If a food company created a new packaged food and deliberately didn’t tell you everything in it, would you be upset?
That’s exactly what one fruit company is doing. It has developed a variety of “special” apples without telling people that the reason they’re so special is that they are genetically modified.
According to Okanagan Specialty Fruits company founder Neal Carter, “We are selling it under the Arctic brand and we’ve had a lot of press and attention, so I assume most people will know what it is.” Well, sorry Neal, neither my wife nor I ever even heard of your special apples until I read about it in a report just last week. Neal is perfectly okay with selling GMO food even though it is not labeled as GMO because the fact that it is GMO can be found by scanning the QR code on the packaging. So, I guess we all need to carry around a QR scanner at the grocery store so we can figure out what we’re eating. Oh, for the good old days!
So, why the new and improved GMO apples? I thought the original version was pretty good. The reason has to do with those nasty brown spots that can occasionally show up on apples once they have been sliced. These “special” apples have been genetically engineered not to brown. Well, that’s a good thing, isn’t it? So, what the heck causes those brown spots in the first place?
The reason an apple turns brown when it is sliced and exposed to air is due to an enzyme called polyphenol oxidase. GMO scientists have genetically altered the apples so that this particular enzyme has been silenced. Here’s why this is not a good thing.
Unless somehow God made a mistake, polyphenol oxidase is there for a reason. Polyphenol oxidase enzymes are present in nearly all plant tissues. You also can find them in bacteria, animals, and fungi.
Among other things, these enzymes are responsible for “desiccation tolerance.” That refers to the ability to withstand extreme dryness or drought conditions. I can’t tell you that anything bad will happen after eating these new wonder creatures. But then neither can Neal tell you that anything bad won’t happen. As for me, I’m going to stay natural, and leave the modern living through chemistry to those who are unable to tolerate brown spots. If you would like to join me, here’s how.
Okanagan’s GMO apples are known collectively by the trade name “Arctic Apples.” So now you are forewarned. You can find these in your grocery store, but they’re extremely popular in convenience stores. Don’t purchase those little bags or lunch packs of apple slices. They have GMO apples in them.
According to author and healthy eating advocate Daisy Luther, “If you want to pre-slice apples (say, for a child’s school lunch) sprinkle them with a little bit of lemon juice.” That will keep them from browning, and you will know what they’re eating.
Yours for better health,
Frank Shallenberger, MD