What is biotechnology?

Bio-tech-nol-o-gy, noun (1941): A collective term for a variety of scientific techniques that use living cells or components of cells to improve crops, animals, or microorganisms.

A definition of biotechnology from the U.S. Office of Technology Assessments reads,
"Any technique that uses living organisms to make or modify products, to improve plants or animals, or to develop microorganisms for specific purposes."

Most people connect the word biotechnology with the idea of moving genes from one plant or animal or microbe to another, because genetic engineering is an important tool for a biotechnologist.