http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/08/bu...d-by-usda.html

U.S.D.A. Approves Modified Potato. Next Up: French Fry Fans.

By ANDREW POLLACKNOV. 7, 2014

A potato genetically engineered to reduce the amounts of a potentially
harmful ingredient in French fries and potato chips has been approved
for commercial planting, the Department of Agriculture announced on Friday.

The potato’s DNA has been altered so that less of a chemical called
acrylamide, which is suspected of causing cancer in people, is produced
when the potato is fried.

The new potato also resists bruising, a characteristic long sought by
potato growers and processors for financial reasons. Potatoes bruised
during harvesting, shipping or storage can lose value or become unusable.

The biotech tubers were developed by the J. R. Simplot Company, a
privately held company based in Boise, Idaho, which was the initial
supplier of frozen French fries to McDonald’s in the 1960s and is still
a major supplier. The company’s founder, Mr. Simplot, who died in 2008,
became a billionaire.

The potato is one of a new wave of genetically modified crops that aim
to provide benefits to consumers, not just to farmers as the widely
grown biotech crops like herbicide-tolerant soybeans and corn do. The
nonbruising aspect of the potato is similar to that of genetically
engineered nonbrowning apples, developed by Okanagan Specialty Fruits,
which are awaiting regulatory approval.