Genetically Altered Yeast Ends Wine Hangovers

A Canadian scientist has found a genetically modified hangover cure. He distributes an altered yeast, MLo1—which eliminates compounds that cause headaches in red and many white wines—to 40 winemakers in the US and Canada. But some vintners and winos are resisting the genetic alteration of their craft, which comes with headache-inducing moral quandaries of its own, writes James McWilliams in the Atlantic.

Most Americans want modified food labeled, but manufacturers worry it would stigmatize them. "Wine, of all products, could break down the barrier," McWilliams writes. "If consumers knew they could buy wine that would prevent headaches, they'd almost certainly give it a shot. Waiting in the wings are a host of GM products that offer concrete consumer advantage." (More wine industry stories.)