Philippines, who are evaluating the potential of developing 'Golden Rice' as a way of addressing vitamin A deficiency.
Dr Barry, a graduate from UCC, spent more than two decades in St. Louis working for Monsanto, a company that pioneers genetically engineered crops. He is now the IRRI's golden rice project leader.
He explained to NPR how he became interested in rice.
"It was very exciting. It was probably my favorite crop to work on," he says. "Because you got to meet really passionate people. Rice is something that's vital to large numbers of people. I mean, a couple of billion people eat it."
He began working with the nonprofit International Rice Research Institute in the Philippines ten years ago, the place where the idea of golden rice was born.
"Golden rice will be good for everybody, but some people need it more," Barry says. "Our job is to make sure that [those] people have access to it, understand the value of it, and ask for it."
The International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) is working with leading nutrition and agricultural research organizations to develop and evaluate Golden Rice as a potential new way to reduce vitamin A deficiency in the Philippines and Bangladesh.
6 Comments
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Switch to the desktop site to post a comment.awoken32 | Mar 11, 2013, 01:53 PM EDT
GMO is poison an not fit tor human consumption,if you want to stop world hunger we must stop the globalists that are in power from robbing the poorer countries of the right to a better life,Mother earth has an abundance fit for everymans needs,but not for everymans greed
nancyjeanne | Mar 10, 2013, 08:38 PM EDT
No GMO! Our food is being poisoned.
Ms.Gail | Mar 09, 2013, 03:25 PM EST
No to GMO, yes to genetic diversity of naturally occurring food.
Pittsburghkid | Mar 09, 2013, 01:10 PM EST
This will increase the world's population, which will mean more people to solve world problems.
Searlit | Mar 09, 2013, 12:45 PM EST
I completely agree with you dmcnicholl. GMO's are dangerous! No company has a right to patent and own the world's plants. If the pesticide, agent orange-making chemical companies aren't stopped that's what will happen. When all the food is poisoned with these chemicals and genes from different animals, the people of the world will learn that "they can't eat money".
dmcnicholl | Mar 09, 2013, 11:28 AM EST
This "Feed the Poor and Hungry' is a classic strategy utilized by multinationals seeking to add GMO products to the diet of both underdeveloped and industrialized countries and make huge profits. New research is beginning to emerge and show that genetically modified foods is dangerous to humans. Europe is correct to keep GMO foods off their supermarket shelves. We need to diversify existing strains of vegetables, grains, etc, through natural crossbreeding and not end up with a couple of types of Frankenseeds patented and owned by the likes of Monsanto, etc. Lets not buy into this philantropy bullshit that they're trying to feed the world.