Ashwini Zadokar1,†, Pankaj Kumar1,†, *,and Rajnish Sharma1
1Department of Biotechnology, Dr Y.S. Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Solan, Himachal Pradesh, India.
†These authors have contributed equally to this work and share first authorship
*Corresponding author email: pksharmabiotech@gmail.com
Abstract
Calgene Inc. created FlavrSavr, the first genetically engineered biotech food, to improve the flavour and taste of fresh market tomatoes with prolonged shelf life. The FDA (Food and Drug Administration, USA) approved its commercial release in 1994. These transgenic tomatoes sold for a higher price at the grocery than regular tomatoes, but it was just a momentary success. This product disappears from the market just after three years from its release, because of some scientific and technical reasons. Today’s biotech companies have learned from FlavrSavr’s shortcomings and paved their path towards advanced research on tomato improvement for various aspects such as shelf life, fruit ripening, lycopene content, pest and disease resistance, and nutritional quality improvement to develop nutrient-dense superfoods. This article will serve as the foundation for a fundamental understanding of the first transgenic food, emphasizing on its development, regulatory and food safety assessment, reasons for commercial success and failure, and current findings on shelf-life enhancement.
Keywords– FlavrSavr; Polygalacturonase gene; Antisense RNA technology; Shelf-life; Transgenic
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