On Apr. 23, 2025, a Washington State University researcher was reported among a select few scientists who unveiled a national report that will shape the future of research and regulation around the genetic modification of cattle, pigs, and other food animals.

Dr. Jon Oatley, whose extensive research and public appearances have made him a prominent ambassador for the field, was one of four members of a committee of the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine who introduced the congressionally mandated report in a public webinar Wednesday.

The report’s release followed two years of committee meetings, study and peer review; it details the state of the research on genetically modified food animals, lays out areas of caution going forward, and identifies subjects ripe for future research.

“The potential impact of this report is huge,” said Oatley, associate dean for research for the College of Veterinary Medicine and professor at WSU. “It is intended to be a guidebook, a bible if you will, for what we’re doing in the world of genetic modification of food animals to feed the world in a more sustainable and more secure way. Its impact is going to ripple across the globe.”

As the global population grows — and as the land, water and resources needed to produce food animals shrink — the use of genetic modifications is seen as a crucial tool for feeding people more efficiently and sustainably. The technologies essentially create a high-tech version of selective breeding, which has been used for millennia to improve traits in food animals, by targeting changes in an animal’s DNA that can be passed on to future generations.

This process, known as heritable genetic modification, can be used to breed animals that are more disease resistant, productive or resilient in hot weather, among other traits.

The FDA has approved three lines of genetically modified food animals, including Atlantic salmon that grow faster, cattle whose coats provide more heat tolerance, and pigs modified to avoid a rare food allergy. None are yet on the consumer market.