Enza Zaden joins the pink tomato trend
Wednesday, 30 June 2010
A pink tomato instead of the well-known red variety. A completely unknown product in most markets, but one third of the world’s population doesn’t know anything else. The Chinese and Japanese market, for instance, where there is a high demand for this pink variety. This is an interesting development for Enza Zaden, particularly now that the gene that determines this colour has been identified.
Early this year, Plant Research International, part of the Wageningen UR, announced that it had discovered the gene that is responsible for a pink colour in tomatoes. Although it has been known since 1925 that a mutation in the tomato genome is responsible for this colour, for many years the scientific world has been in the dark about what causes it. Up until now that is, ever since research led by Dr Arnaud Bovy has recently shown that this mutation is caused by a gene that blocks the production of flavonoids. Flavonoids are present in the skin of the fruit, and are thought to act as antioxidants, strengthening the immune system and reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease. The yellow in this substance is what gives tomatoes their normal red colour when combined with the red lycopene.
Achieving the desired results, faster and more efficiently
knowledge of genetics is of vital importance for breeding companies such as Enza Zaden. This is precisely the reason that Enza Zaden’s research team was so closely involved in Dr Bovy’s research. What does this discovery actually mean for Enza Zaden? The Enza Zaden breeding stations in China are already putting the identification of the gene to use on a large scale. “This knowledge combined with the molecular biology expertise we already have is helping us to develop good, innovative tomato varieties which possess the so-called ‘pink traits’”, Frits Herlaar, Crop Research Manager for tomatoes at Enza Zaden reports. “We are now able to breed for the desired traits faster and more efficiently.”
Since the gene responsible for this trait has now been identified, the Molecular Marker technology now offers possibilities that were previously unheard of. Thanks to this technique, we can now determine whether or not the gene for the pink tomato is present in young plants, a factor that can speed up the breeding process considerably. Additionally, it saves an incredible amount of space in the greenhouse since we know before the planting-out phase which hybrids have the desired gene needed to produce the pink tomato. In practise, it appears that some 75% of the initial hybrids are not suitable for further breeding since they lack the right gene. This means that we can remove these plants from the first tests at an early stage.
The future of pink
The first two pink tomato varieties are already being screened in the Asian market. To be specific, the Chinese market, where pink has traditionally been the standard colour for tomatoes. There are also good opportunities for this colour variety in Japan, Korea, other Asian countries and perhaps even Eastern Europe as well. Enza Zaden, therefore, already started the first screenings. One could even
say the future looks quite rosy for this product. “For the future, we are also considering the possibilities for even more varieties with ‘pink traits’, such as a pink cherry tomato,” Frits Herlaar says. “This is one way we can add even more differentiation to our range.”