A genetically modified purple tomato could reach supermarkets

(Business) — A new purple tomato resulting from genetic modification could hit supermarkets next year.

It tastes like a tomato, smells like a tomato, and even looks (mostly) like a tomato. There is a difference: it is purple.

The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) approved a purple tomato genetically modifiedpaving the way for that unique fruit to be sold in American stores next year.

“From a pest risk perspective, this plant can be safely cultivated and used for breeding,” the agency said in a statement. september 7 press release.

The approval of the purple tomato is a step towards its widespread distribution. In addition to its unique color, the purple tomato also has health benefits and a longer shelf life than garden-variety red tomatoes, according to scientists.

The tomato was developed by a team of scientists, including the British biochemist Cathi Martinteacher at University of East Anglia and project leader at John Innes Center in Norwich, England.

Martin worked on the production of pigments in flowers for more than 20 years, he told . “He wanted to start projects where we could look at whether there were any health benefits to this particular group of pigments,” he said.

The pigments that attracted Martin’s interest are the anthocyanins, which give blueberries, blackberries, and eggplants their blue-purple hues. So, with funding from a German consortium, he decided to engineer tomatoes rich in anthocyanins, hoping to “increase the antioxidant capacity” of the fruit.

His idea was that by comparing regular tomatoes to genetically modified purple tomatoes, he could easily identify if anthocyanins were linked to any specific health benefits.

To engineer the purple tomatoes, the scientists used transcription factors from the snapdragon plant to produce more anthocyanin, creating a vibrant purple color.

Martin and his colleagues published the first results of their research in 2008 in a article in Nature Biotechnology.

The results were “impressive,” Martin said. Cancer-prone mice that ate purple tomatoes lived about 30% longer than those that ate regular tomatoes, according to the study.

Martin said there are “many explanations” for why anthocyanin-rich tomatoes may have health benefits. There are “probably multiple mechanisms involved,” he added. “It’s not like a drug, where there’s only one target. It’s about having antioxidant capacity. It can also influence the composition of the microbiome, so it’s better able to deal with the digestion of other nutrients.”

And in 2013, Martin and his colleagues published another study in which they showed that purple tomatoes had twice the shelf life of their red cousins.

Martin set up a spin-off company, Norfolk Plant Sciences, with the aim of bringing purple tomatoes to market. Nathan Pumplin, chief executive of the Norfolk US trading business, told that the purple tomato “strucks a chord with people in a very basic way.”

The distinctive purple color suggests that “it doesn’t take any imagination to see that it’s different,” Pumplin said. “It really allows people to make a choice.”

The next steps are FDA approval and marketing

In the past, forays into genetically modified foods have often focused on engineering crops that are more sustainable to grow, he added. But for consumers, the benefits of eating genetically modified foods are not entirely clear.

“It’s very abstract, hard to understand,” Pumplin said. “But a purple tomato, you either choose to consume it or you don’t.” The difference between the GMO (Genetically Modified Organism) product and the non-modified tomato is obvious, and the potential health benefits for consumers are also clear.

Pumplin says that consumers are “preparing” for genetically modified foods around the world.

“We look at the issues facing our society around sustainability, climate change, and health related to diet and nutrition, and what’s clear from the response to our ad is that it’s a really important issue for a lot of people.” , he pointed. “I am encouraged that many people are beginning to reconsider biotechnology in light of these important challenges.”

At the same time, “GMOs are not a silver bullet,” he said. “They are a tool in our toolbox as plant scientists, as scientists or agronomists, to improve the food production system.”

The next steps for the purple tomato are FDA approval and marketing, Pumplin said. “We need to get great, delicious purple tomatoes. We need to work with growers to make and distribute them.”

Norfolk will begin launching limited market tests in 2023 to identify which consumers are most interested in purple tomatoes.

As for the taste? The purple tomato is indistinguishable from the standard red tomato, Pumplin said.

“It tastes like a big tomato,” he said.