In 1988, a company called Showa Denko K.K started to make a genetically engineered amino acid (called tryptophan, one of the essential amino acids). This is used by some people as a food supplement. The company had made tryptophan for years using non-GE bacteria but found that by using their new engineered bacteria, production increased. So, without any testing being required, they began to sell GE-tryptophan. Thirty seven people who ate this died and another 1500 became ill. Unfortunately, the GE bacterium strain was destroyed so nobody could be sure whether GE was the cause. For the full story, visit PSRAST.