Gene Editing in Farming, now called 'Molecular farming", is the genetic engineering of plants to turn them into production hubs for new proteins as well as "food", is a new field created since the rise of CRISPR gene editing and its growing fast. CRISPR technology has allowed for gene editing of crops to happen very fast, and this has become a huge global threat to our food supply. If we dont do something soon, every fruit, vegetable, grain and animal will be at risk of becoming genetically modified.
The destruction of the genetic molecular makeup of our food will threaten our health, as our bodies are not meant to ingest these "foods" and will likely recognize them as foreign, sparking allergies, autoimmune diseases, and cancers.
As if we dont have enough GMOs in our food supply already, gene editing will destroy every single thing, and once these new seeds are out on the market it will be hard to control their spread.
Research and Markets reports the global molecular farming market is projected to soar from $454.1 million in 2023 to $916.3 million by 2028, with an annual growth rate of 15.1%. While a substantial portion of this market focuses on creating recombinant proteins for medical use, new developers are increasingly utilizing molecular farming to produce ingredients for food and personal care products.
Many developers are turning to molecular farming as a viable alternative for producing proteins, particularly animal proteins, through genetic engineering.
A reminder from the FDA in April 2023 emphasized the potential allergenicity issues associated with incorporating animal DNA into plants.
But the FDA has allowed these gene edited seeds to be developed despite known and unknown risks, and will not label CRISPR gene edited crops as GMOs.
One of the biggest threats in this field is the German mega corporation BAYER, who recently partnered with Pairwise, to gene edit corn, wheat, soy, tobacco, salad greens cotton and more.
Read more about Bayer, who recently bought out Monsanto, and their threat to the U.S. food supply here
However, they are not the only ones in the field, below are new startups who plan to gene edit crops for both food and medicinal use.
Ten New Gene Editing Startup Companies to Watch out For
Moolec Science
On April 19, Moolec Science, a subsidiary of Bioceres, announced that it had received USDA approval for its soybeans genetically modified with pig DNA, branded as Piggy Sooy. The USDA/APHIS determined that this crop does not pose a plant pest risk and, therefore, will not be regulated. This marks the first time the USDA has approved a plant genetically modified to include animal DNA.
Moolec is currently consulting with the FDA regarding Piggy Sooy's status, with hopes to start outdoor field trials in Wisconsin next year. The company's target market includes plant-based meat analog developers.
Orf Genetics
Iceland-based Orf Genetics is applying molecular farming on barley to produce recombinant proteins in the crop. Their first stage was developing human growth factors for medical applications. They later expanded to create animal growth factors for the emerging cell-cultured meat sector.
Orf's products include Bioeffect (epidermal growth factor), Isokine and Dermokine (human growth factors), and Mesokine (porcine, bovine, and avian growth factors).
In collaboration with Australian cell-cultured meat developer Vow, Orf held a meat-tasting function in Europe this February, featuring dishes made from Japanese quail cells cultivated by Vow with growth factors provided by Orf.
Finally Foods
Israeli developer Finally Foods aims to produce casein by genetically modifying potatoes with animal DNA through the computational biology company Evogene’s GeneRator AI platform. Upon extraction of the casein, the remainder is used for animal feed.
Though the company hasn't disclosed which part of the potato plant will express the dairy protein, it has received pre-seed funding from The Kitchen Hub and the Israeli Innovation Authority.
Elo Life Systems
North Carolina-based Elo Life Systems, a branch of Precision BioSciences, announced in February that it is developing molecular farming products with an additional $20.5 million in funds . The company's first product, a sweetener based on monk fruit, is slated for a 2026 launch. Elo Life hasn't specified the crop used to produce these sweet proteins.
Core Biogenesis
French developer Core Biogenesis is utilizing molecular farming to form recombinant human and animal proteins in camelina . While the primary focus is the medical sector, cellular agriculture is a key area as well. The company offers human and bovine growth factors marketed under the Core Factors brand. In 2022, Core Biogenesis completed a $10.5 million funding to build an industrial-scale production facility.
