'Plant Breeding: Sustaining the Future' Abstracts of the XVIth EUCARPIA Congress, Edinburgh, Scotland, 10-14 September 2001 OPPORTUNITIES FOR NUTRITIONAL ENHANCEMENT M. MACKEY Monsanto Company, St Louis, Missouri USA

While the first crops enhanced via biotechnology have agronomic traits, the next generation of products will have traits with direct consumer benefits. Foods with enhanced nutritional value are being developed and are expected to be available over the next several years. For example, vegetable oils are being nutritionally enhanced to contain high levels of omega-3 fatty acids, low levels of saturated fatty acids, and high levels of carotenoids. The content and bioavailability of iron in rice has been improved. Soybean proteins have been transferred to rice, improving the grain’s protein quality. Human milk proteins have been synthesized in plants for the inclusion in infant formula. Food allergens may be removed or modified so as to lose their allergenicity.  These modifications will require that products be evaluated not only for safety, but also for nutritional efficacy.  Testing strategies need to be developed to determine the efficacy of these new products.