GMO Purple Tomato by Norfolk LANDRACE

Yea, I can’t think of any other GMO Seed Marketed to the home Gardener (Ornamental GMO’S weren’t a thing right?). I wonder what took so long, Regulations & Public disinterest? 3d printer of the future, Now that’s an interesting future, I’m sure there won’t be any unforeseen consequences or suprises hehe :grin:.

Should GMO’s be seen as a last resort when all Traditional Breeding methods & Epigenetics weren’t able to achieve the same thing?

Spicy Carrots!? Oh my :scream:. I’ve heard Tomatoes can also be Naturally Spicy, they have the gene to be but it hasn’t been turned on yet. Perhaps GMO can finally turn it on? Or even Better, combine Epigenetics with GMO using both.

It also does seem fun to see how far you can get without GMO. Kind of like a Challenge. I’d like to see GMO Compete with Heirloom & Landraces, Just to see who can breed the better Tomato. Perhaps even Yearly Contests can be held.

I think it’s worth emphasizing how involved the process of gene editing is while being superficially simple as it explains both why GMOs have not until now been a pressing concern for home gardeners and smaller producers, and also what big social/moral/ecological effects might emerge in the future as GMO development costs drop.

So when I described the process of gene editing, I said a specific DNA sample is extracted from a donor sample, and injected into the DNA of a recipient. That is all true, but it’s not an easy process.

First, you have to sequence donor and recipient DNA and comb over the results to identify which genes code for specific desired characteristics. Any candidate donor genes need to be compatible with the recipient. Ie, if you injected the same snapdragon DNA into the human genome, it might very well NOT make all purple inside and out humans. More problematically, as many genes have multiple functions, or functions that are inactive in the donor but might affect the recipient, gene insertions could create unwanted side effects.

But also, genes arent something you or I can snip out of a DNA sample with craft scissors and paste in with glue. Its not something scientists in a lab can snip out with scalpels and insert with microdermal needles. Genes are snipped out by proteins and enzymes developed to snip at specific DNA sequences.

Developing and modifying proteins and enzymes is a whole field within a field. Protein folding modeling is one of the heaviest computational tasks driving the price of processors and video cards (aside from blockchain makework.

Then you need a vector, a virus/retrovirus/bacteria/parasite that inserts the donor gene at the right spot. And you need to modify that too so it picks up and releases at the sequence ends specified by you.

And then there’s growing out the recipient samples. You need a small number of cells in your recipient sample, so the sample gets in all the cells. That might mean growing your first individuals from tissue culture rather than whole seeds.

All this process to achieve changes that are very narrow. Until recently, we didnt need to worry about GMOs in home gardens, as there was simply no way anybody would sell enough seed packets to recoup the costs of making modifications relevant to home garden seeds

The only way GMOs were profitable until this year, was when selling seed on a massive commercial scale to the producers of the largest cash crops. Wheat, corn, and soy are the primary GMO crops. A purple tomato is probably pretty harmless, but it indicates that GMO development has advanced to the point that GMOs are on the cusp of being profitable to sell into the home gardener market.

One of the most widespread of GMO types is commonly known under Monsanto’s tradename “roundup ready”. Corn and grains have a sequence inserted that makes them immune to specific herbicides, which are then sprayed in doses toxic to all other life in these fields. Thats an ethical concern on its own, but whats worse is that Monsanto etc have gone after surrounding farmers for copyright infringement when their grain is cross pollinated by the Monsanto corn, or if farmers save seed from their GMO corn.

Its also theoretically possible to genetically modify seeds so they only produce one further generation, or are incompatible with other plants of the same species, so buyers become dependent on buying more seeds rather than seedsaving.

Now imagine those issues applied to the home gardener.

I dont think the process of genetic modification is inherently bad for health or the environment. Many GMOs could be neutral or even great. I do think purple tomatoes are a fun idea and probably completely harmless. However, I, like I think many people, am somewhat concerned about the profit motives driving GMO development, and that as it is becoming more prevalent, those impacts get more pronounced

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I don’t know how a home gardener would do tissueculture?

