Have you ever made a fruit salad and watched the bananas turn brown in just a few minutes? It’s a classic kitchen drama that could soon be a thing of the past.
CRISPR bananas are about to hit the market, keeping that beautiful yellow color much longer than their ancestors. A British startup prepares to launch genetically modified super-bananas, the result of years of research and development. But don't expect alien fruits with magical powers: they have the same sweetness, the same flavor, just fewer problems (maybe).
The yellow “debutante” that doesn’t turn brown
This is news that could change our daily experience much more than we can imagine. Tropic, a British plant biotechnology company, has announced the imminent launch of non-oxidizing bananas, scheduled for March this year. Bananas with an extended shelf life will soon follow later this year. Both developments aim to expand the market for cut fruit, reduce food waste, open up new export opportunities and reduce shipping costs.
And these are no small changes: These CRISPR bananas represent a paradigm shift for one of the world’s most consumed fruits. The problem of oxidation has always been a significant limitation for including bananas in prepackaged fruit salads and cut fruit products. With this innovation, that limitation may finally be overcome.
Secondo Gilad Gershon, CRISPR bananas retain the same flavor and sweetness, but the flesh turns brown more slowly, making them easier to include in fruit salads and cut fruit products.
The Secret Behind “Augmented” Bananas
I am particularly fascinated by the biological mechanism behind this innovation. The oxidation of bananas is catalyzed by polyphenol oxidase, an enzyme that oxidizes phenolic compounds in a similar way to what happens in apples and potatoes. Using CRISPR gene editing techniques, Tropic researchers were able to modify this natural process.
Founded in 2016 by Gilad Gershon ed Eyal Maori, Tropic is known for its technology Gene Editing Induced Gene Silencing (GEiGS). This technology uses RNA interference (RNAi) in plants to counteract threats from fungi and viruses. However, non-oxidizing and extended shelf-life bananas are developed using CRISPR gene editing techniques, a different but equally innovative approach.
The work on these bananas has been particularly complex. Cavendish bananas, sterile and seedless, are propagated “asexually” through cloning, complicating traditional methods of genetic variation. Researchers must resort to inducing genetic variation through mutagenesis, genetic modification, somaclonal variation, or gene editing.
A global fruit with international approval
It is worth noting that this is not a laboratory experiment that is destined to remain such: Tropic has already received regulatory approvals for these bananas in Philippines, in Colombia, Honduras, United States e Canada, with further approvals expected. This is crucial, as regulation of genetically modified products varies significantly from country to country.
Extended shelf-life bananas, on the other hand, are expected to enter the market later in the year. Gershon He explained that bananas are harvested green to prolong their greenness during shipping. By eliminating the genes responsible for ethylene production, bananas can stay green longer, allowing for later harvests and extended shipping times, thus reducing packaging and transportation costs.
The battle against fusarium wilt
There is another front Tropic is fighting on, perhaps even more important for the future of bananas globally. The company is expanding field trials for Cavendish bananas that are resistant to fusarium wilt (TR4), a fungal disease that is affecting crops around the world.
Fusarium wilt, also known as Panama disease TR4, is an existential threat to global banana production. To combat it, Tropic is using its GEiGS technology to exploit bananas’ RNAi capabilities to target fungal genes. This involves editing non-coding genes for reuse in inhibiting fungal genes.
Preliminary results are promising: field trials have shown encouraging resistance results, with more trials planned in various locations. This RNAi-based approach is not classified as GMO, further easing regulatory challenges.
CRISPR Bananas, the Future of Plant Biotechnology
Tropic hasn't just been working on bananas. The company has licensed its GEiGS technology to companies like Corteva, British Sugar e G for crop and livestock applications. It has raised approximately $80 million and continues to generate revenue through partnerships.
We are faced with one of the first concrete examples (and announced for years) of how gene editing can transform a basic food product, improving its characteristics without altering its nutritional or sensory value. CRISPR bananas could be just the beginning of a new era for agriculture, in which biotechnology is used not only to increase yields, but also to improve the consumer experience and reduce waste throughout the supply chain.
The real challenge now will be consumer acceptance. Will they embrace these “futuristic” fruits, or will concerns about genetic modification technologies prevail? The answer will be known soon, and it could determine the future not only of bananas, but of the entire field of genetic engineering applied to food.
