A longer-lasting banana has been developed.
Gene-edited bananas stay fresh for longer after being cut
Scientists have created a gene-edited banana that can remain fresh and yellow for up to 24 hours after being cut, a breakthrough that could significantly reduce food waste and extend shelf life.
The fruit has been engineered by biotech company Tropic, based at the Norwich Research Park Innovation Centre, by disabling the enzyme responsible for browning.
The development could help bananas last longer across supply chains and in households, while also improving resilience to disease and climate pressures.
Georgie Oatley, communications manager at Tropic, told The BBC: "We are also developing new varieties that have resistance to disease, have a higher yield and are able to withstand the changing climate.
"A huge number of bananas are wasted throughout the supply chain and also at home once people have bought them and they have gone brown and aren't eaten.
"We are able to reduce waste at a farmer level, throughout the supply chain, in the supermarket and at home so it's better for carbon emissions and better for consumers and farmers."
The innovation works by switching off polyphenol oxidase, the enzyme that reacts with oxygen and causes fruit to brown once cut.
Oatley said: "For our non-browning banana we have identified which enzyme is responsible for the oxidisation process and we have just disabled it so it no longer happens. It is still there, it's just turned off. It's like a light switch we have just turned off.
"It's something that's happened in nature for thousands of years but we are able to do it in a lab setting... we are able to fast forward that evolution."
Unlike genetic modification, gene editing does not introduce foreign DNA but instead alters existing genes. The approach is permitted under England’s Precision Breeding Act, allowing crops to be developed where the changes could occur naturally.
While already approved in 11 countries, the bananas are not yet available in UK supermarkets.
Oatley said: "We are hoping to be approved here very soon and we will start seeing a non-browning banana in the supermarkets next year."