In February, scientists and farmers from the Hot Climate Partnership introduced the “Tutti” to the world; this is a crisp red apple variety that is genetically designed to cope with Europe’s increasingly torrid summers. More than 20 years ago, a group of growers from Catalonia, Spain’s main apple-growing region, travelled to consult food scientists at New Zealand’s Plant and Food Research facility in Hawke’s Bay, one of the world’s best apple-growing regions.
Global warming was putting a strain on the livelihoods of Catalan farmers. Apples were ripening too early, and the sharp nighttime drop in temperatures that triggered the pigmentation that turned their apples an attractive red were disappearing. Insufficient rainfall meant their trees were unable to survive.
The good news for the Catalan apple-growers is that Tutti – and a pipeline of other apple and pear varieties due to be released over the next decade – might provide an answer to their prayers. Tutti apples provide a good example of the time scientists need to respond to the climate challenge. The apple variety was selectively chosen from among 253,510 apple seeds explored by food scientists at the Plant and Food Research facility in Hawke’s Bay.
Source: scmp.com