Named Applause, the new variety is "recommended as a luxurious gift for special occasions such as wedding anniversaries and birthdays", the company said.

The teams recommended a variety of improvements in lightweight composite structures, heat- and stress-tolerant engine materials, and aerodynamic modeling that can help bring their ideas to reality.

For people in sub-Saharan Africa, where white corn is a staple food, substituting this biotech variety could help them meet their daily recommended intake of vitamin A and folate.