The so-called genetically modified food is to transfer one or more foreign genes into a specific organism through genetic engineering technology, and make it effectively express the corresponding products (polypeptide or protein). This process is called transgene. The food produced by genetically modified organisms is genetically modified food.
According to the different sources of genetically modified food, it can be divided into plant genetically modified food, animal genetically modified food and microbial genetically modified food.
From the birth of the earliest transgenic crop (tobacco) in the world in 1983 to the approval of the extended-ripening and fresh-keeping transgenic tomato developed by Monsanto in the United States in 1994, the research and development of genetically modified food developed rapidly, and the variety and output of products also increased exponentially. As a new biotechnology means, the immaturity and uncertainty of transgenic technology make the safety of genetically modified food become the focus of attention.