GM papaya wins approval in U.S., Japan

The US has won approval to market a genetically modified (GM) food crop to Japan, says the Western Farm Press. GM papaya, already sold in the US, is the result of research by scientists at the US Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Agricultural Research Service (ARS)Pacific Basin Agricultural Research Center in Hilo, Hawaii.

The US GM variety is resistant to the papaya ringspot virus (PRSV), the most devastating disease to strike the crop. Dennis Gonsalves, research center director and project leader, is working with scientists and growers from Bangladesh, Africa, Jamaica, Venezuela, and Brazil to develop disease-resistance varieties that will grow in their regions.

The second largest fruit crop in Hawaii, papaya is grown commercially for the US and Japan. The Hawaiian papaya industry -- worth $47 million -- exports 25% to 30% of its product to Japan.