Golden rice Golden rice Golden rice is a variety of rice ("Oryza sativa") produced through genetic engineering to biosynthesize beta-carotene, a precursor of vitamin A, in the edible parts of rice. It is intended to produce a fortified food to be grown and consumed in areas with a shortage of dietary vitamin A, a deficiency which each year is estimated to kill 670,000 children under the age of 5 and cause an additional 500,000 cases of irreversible childhood blindness. Rice is a staple food crop for over half of the world's population, making up 30–72% of the energy intake for people in
Mythimna separata light dorsal stripe, with black-brown lateral stripe along spiracle line. spiracles brown with black rim. Pupae are yellowish brown and shiny. The moth flies from January to April depending on the location. The larvae feed on a range of agricultural plants like "Zea mays", "Sorghum bicolor" and "Oryza sativa" and are thus considered a pest. Caterpillars do not feed on "Momordica charantia" due to the presence of the triterpenoid glucoside called momordicine II, which is a natural inhibitor of caterpillar actions. China experiences periodic outbreaks of northern armyworm infestation. The outbreak in 2012 was particularly severe. Larva can be hand