Bioengineered Purple Tomatoes Signal a New Era for GMOs

The tomato, invented by UK-based Norfolk Plant Sciences, contains an elevated level of anthocyanin – an antioxidant-rich pigment that’s also found in blackberries – to give the fruit its purple colour. The new hue and additional health benefits were designed to appeal to consumers rather than be a cost-reducing measure for farmers – signalling a shift in how GMO plants could be developed and marketed in the future. The USDA’s green light will allow the purple tomatoes to be sold in supermarkets and eventually cultivated in backyard gardens. This marks one of the few times a ‘designer’ (bioengineered) vegetable has been approved for mass sale.

GMO crops – grown widely in the US and tightly regulated in the EU – were originally developed for farmers. These are bred to be more effective at withstanding droughts, pests and other natural phenomena than their non-modified equivalents, giving them a higher yield.

Consumers have distrusted GMOs for years due to concerns about their toxicity, even though most of those fears have been dispelled by researchers. But as scientifically proven information becomes more readily available, the acceptance of GMOs is starting to grow. And with climate change wreaking havoc on the global agricultural landscape, eco-conscious shoppers may start preferring crops that use fewer resources than their all-natural counterparts.

We’ll continue to track the widening adoption of GMOs among consumers as the demand for new flavours and food experiences increases. Stylus members can access Food Tech Trends to Watch for more details.