Monsanto is the big reason why GMO’s are hated, why spray toxins & when you could’ve easily landraced the pest problems away? Also if Corn Grain is cross pollinated by Monsanto Pollen why does monsanto sue the farmer & not the other way around? I can’t imagine an Organic Corn Farmer suffering damages due to loosing their organic label thanks to Mansanto’s Corn Cross Pollination.

THIS IS SCARY! Cytoplasmic Male Syndrom was already bad enough in some Hybrid Seeds, let’s not give them any ideas. It’s crazy to think we as plan breeders try to overcome Hybridization barriers & now Hybridization barriers are put in on purpose!? Yikes!

I share this sentiment, it’s how the technology is used that makes it dangerous. If we mimic how Mushrooms & Other Virus do it, learning from nature than perhaps we can avoid most of the unintended consequences right?

I don’t know how a home gardener would do tissueculture?

I meant “you” as the generic you [whichever team is growing tissues in a lab] not you the individual I was replying to.

But actually tissue culture is a thing quite a few houseplant collectors have started up as a home business - definitely more doable than the rest of the gene editing process.

Also if Corn Grain is cross pollinated by Monsanto Pollen why does monsanto sue the farmer & not the other way around? I can’t imagine an Organic Corn Farmer suffering damages due to loosing their organic label thanks to Mansanto’s Corn Cross Pollination.

Yes, this was a specific case. A seed farmer sued Monsanto for endangering his crops which got pollinated by roundup ready pollen. This farmer had his corn tested, proving it contained Monsanto genetics to support his case. Monsanto turned around and countersued him for higher damages, alleging he was selling corn seed which contained monsanto genetics and using his own testing for his suit as evidence for theirs. Monsanto can afford lots of lawyer fees…

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Damn… that’s really messed up. Can we make GMO seeds open source? or would open source seed initiative not accept GMO even if I open the DNA Source Code? Perhaps that’s how we out compete monsanto?

Tissue Culture, what kinds of tools would you need to start? Is it kind of like growing mushrooms indoors or can Tissure Culture be done outside?

Theres nothing preventing a hypothetical developer of a GMO seed declaring their creation open source. The big companies funding the development of GMOs have little incentive/likelihood to make this the norm.

Here’s a video about building a home tissue culture setup

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Awesome! Thank you!

The GMO Purple Tomatoes finally Showed up at the Grocery Store.


I’ve saved the seeds, let me know if anyone wants to trade for them?

How was the flavor?

Tastes Exactly like a Red Cherry Tomato. Nothing unique flavor wise, only the purple color is unique. Still a decent tasting tomato but could use those heirloom flavors (Hence why someone should breed a landrace with it).

Thanks for the update… I’m very torn with introducing GMOs into the garden. Round Up Ready corn is a no brainer in keeping out. But something like this, is that novelty? Is it a future risk for something we didn’t consider or test for? I just don’t know. I am very glad to hear the flavor isn’t superior, that way I’m only missing out on the color :slight_smile:

I feel you! GMO breeding only Focused on color (Turns on 1 Gene Switch), Landrace Pollination Breeding (Turns on Multiple Gene Switches) hence why it often taste better with More Diverse Flavors. I think each has their place in breeding. The risk is minimal due to 10 years of testing & Snapdragon gene also being an edible flower. However these seeds are patented but Norfolk encourages the community to Breed, Save, Exchange (BUT NOT SELL) the seeds. Norfolk is not patent Aggressive like Mansanto but also not fully open source either. Ideally I don’t think Life should be patented, all seeds should be open-source for everyone to breed new varieties with.

You could always just wait for some gardener to breed a better tasting Tomato with the purple GMO gene (I’d do it). Or even better sideskip the GMO Tomato & use other methods of Horizontal Gene Flow to transfer genes from another plant without pollination. That way it’s like GMO but by Definition isn’t. You could also make the GMO yourself genes yourself, Imagine Making a BLUE Tomato that way!?

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