Ever had a purple tomato? USDA approves GM crop variety for cultivation

After over 14 years of development of the purple tomato, the genetically modified (GM) crop has been recognised as safe to grow by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The seeds of the plant developed by Norfolk Plant Sciences (NPS) may enter the market for sale by 2023.

The purple tomato produces a higher amount of antioxidants called anthocyanins. "The anthocyanin content of purple fruits from a hemizygous Del/Ros1 plant averaged approximately 500 mg per 100 g fresh weight whereas anthocyanins were undetectable in wild type red tomatoes", the company's filing with the USDA read.

Anthocyanins are found in several foods and are responsible for their purple colour. These include blueberries and red cabbage. The antioxidant helps lower the risk of diabetes and heart disease, according to a report by crast.net.

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The USDA released a statement, "We found the plant is unlikely to pose an increased plant pest risk compared to other cultivated tomatoes and is not subject to regulation under 7 CFR part 340. That means, from a plant pest risk perspective, this plant may be safely grown and used in breeding in the United States."

"With respect to Norfolk Plant Sciences' purple tomato, we did not identify any plausible pathways to increased plant pest risk compared to other cultivated tomatoes and issued a response letter indicating the plant is not subject to regulation," it added.

With the approval, the crop is free from regulations and may be grown freely across the USA. However, the fruit will have to go through more scrutiny before being sold in the markets. The first step in this would be the sale of the seed of the plant in the open market and recording the response of the home growers.

"It's a red-letter day for crop improvement," Jonathan Jones, co-founder of NPS, told crast.net.