A new kind of superfood
Pause a moment the next time you are munching on French fries in a restaurant. How would you feel if someone told you those fries are healthier than normal thanks to the oil they were cooked in? Now, what if the reason they are better for you is because this oil comes from genetically modified plants? GM foods have been around for decades, but there has been no reason for consumers to be keen on them. Virtually every GM crop on the market is designed to help the farmer who grows it rather than the person who eats it. Now that’s starting to change.
The next generation of GM foods comes with added health or flavour benefits. Some are already in the shops and on our plates, and others will be soon. On the menu are a coeliac friendly wheat that contains only “good” gluten, potatoes that don’t produce harmful acrylamides when fried, rapeseed oil rich in beneficial omega-3, higher fibre white bread and more.
It is healthier cooking oils that are already being produced in the biggest quantities, though. Millions will soon be eating them, including people in Europe, where GM foods are widely shunned. But what is really extraordinary is that despite their benefits, no one plans to tell you about them.
The first ever GM food to go on sale, the Flavr Savr tomato – launched in 1994 – was designed to stay fresh for longer. This meant it could be picked after ripening and thus tasted better than normal supermarket tomatoes, which are picked green and ripened artificially at the expense of flavour. But it was discontinued after three years because it wasn’t profitable. Other GM crops have thrived, however. Most of the soya grown globally, and more than a quarter of maize and oilseed rape, is now GM. In some countries, such as the US, most processed foods contain at least one ingredient, for example corn syrup, derived from GM crops. These crops typically have traits whose benefits, such as insect or herbicide resistance, are obvious only to farmers. But in the past few years this has started to change, with foods arriving that offer added perks for consumers.
The next generation of GM foods comes with added health or flavour benefits. Some are already in the shops and on our plates, and others will be soon. On the menu are a coeliac friendly wheat that contains only “good” gluten, potatoes that don’t produce harmful acrylamides when fried, rapeseed oil rich in beneficial omega-3, higher fibre white bread and more.
It is healthier cooking oils that are already being produced in the biggest quantities, though. Millions will soon be eating them, including people in Europe, where GM foods are widely shunned. But what is really extraordinary is that despite their benefits, no one plans to tell you about them.
The first ever GM food to go on sale, the Flavr Savr tomato – launched in 1994 – was designed to stay fresh for longer. This meant it could be picked after ripening and thus tasted better than normal supermarket tomatoes, which are picked green and ripened artificially at the expense of flavour. But it was discontinued after three years because it wasn’t profitable. Other GM crops have thrived, however. Most of the soya grown globally, and more than a quarter of maize and oilseed rape, is now GM. In some countries, such as the US, most processed foods contain at least one ingredient, for example corn syrup, derived from GM crops. These crops typically have traits whose benefits, such as insect or herbicide resistance, are obvious only to farmers. But in the past few years this has started to change, with foods arriving that offer added perks for consumers.
Fresher for longer
The Innate potato, for instance, is less prone to bruising and resulting black spots, and produces less of the potentially dangerous chemical acrylamide when fried than conventional potatoes. It has been sold as White Russet in the US since 2015. Then there are apples that will appeal to those people – especially kids – who don’t like eating fruit that has gone brown after being sliced. Arctic apples, which never discolour, went on sale in the US in November 2017. So far, these products are being produced in relatively small quantities. But the next GM superfood to make its way on to our plates – or into our takeaway boxes – is going to be huge. Soybean oil is incredibly popular, especially in the catering industry. Yet it’s not actually ideal for cooking. The raw oil consists of around 60 per cent polyunsaturated fats, which are unstable. These limit the oil’s shelf life and break down when used for frying to form bad-tasting and harmful byproducts.
