It’s been over 10,000 years since humans started domesticating crops to makefoodtaste better, be healthier, and grow in different environments. However, these genetic modifications have also made fruits and vegetables look different from the wild varieties that used to exist.Although there has been certain bad press aboutgenetically modifiedfood (GMOs), folks can’t deny the amazing results. Just look at these before and after photos, which are a testament to the incredible changes our food has undergone over the years.This post may includeaffiliate links.
It’s been over 10,000 years since humans started domesticating crops to makefoodtaste better, be healthier, and grow in different environments. However, these genetic modifications have also made fruits and vegetables look different from the wild varieties that used to exist.Although there has been certain bad press aboutgenetically modifiedfood (GMOs), folks can’t deny the amazing results. Just look at these before and after photos, which are a testament to the incredible changes our food has undergone over the years.
This post may includeaffiliate links.
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Our old faithfulbanana’sancestors date back some 7000 years to Musa in Southeast Asia. Before it was the creamy, sweet fruit we know and love, it actually housed large seeds that took up most of the space inside. Humans have worked hard to keep bananas safe from extinction and developed the Giant Cavendish variety after a fungus infection in the previous century threatened to wipe outplantations.That’s why, up until the 1950s, people were still eating a different variety of bananas called the Gros Michel. It was a sweeter and more delicate variety compared to the Cavendish.
The genetically modified fruits and vegetables in this list show just howcreativeand intelligent human beings can be.Domesticatingancient crops has helped create a larger supply of food, reduced the need for pesticides, and created stronger plant varieties. It’s not just food that’s been selectively bred; humans have also undertaken these experiments on animals and microorganisms.
Lemons are thought to be a cross between wild citrus and bitter oranges. They first appeared in Asia and were domesticated almost 3,300 years ago. The ancientwild lemonswere so acidic that they could not be eaten, and it’s kind of a mystery how the sweet varieties came into existence. Even if we can’t pinpoint how exactly they developed into what they are now, we’re incredibly thankful for all the citrusy hybrids and varieties that came from those ancestral fruits.
The delicious and sweet modern plum may have been one of thefirst fruitshumans domesticated. Ancient writings show that plums were originally cultivated around Damascus. Plum remains, along with olives, figs, and grapes, have even been traced back to the Neolithic age.It was during the 19th and early 20th centuries that botanists took an interest in crossbreeding plums and ended up developing a sweet plum-apricot hybrid. These experimentations with the fruit continued and have ultimately led to the wonderful plums we have today.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) states thatGMO seedsare used to grow over 90% of the crops people consume in the United States. Despite the benefits of domesticated crops, people still worry about theirpotential risks.Folks believe that GMO foods contain foreign genes that can cause people to have allergic reactions or increase the risk of certain cancers. A few studies support these claims, but the majority of research debunks them. There have also been concerns over such crops negatively impacting honeybees, but the science is still out on that one.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) states thatGMO seedsare used to grow over 90% of the crops people consume in the United States. Despite the benefits of domesticated crops, people still worry about theirpotential risks.
Folks believe that GMO foods contain foreign genes that can cause people to have allergic reactions or increase the risk of certain cancers. A few studies support these claims, but the majority of research debunks them. There have also been concerns over such crops negatively impacting honeybees, but the science is still out on that one.
Early domesticatedcarrotsin the East were often interesting colors like purple or yellow, while carrots in the West were predominantly orange. The wild version of this vegetable was whitish or ivory-colored and had a forked root. The modern orange carrot that we have today is credited to Dutch growers who developed it at the turn of the 18th century.They are said to have created this variety to honor the Dutch flag at that time, but other sources claim that it was done because these carrots didn’t brown soups and stews like the purple carrots did. Regardless, we’re lucky farmers managed to domesticate carrots, weed out the forked versions, and develop them into the tasty orange vegetables we enjoy!
