The familiar sight of rapidly browning bananas on our countertops may soon be a thing of the past. Scientists have successfully developed a gene-edited banana that resists browning for hours after peeling, marking a major step toward reducing food waste and extending shelf life.
Longer-lasting bananas engineered through gene editing
A groundbreaking banana developed by Tropic, a biotechnology firm based in Norwich, has been engineered to remain yellow and fresh for up to 12 hours after peeling. Unlike conventional bananas, this version is more resistant to browning caused by bruises during harvesting and transport.
Speaking with AgFunderNews, Tropic Co-Founder Gilad Gershon said, “The bananas have the same taste, smell, sweetness profile, the same everything, except that the flesh doesn’t go brown as quickly, which means you can add them to fruit salads and cut fruit products, opening up a huge new market.”
The secret behind this extended freshness lies in the precise application of CRISPR, a gene editing technique. Scientists at Tropic successfully disabled the enzyme responsible for the enzymatic browning process in bananas. Specifically, they targeted and silenced a gene that controls the production of polyphenol oxidase, the key enzyme driving browning. This same gene-silencing strategy has proven effective in preventing browning in other produce, including Arctic apples (a genetically modified variety available in the US since 2017), as well as tomatoes, melon, kiwifruits, and mushrooms. Notably, Tropic achieved this non-browning trait in bananas by making precise modifications to the fruit’s existing genes, without introducing any foreign genetic material.
Though non-browning apples have existed for years, applying this technology to bananas posed a greater challenge. Most bananas consumed in the U.S. are of the Cavendish variety, a seedless clone that reproduces asexually. Because of this genetic uniformity, conventional breeding methods for introducing new traits are virtually ineffective, making gene editing one of the few viable options for innovation.
How non-browning bananas could help fight food waste and carbon emissions
The development of non-browning bananas isn’t just a win for aesthetics and shelf life—it’s also a major step toward more sustainable agriculture. Tropic, the biotech company behind the innovation, sees broader potential in applying gene-editing techniques to improve disease resistance and further extend the fruit’s longevity. These advancements could play a crucial role in reducing food waste and, in turn, lowering global greenhouse gas emissions.
Nearly one-third of all harvested agricultural products go to waste globally, with bananas being particularly vulnerable. In fact, nearly 60% of banana biomass is discarded after harvesting.
“Food waste is a big contributor to greenhouse gas emissions. It’s very bad, clearly,” said Gilad Gershon, the chief executive of Tropic. “Bananas are the fourth biggest crop globally, but also one where the perishability is very high. Some estimates say that 50% of the bananas grown are never eaten.”
Tropic estimates that its gene-edited bananas “have the potential to significantly reduce food waste and CO2 emissions along the supply chain by more than 25%,” equating the environmental impact to “a reduction in CO2 emissions equivalent to removing 2 million passenger vehicles from the road each year.”
When will non-browning bananas be available in the U.S.?
Tropic’s non-browning bananas have already received commercial approval in several countries, including the Philippines, Colombia, Honduras, Canada, and the United States. With regulatory green lights secured, consumers in the U.S. can expect to see the innovative fruit in stores before the end of the year.
Across the Atlantic, prospects are also promising. Gershon said the bananas are expected to meet the standards of the UK’s Genetic Technology (Precision Breeding) Act. Once the necessary secondary legislation is enacted later this year, the product could soon be available in England as well.