Arctic Fuji

type: Dessert

synonyms: NF872

summary: Not a cultivar in the true sense of the term, this Fuji apple was genetically engineered to resist browning when exposed to air. It and the Arctic Golden represent the first step of the apple industry into the world of genetically modified foods. For full details on the Fuji apple, please refer to Tohoku 7 .

origins: Created by the Okanagan Specialty Fruits in Summerland, British Columbia (Canada) in an effort to override the polyphenoloxicase gene that make up the naturally-bred apples and cause the flesh to brown when exposed to air. This was done by creating a transgene consisting of anti-PPO (polyphenoloxicase) which was then introduced into the apple buds of sapling Golden Delicious. The saplings were grown to fruit bearing stage and produced apples with flesh that underwent little or no browning at all when exposed to air. When the apple is digested, the transgene genetic material in the Artic apples becomes unidentifiable in the human digestive system. In 2015, the United States Food and Drug Administration declared that the Arctic apples are safe for human consumption and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency followed suit in 2017. The apples have been marketed as the Arctic collection since 2020 in North America and currently consist of the Arctic Golden, the Arctic Granny and the Arctic Fuji.