University of Hawai'i officials and Native Hawaiian representatives will meet at a UH taro patch Tuesday to discuss the future of controversial research into genetically altered taro.

However, UH said yesterday that it will not agree to any moratorium on research on creating a hardier taro — the key ingredient in poi, which is a staple in Hawaiian culture. At the same time the university said it won't re-initiate genetic research on native varieties of taro until the formation of a forum/ research review board this summer aimed at gathering industry and public sentiment on the matter.

Research into genetically modified taro — or kalo in the Hawaiian language — has been conducted in a laboratory setting for about three years. That research initially involved work on the Maui Lehua variety of taro, but now is limited to the Chinese Bun Long taro, said C.Y. Hu, associate dean and associate director for research at the UH College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources UH has no plans to to proceed with genetic research on local taro, but won't rule out the possibility.