BioBetter
BioBetter, opened its pilot facility to produce animal growth factors for cell-cultured meat. The company uses tobacco plants to create these growth factors, with the pilot plant capable of processing 100 kg of tobacco-derived growth factors daily.
PoLoPo
Also based in Israel, PoLoPo unveiled its SuperAA platform for molecular farming, which it uses to produce egg proteins in potatoes . The company claims these are vegan while ironically cautioning that they are not suitable for consumption by people with egg allergies.
Alpine Bio/Nobell Foods
California-based Alpine Bio, originally Alpine Roads and later rebranded as Nobell Foods, announced in April its successful registration of a new patent for molecular farming. This was for recombinant milk proteins, specifically casein, in soybean plants by inserting cow DNA.
NewMoo (formerly Imagene Foods)
Imagene Food recently rebranded itself as NewMoo . The firm is employing molecular farming techniques to produce casein, though the specific plant used remains undisclosed.
Miruku
Miruku has successfully raised $8 million in funding. The company plans to initially collaborate with farmers in Australia and then expand to the U.S. and Canada .
CRISPR's Impact on Plant Genomes
Recent research has revealed that CRISPR editing can cause substantial unintended genetic changes in plants, affecting large portions of the genome. According to a June 2023 report by GMWatch, scientists have observed chromothripsis-like effects in tomatoes subjected to CRISPR/Cas gene editing.
Chromothripsis is a phenomenon in which numerous genetic changes occur at the same time, causing parts of the genetic material to be substituted, reintegrated, or even gone.
This discovery marks the first time such effects have been observed in gene-edited plants, though similar unintended changes have been noted in animal and human DNA following gene editing.
According to Test Biotech, these findings challenge the notion of CRISPR's precision. While the technology can target specific genome locations, the broader consequences of 'cutting' the genome are unpredictable and uncontrollable.
Therefore, plants produced through new genetic engineering techniques cannot be deemed inherently safe and must undergo thorough risk assessments. Without precise genomic analyses, phenomena like chromothripsis can easily be missed.
Risks of Gene Editing
The genetic changes induced by gene editing in plants carry significant risks, including:
- Alterations in the plant's biochemical composition
- Emergence of new toxins
- New Diseases will arise
- A host of New Allergies
These changes to plant genomes could lead to more severe allergies and higher disease risks in populations all over the world.
Autism is a new disease, it didnt exist before 1950s. Autism is the result of vaccines, we especially saw an epidemic of autism after vaccines started using viruses grown in genetically modified human fetal tissue in the 1980s.
We can expect new diseases to arise once gene edited proteins enter medications and injections, let alone our food supply.
And we really dont know what new allergies people will develop as well. Many people are allergic to soy, because existing genetically modified soy contains brazil nut DNA. And many people are allergic to nuts and brazil nuts.
To avoid these issues, we should consider reverting our diets to non-GMO foods like ancient grains and organic fruits and vegetables.
By focusing on natural and organic options, and boycotting GMOs we can foster a healthier future for ourselves and our children.
We should get to know and support local small farmers committed to growing non-GMOs.
Our food supply is at risk and its time that everyone takes a stand against this.
Genetic Modification in Processed Foods
Today, more than 80% of processed food products on supermarket shelves contain GMO ingredients. Thanks to CRISPR technology, genetic modification has become significantly easier.
Within the next few years, we can expect many salad greens and vegetables to become gene edited this will probably get to market quickly, grains, and fruits which take a little longer.
I think we all know the answer to this. The question is how to stop them.
GMOs are very hard to contain. Once they are developed and planted, their seeds contaminate nearby fields. Maintaining real non GMO seeds is a hard enough process now, in just a few years, it will be almost impossible.
How do we preserve the Genetic integrity of our food supply?
1) We have to start by boycotting GMO foods
2) Get to know local and national farmers committed to non GMO farming
3) buy land and farm for yourself
4) Avoid Processed Foods which are contaminated with GMOs (about 70% of supermarket shelves)
5) support small companies that you know and trust that are truly committed to GMO free foods and avoid big food manufacturers where money is the bottom line.
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