The juicywatermelonwe have today was first domesticated in Africa and later cultivated in Egypt around 2000 BC. The wild varieties were not sweet and had a lot more of the inedible white rind. It was around 1576 that Spanish settlers grew watermelons similar to what we have today.Also, during the 20th century, the USDA funded a watermelon breeding project in Charleston, which led to the creation of a large, oval-shaped, light-green melon. That ‘Charleston Grey’ melon is still widely planted today. Over the years, this kind of selective breeding has helped us get the delicious, sweet watermelons we love, along with even tougher disease-resistant varieties.
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Apart from the theories and debates that most people have about geneticallymodified food, one of the biggest concerns actually relates to GMO seeds. People who try to avoid GMOs might inadvertently still consume them because of the hardiness of the seeds. An early example of this dates back to 1999 when Thai scientists found unapproved glyphosate-resistant GM wheat in a grain shipment.This happened because GMO seeds tend to spread beyond their area of cultivation. Despite farmers trying their best to control GMOs, what happened in Thailand has also taken place in several countries, supermarkets, restaurants, and other places where GMOs were not approved.
Apart from the theories and debates that most people have about geneticallymodified food, one of the biggest concerns actually relates to GMO seeds. People who try to avoid GMOs might inadvertently still consume them because of the hardiness of the seeds. An early example of this dates back to 1999 when Thai scientists found unapproved glyphosate-resistant GM wheat in a grain shipment.
This happened because GMO seeds tend to spread beyond their area of cultivation. Despite farmers trying their best to control GMOs, what happened in Thailand has also taken place in several countries, supermarkets, restaurants, and other places where GMOs were not approved.
Unlike corn,peacheshaven’t changed much since their wild form. Domestication seems to have happened in Japan between 4700 and 4400 BC, and it was done to make the peach pit a bit more compressed.Those versions were otherwise fairly similar to the peaches we have today. The ripe and succulent peaches we love fall into either the clingstone or freestone category, which basically tells us whether the fruit’s flesh sticks to its pit or not.
The oldest knownavocadodates back almost 10,000 years to central Mexico. This wild fruit used to grow in cave environments and originally had large seeds. It was thought to have been domesticated between 4000 and 2800 BC.In 1925, an amateur horticulturist named Rudolph Hass grafted different seedlings, which led to the creation of new avocado varieties with dark green, bumpy skin. Now, we have many unique varieties, like the West Indian avocados, which are considered the largest. They are round, have smooth, light green skin, and a slightly sweet taste.
The lovely and largegrapevines that we have today are a result of domestication 11,000 years ago in Western Asia and the Caucasus. It was done to yield table and wine grapevines. In the 19th century, a man named Ephraim Bull began selectively breeding grapes that could thrive in cold climates. His work led to the creation of the Concord grapes, which is one of the most widespread varieties in the United States.Grape varieties slowly spread worldwide and now come in different sizes, flavors, and berry-skin colors. Although they haven’t undergone a drastic change, we’re still grateful for these tasty fruits.
Eggplants might have been domesticated around 59 BC because there are actualwritten recordsfrom ancient China describing the crop. It was only between 7-10th century that eggplant cultivation spread around the world as people started to accept nightshade plants.As cultivation became widespread, the eggplant’s size and shape underwent massive transformations. Older varieties used to have spines on their stems, while others were small, round, and fleshy.
Tomatoes, which are actually considered fruits, not vegetables, were originally quite small and resembled berries. These smaller fruits were later domesticated in Mesoamerica around 7,000 years ago to become the tomatoes we have now.The modern red and luscioustomatovastly differs from its tiny ancestor, but its berry versions can still be found today. The species is calledSolanum pimpinellifoliumor currant tomato and can be found in Ecuador and Peru. Although they are edible, they’re more commonly used forscientificpurposes.
You might still be on the fence about genetically modified food, but you’ve got to admit that the process has certainly brought about a lot of spectacular changes. After seeing this list, which of these fruits or vegetables do you think underwent the biggest transformation?
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