The U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has approved the first genetically modified apple for commercial production.

Dubbed the Arctic Apple, the fruit will be able to resist browning when sliced and the flesh is exposed to air.

The approval is given to Canadian company Okanagan Specialty Fruits (OSF), which considers the deregulation of its flagship product as "the biggest milestone yet for us." Initially, the non-browning apples will have two varieties, the Arctic Granny Smith and the Arctic Golden Apple. OSF hopes to make them available in small, test markets in late 2016 before they reach a significantly wider population the year after.

"Our focus is working with growers to get trees in the ground," said Neal Carter, founder and president of OSF. "As more trees are planted and they come into commercial production, there will be a slow, but steady market introduction."

OSF says the approval was because the Arctic Apples are "unlikely to pose a plant pest risk" and "not likely to have a significant impact on the human environment." However, the FDA, which conducts voluntary reviews of genetically altered foods, is still reviewing the apple before it can be put out on the market.

Although genetically modified crops have been in production for more than three decades, the Arctic Apple is one of the first genetically engineered food varieties designed for the consumer to be given the green light by the USDA.

In November, the USDA approved for commercial production the Innate potato, which was designed by French fries company J.R. Simplot Co. in order to produce less bruising and less carcinogens when cooked. Most other crops with altered genes, such as corn, soybean and canola, were developed as herbicide- and pest-resistant plants for the benefit of farmers.

Although 88 percent of scientists interviewed in a Pew Research study consider genetically modified food as safe, only 37 percent of the general public think so, a fact that has caused some worry in some apple producers in the country.

Todd Fryhover, president of the Washington Apple Commission, believes the state exports more than a third of its apples to foreign countries, such as China, where Northwest Horticultural Council president Christian Schlect says genetically altered foods are generally frowned upon. Schlect also pointed out that "there's quite a bit of concern among a certain element of the public about biotechnology."

Debate is currently waging in the halls of Congress about whether food companies should be required to label products that contain genetically engineered ingredients. In at least three states, namely Colorado, Oregon and Washington, initiatives to require the labeling of genetically modified products were turned down. In Vermont, where such a law was passed, advocates of non-labeling are challenging the measure in court.

Ronnie Cummins, director of the Organic Consumers Association (OCA), which called on the USDA for non-approval of the Arctic Apple, says the genetically engineered apples could be harmful to human health.

"This whole thing is just another big experiment on humans for no good reason," Cummins told the Washington Post.

OSF, however, argues that the non-browning apples are "as safe and healthful as any other apple." Carter says all that was done was to reduce the expression of the polyphenol oxidase enzyme, which causes the browning of apples when sliced or damaged, to more than 90 percent of the regular amount found in non-engineered apples.

"There are no novel proteins in Arctic fruit and their nutrition and composition is equivalent to their conventional counterparts," Carter said.

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