For example, in 1994 Calgene won approval to sell the Flavr Savr tomato. To make a Flavr Savr, scientists genetically modified a garden variety tomato with aminoglycoside 3-phosphotransferase II, a compound that kept the fruit from rotting.
The tinkering sabotaged the process that makes tomatoes turn squishy. But the less-squishy tomatoes never did catch on with a skeptical public. The company was later sold to Monsanto.
It changed everything.
With CRISPR, scientists can literally edit organisms, removing the bits that lead to unfavorable outcomes.
Ethicists worry about a rush toward designer babies. And there have been some disturbing developments on that end in China. However, the real opportunity in the near term has always been agriculture.