The “Arctic Grape” Sneaks Through Public Approval
We are currently witnessing the USDA public commentary period on the Arctic Apple, a transgenic apple that does not exhibit browning upon injury or cutting. The anti-browning trait was installed by scientists at Okanagan Specialty Fruits. A copy of the apple gene for polyphenol oxidase (PPO) was overexpressed, which triggers a plant response to silence the over-expressed gene. The same process also suppresses the apple’s endogenous PPO genes. Trees have been growing for ten years and are poised for widespread adoption. But as expected, the critics have now emerged against this non-browning apple. They say that the apples are untested in humans, that the pollen will contaminate other plants. They say that it is unnatural and will need more pesticide. But the same criticisms were strangely silent against what was essentially the Arctic Grape. A major genetic alteration affected the PPO gene of the ‘Sultana’ grape, a genetic change that was unknown, uncharacterized and uni