The Innate Potato

Like the Arctic Apple, Simplot’s gene-edited potato hasn’t received much negative fallout from the anti-GMO crowd. Maybe it’s due to the fact the focus has not been on production but consumer orientated traits like non-bruising. John Keeling, Executive Vice President and CEO of the National Potato Council says there exciting new technology around the corner in what they call the innate potato.

KEELING: In the last year the J.R. Simplot Company is introducing what they call the innate potato and that’s a Genetically modified Potato but the focus there has not been on production traits but consumer orientated traits like non-bruising trait that sort of thing so that’s what they have focused on. We think the technology offers some real opportunities to provide some additional things to consumers that would be valuable to them

And the gene-edited, non-bruising trait actually provides a sustainability aspect as well

KEELING: That’s absolutely true! The non-bruising trait is significant from a sustainability point of view you are looking at a trait that would make the potato very very resistant to most the common types of late blight which would reduce pesticide use so there are a lot of things going on there are different than the traditional production traits.

Simplot research has found that consumers find a greater comfort level with innate potatoes that use Gene-editing, potato genes within potatoes and not gene modification.