Farmers modify their grapes to make them so sweet that they are almost dangerous for diabetics to consume.
Growers have focused on the ‘quality’ of their fruit – meaning it contains more sugar – as well as global warming, which is increasing the sweetness.
The candy-like fruits are bred to taste sweeter, and many are renamed to resemble a sweet treat.
Cotton Candy Grapes, Gummyberries, Gum Drop Grapes, Pinkglow Pineapple, Sunshine Watermelons, and Rose Strawberries have all been bred to deviate from their original flavor.
Diabetics should be careful to moderate their intake of higher sugar fruits — such as pineapple — with fruits bred to be sweeter and lower in the phytochemicals that make it so healthy and make it more dangerous for people with the condition.
The candy-like fruits are bred to taste sweeter, and many are renamed to resemble a sweet treat. Pictured: A hidden rose apple bred to taste like ‘strawberry lemonade’
Oishii’s strawberries are so soft they have to be put in foam packs to survive and cost a whopping $15 for a 12-berry tub
Humans aren’t the only ones affected by the changes in breeding. Melbourne Zoo reported in 2018 that they had been forced to stop feeding their animals fruit because it caused tooth decay.
The monkeys at the zoo were weaned off bananas onto a low-sugar plant-based diet in an effort to help them lose weight.
Research in 2010 showed that the sugar content of many fruits is higher than before due to ‘continuous selection and breeding’.
Most modern apple varieties are sweeter on average than wild apples – and bitterness and sourness are bred out of them.
Studies of wild apples suggest that there is greater variation in sugar content, with modern supermarket apples remaining at the same level of sweetness.
However, global warming is partly attributed to rising sugar levels, with research showing that apples became sweeter and softer with rising temperatures.
The Brix scale is how breeders measure the sugar content of fruit, which refers to the mass percentage of sugar.
Fresh peaches range from nine to 12 degrees Brix, while modern cherries routinely have 20 Brix or more.
Cotton Candy Grapes, Gummyberries, Gum Drop Grapes, Pinkglow Pineapple, Sunshine Watermelons and Rose Strawberries have all been bred to deviate from their original flavor
Research in 2010 showed that the sugar content of many fruits is higher than before due to ‘continuous selection and breeding’. Pictured: A sunshine watermelon
Humans aren’t the only ones affected by the changes in breeding. Melbourne Zoo reported in 2018 that they had been forced to stop feeding their animals fruit because it caused tooth decay. Pictured: plums grown to taste like cherries
Peaches are being targeted by plant breeders to breed peach varieties with a higher sugar content, led by plant breeder and scientist Marco Cirilli.
He told the Wall Street Journal that the average peach can be improved by leaving it in a bowl on a sunny windowsill for a few days and is part of an Italian project trying to create peaches with a Brix score of 25.
Fruits that are allowed to stay longer on the tree result in a sweeter and fuller tasting fruit. English apple growers say apple farmers bred for sweetness don’t “develop fully” if picked too early.
Strawberries are also bred to have a wide variety of flavors – including one made to taste like a pink Starburst and another to have a tropical flavor.
Oishii’s strawberries are so soft they have to be put in foam packs to survive, and they cost a whopping $15 for a 12-berry tub.
They also measure the Brix level of each berry to make sure it’s consistent across every pack.
Del Monte has also created two new pineapples, their Honeyglow which is picked for a more pronounced flavor and their Pinkglow option which is the color of deli ham and retails for $15 each
Only a few fruits have been changed with genetic engineering – with the Pinkglow having a gene that has been toned down to produce a less yellow pineapple
A set of designer strawberries from Driscoll’s includes Rose Berries, Tropical Bliss, and Sweetest Batch that deliver the same taste of fruit punch.
They are one of the few companies that cross-breed by hand, growing over 100,000 varieties a year – choosing an ‘elite parent plant’ to cross-pollinate with another.
Del Monte has also created two new pineapples, their Honeyglow which is picked for a more pronounced flavor and their Pinkglow option which is the color of deli ham and retails for $15 each.
Only a few fruits have been altered with genetic engineering – with the Pinkglow having a gene that has been toned down to produce a less yellow pineapple.
Baldor Specialty Foods also offered a Sunshine Watermelon – with golden yellow skin and magenta flesh – as well as the Hidden Rose Apple which has pink flesh and is made to taste like strawberry lemonade.
Dillard’s director of strawberry breeding, Phil Stewart, told the New York Times, “As a plant breeder, it’s very satisfying to produce something that people like so much.
“The world needs alfalfa, but nobody’s excited when you show up at a party with a box of alfalfa, you know?”