By contrast, monounsaturated fats like oleic acid, found in olive oil, are more stable and thus better for cooking. But olive oil, which is up to 80 per cent oleic acid, is expensive. So, back in the 1950s, producers started
By contrast, monounsaturated fats like oleic acid, found in olive oil, are more stable and thus better for cooking. But olive oil, which is up to 80 per cent oleic acid, is expensive. So, back in the 1950s, producers started
Fats with benefits
Soon, we are all likely to be eating a new kind of healthier, genetically modified oil. So what’s different about it?
For starters, high-oleic soya oil contains none of the harmful trans fats found in conventional
hydrogenated soya oil. There is no doubt that removing these from food is beneficial, says Marianne Jakobsen
of Denmark’s National Food Institute. High-oleic oils are also much less likely to break down into aldehydes when used for cooking – and these are even more toxic than trans fats.
A third plus is that the oils contain less saturated fat, so should reduce the risk of heart disease, although the idea that saturated fats are bad for us has been questioned of late.
And a study last year found that when mice were put on a very high fat diet, those fed high-oleic soya oil instead of normal soya oil were less likely to become obese or get diabetes – although it’s not yet clear why, nor if these findings are relevant to people.
This does not mean that gorging on fast food fried in high-oleic oils is good for you, of course, just that it is less bad than stuffing your face with foods fried in hydrogenated polyunsaturated oils. “It always depends on what you compare with,” says Jakobsen
For starters, high-oleic soya oil contains none of the harmful trans fats found in conventional
hydrogenated soya oil. There is no doubt that removing these from food is beneficial, says Marianne Jakobsen
of Denmark’s National Food Institute. High-oleic oils are also much less likely to break down into aldehydes when used for cooking – and these are even more toxic than trans fats.
A third plus is that the oils contain less saturated fat, so should reduce the risk of heart disease, although the idea that saturated fats are bad for us has been questioned of late.
And a study last year found that when mice were put on a very high fat diet, those fed high-oleic soya oil instead of normal soya oil were less likely to become obese or get diabetes – although it’s not yet clear why, nor if these findings are relevant to people.
This does not mean that gorging on fast food fried in high-oleic oils is good for you, of course, just that it is less bad than stuffing your face with foods fried in hydrogenated polyunsaturated oils. “It always depends on what you compare with,” says Jakobsen
Superfoods à la GM
Non-browning apples
Some people dislike eating fruit with flesh that has become discoloured. This never happens to Arctic apples. They went on sale in the US in November 2017.
Potatoes that don’t bruise
The Innate potato is less prone to bruising and consequent black spots. When fried, it also produces less acrylamide, a substance suspected of causing cancer, than conventional spuds do.
Wheat with “good” gluten
People with coeliac disease could soon have their cake and eat it. At least two groups worldwide are editing out the genes for the gluten proteins that damage the guts of people with this digestive disorder. One GM wheat is undergoing clinical trials in Spain.
Pink pineapples
They are pink because they accumulate lycopene, the pigment that makes tomatoes red, instead of
Omega-3 rapeseed (canola)
This seed from the rape plant is rich in the beneficial omega-3 oil DHA. The plan is to market it first as fish feed and then for human consumption. Last year, 1200 hectares were grown and harvested in the US.
High-fibre white bread
Gene-edited wheat yields white flour with three times as much dietary fibre as standard white flour.
Bloodier oranges
Blood oranges are regarded as beneficial because they are rich in antioxidants called anthocyanins. Normal blood oranges only turn red if they experience cold nights while growing. The GM strain is full of anthocyanins regardless of the weather. The oranges are not yet on sale.Bananas with a boostThe matoke cooking banana is a staple in Uganda. The GM variety contains provitamin A, a lack of which can lead to blindness. It is being field tested in Uganda and could be on sale in 2021.Lower-saturated fat rapeseed oilConventional rapeseed oil contains 7 per cent saturated fats. A gene-edited variety will have half this amount.Golden riceRice designed to reduce vitamin A deficiency has been under development for decades, but has yet to reach market. It received a big boost earlier this year when Australia, New Zealand and Canada declared it safe for humans, meaning there would be no regulatory issues if those countries imported food containing small quantities of the rice.
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