OAK BROOK, Ill. — Although the USDA has approved J.R. Simplot Co.’s new "Innate" potato, McDonald’s Corp. has decided not to purchase the new genetically-modified (GMO) spud from its longtime supplier.
"McDonald’s USA does not source GMO potatoes, nor do we have current plans to change our sourcing practices," the Oak Brook, Ill.-based fast food giant said in a company statement concerning Simplot, which has been a longtime supplier to McDonald’s.
On Nov. 15, the USDA green-lighted the deregulation of Simplot’s new GMO potato that the company said changes the DNA, producing less acrylamide, suspected to be a human carcinogen created by frying. A major supplier of French fries and hash browns, Simplot has also said its new potato resists bruising.
"The J.R. Simplot Co. is pleased that the USDA has deregulated Innate potatoes, enabling them to be sold in the United States," the Boise, Idaho-based company stated. "This approval comes after a decade of scientific development, safety assessments and extensive field tests."
With full market penetration in the U.S., Simplot said Innate would reduce annual potato waste by an estimated 400 million pounds in the foodservice and retail industries and a significant portion of the estimated 3 billion pounds discarded by consumers.
Simplot plans to sell its potatoes as whole spuds and in the "fresh-cut" form similar to pre-sliced apples, according to Capital Press, an agricultural news service.
"It’s the fastest growing segment of the fresh produce market," said Doug Cole, spokesman for J.R. Simplot.
Capital Press reported the Innate cultivar incorporates genes from other types of potatoes, offering a longer shelf life for consumers and reduced waste for farmers and shippers.
Cole said regular, fresh-cut potatoes already have a foothold among hotels and other institutional food service providers, "but Innate spuds offer an advantage because they don’t require preservatives or additives to prevent them from turning brown."
A recent Simplot survey indicated most consumers see Innate technology as "akin to traditional breeding, since the variety incorporates genes from wild and cultivated potatoes rather than totally unrelated species."
But according to food industry experts, the debate over GMOs is still divisive – and far from over.
"This whole GMO thing is so polarizing," said Tom Gillpatrick, executive director of the Food Industry Leadership Center at Portland State University. "It really doesn’t seem to matter what the facts are."
Simplot wasn’t the first company attempting to integrate GMO food into the marketplace. More than 10 years ago, Monsanto Co. introduced its own genetically modified potato, "New Leaf." The St. Louis-based company claimed its new spud was bug-resistant, but it was later pulled from production due to lack of commercial and consumer interest.
Simplot expects to license its Innate potatoes to select partners for test markets in 2015.
