Gene-edited produce nears approval for UK supermarkets

Gene-edited produce is nearing approval for sale in British supermarkets. The UK Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) has issued marketing notices for several precision-bred crops, which must now receive final approval from the Food Standards Agency.

Among the products are vitamin D-enriched ‘sunshine’ tomatoes developed by scientists at the John Innes Centre in Norfolk. By deactivating a specific gene, researchers allowed vitamin D3 to accumulate in the fruit, potentially offering a low-cost, plant-based solution to vitamin D deficiency.

Additionally, eight strawberry varieties developed by the American company Simplot have been submitted for review. Using CRISPR/Cas9 technology to alter the Terminal Flower 1 gene, scientists created ‘remontant’ plants that flower repeatedly. This could extend the British strawberry growing season and reduce the country's reliance on winter imports from Spain, Morocco, and Egypt. These genetic alterations do not change the fruit's taste or nutritional profile and could theoretically occur through conventional breeding over a longer period.