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Apple industry cautious of GMO acceptance

A horticulture professor says the apple industry is cautiously watching how consumers react to Arctic apples which is now available in select grocery stores.

“In the U.S. this is the first GMO apple crop and so there is some interest in the market on how well this is going to be accepted.”

Peter Hirst at Purdue University tells Brownfield genetic engineering has silenced the browning trait in the apples which will result in less food waste and a convenient way for consumers to eat more fruit.  “I think a lot of growers are sort of standing back just waiting to see if this is going to be accepted in the marketplace before they decide to invest in a new planting of these apples.”

The first Arctic apple crop is expected to total 50 metric tons this fall and is available sliced in snack-sized bags in about 400 grocery stores in the Midwest.

Hirst says it takes growers about four years for new plantings to become commercially available. Nearly 300 acres are planted in Washington for this year’s harvest.  That number is expected to increase to about 1,000 acres in the next three years.

AUDIO: Interview with Peter Hirst