JANUARY 2017 • COUNTRY LIFE IN BC Non-browning apples
ready to test market US consumers first to buy controversial BC apple
by SUSAN MCIVER
PENTICTON – Twenty years after Okanagan Specialty Fruits’ founders Neal and Louisa Carter had the idea of developing non-browning apples, Arctic Golden slices are hitting grocery store shelves.
For eight weeks early this year, Arctic Golden slices are being test-marketed in grocery stores in the US Midwest.
“The test-marketing is an extension of the consumer response data we’ve been collecting for several years,” Carter says. A complete report on the test results is expected by the end of April. “What we learn will be applied to the official commercial launch this coming fall.”
Customer responses
Information on customer responses to price point and size and type of packaging is being collected along with the total number of sales and repeat purchases in 10 stores in several states. Each store has an in-house
representative who knows the local clientele and will provide information about Arctic Golden and answer questions. The representatives will also encourage customers to complete a questionnaire. The grocery store chain, which Carter will not name, was selected because of its enthusiasm for the product and the socio-economic demographic of its clientele. “It’s a regional retailer that can work with the current volume of fruit we have available,” says Carter. The first commercial harvest of Arctic Golden occurred in 2016. This spring, 200 acres in addition to the current 60 will come into production. The 2017 crop is expected to be large enough to support the commercial launch in the fall. All current Arctic plantings are in the US. Carter would like eventually to have orchards in Canada. “We want large parcels of land which may be difficult to obtain in BC. They’re more likely to be located in Ontario.”
Okanagan Specialty Fruits has faced opposition in this country because of the
genetic modification origin of Arctic apples. The non- browning trait was licensed from the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization of Australia. Carter’s genetically engineered Granny Smith and Golden Delicious apples were approved in early 2015 by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, Health Canada and the US Food and Drug Administration. The FDA approved Arctic Fuji last year. Canadian agencies approved the “trait in all apples” so there is no need to apply for each variety, whereas the US does it one variety at a time, Carter explains.
RNAi technology is used to turn off the genes responsible for polyphenol oxidases, the enzyme that causes apples to brown. Carter speaks of studies that show suppression of the polyphenol oxidases result in firmer, better-tasting apples because there is no off taste from preservatives used to prevent browning. Elimination of the need to use chemical solutions or
antioxidants on pre-cut apples also reduces costs for food companies.
“Our apples retain more of the good stuff – nutrients and vitamins – because they don’t brown,” he says.
Carter has consistently said that foreign gene traits are not added to Arctic apples, nor will they be to any future genetically modified tree fruits developed by OSF.
Non-browning pears, virus- resistant peaches and taste- and nutritionally-enhanced peach and cherry products are in the pipeline.
Opposition continues
Despite his comments and the rigorous testing required for official approval, opposition from some consumer and organic growers’ groups continue. Their objections include general opposition to GMO products, a specific concern about the effects of the gene- silencing RNAi technology and the possibility of drift from Arctic plantings to nearby organically certified orchards.
In April 2015, OSF was purchased by Maryland-based synthetic biology company
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Neal Carter, developer of a non-browning apple in his home office in Penticton. SUSAN MCIVER PHOTO
Intrexon for $41 million, split among its 44 investors. “This sale has meant access
to deep pockets to drive the commercialization process. We’ve been able to bring a
new apple to market faster than it has ever been done before,” Carter says.
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