First Genetically Modified Apple Approved for Sale in U.S.

First Genetically Modified Apple Approved for Sale in U.S.

Move Reignites Debate Over Safety, Labeling of Altered Foods

By Tennille Tracy in the Wall Street Journal

The Agriculture Department on Friday approved the first genetically modified apple for sale in the U.S., reigniting debate over the safety of modified foods and whether the products should carry mandatory labels.

The Arctic apple, designed by the Canadian company Okanagan Specialty Fruits Inc., resists browning when cut open or sliced, a trait that makes it useful for restaurants, grocery stores, airlines and other companies that offer pre-sliced fruit, Okanagan co-founder Neal Carter said.

“We really know that getting the consumer to buy in to the product and the technology has to be the priority,” he said. The company plans to market two varieties, the Arctic Granny and Arctic Golden, new versions of the Granny Smith and Golden Delicious.

The Agriculture Department, which announced the approval Friday, said the apple was given the green light because it didn’t pose a risk to other plants or agricultural products. The Food and Drug Administration is responsible for ensuring the apple is safe to eat, but its review is voluntary and its approval isn’t required for the company to move forward.

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A time-lapse video shows the differences in browning of a regular golden delicious apple and a genetically modified Arctic golden apple left out for 24 hours. Photo: Arctic Apples

The FDA is still reviewing the apple, an agency spokeswoman said.

While genetically modified crops have been grown in the U.S. since the 1990s, the Arctic apple is one of only a few genetically modified foods that appeal directly to consumers. In November, the Agriculture Department approved a modified potato.

Currently, the most commonly modified crops, such as corn and soybeans, are modified for the benefit of farmers by withstanding herbicides and pesticides.

The Arctic apple’s non-browning trait works by shutting off an enzyme that initiates the browning process. Mr. Carter said he hopes the Arctic apple can expand the market for apples in the same way baby carrots generated rapid growth in the carrot industry. The new apple, which resists bruising, could also cut waste for farmers and packers, according to Okanagan.

Apple farmers are worried, however, that the Arctic apple will scare off consumers who can’t distinguish between modified and conventionally grown varieties. Several of them urged the Agriculture Department to reject the petition for approval.

“I’m very disappointed in the USDA,” said Jim Baird, owner of a 250-acre apple farm in Washington state. “They’re approving this in light of such overwhelming concern and disapproval over [genetically modified] products.”

Consumer and environmental groups said the apple could present unknown risks to human health.

“There is no place in the U.S. or global market for genetically engineered apples,” said Lisa Archer, a director at the environmental group Friends of the Earth. “Farmers don’t want to grow it, food companies don’t want to sell it and consumers don’t want to eat it.”

In the time it will take for farmers to grow the Arctic apples, “consumers have time to get informed and decide whether they want to purchase them,” said Wendy Brannen, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Apple Association.

A recent Pew Research Center survey showed that while 88% of scientists think genetically modified food is safe to eat, only 37% of the general public believe so.

Okanagan said it intends to attach a snowflake logo to its Arctic apples, to distinguish them from other varieties. The FDA could require the company to disclose that the fruit has a non-browning trait or has been genetically modified.

A debate is escalating over whether genetically modified foods should be labeled. While the FDA hasn’t required a food company to do so, consumer groups are increasingly urging state and national lawmakers to pass laws to change that.

Earlier this week, Democrats in the U.S. House and Senate proposed bills directing the FDA to require labels for genetically modified foods. Republicans are likely to support competing measures that make labeling voluntary and prevent states from passing their own measures.

Voters in at least four states, including Oregon and Colorado most recently, rejected ballot measures to require food companies to label genetically modified products sold in their states. Vermont is the only state to pass such a law, and its measure is being challenged in court.

Having secured the USDA’s approval, Okanagan says up to 70,000 of its trees could be planted in 2016, with the resulting fruit available for consumers as early as 2017. But it will take several years for there to be any significant production.

Okanagan is awaiting approval for its apple in Canada and wants to get approval to grow its apple in Mexico, as well.

The potato approved last year by the USDA, called the Innate, was created by french-fry maker J.R. Simplot Co. It is designed to reduce bruising and offer potential health benefits by producing lower levels of a carcinogen that forms in potatoes and other starchy foods when they are cooked at high temperatures.

The FDA is still reviewing the potato, J.R. Simplot spokesman Doug Cole said.