After years of development, protest and regulatory red tape, the first genetically¹ modified, non-browning apples will soon go on sale in the United States.

历经多年研发与非议，经受了监管部门条条框框的约束，终于，首款防褐变转基因苹果就要在美国开售了。

The fruit, sold sliced and marketed under the brand Arctic Apple, could hit a cluster of Midwestern grocery stores as early as Feb. 1. The limited release is an early test run for the controversial apple, which has been genetically modified to eliminate the browning that occurs when an apple is left out in the open air.

这种备受争议的“北极苹果”预计最早于2017年2月1日在美国中西部的多家商店以切片的形式进行初期的试点销售。因为经过了转基因改良，这种苹果的果肉暴露在空气中不会发生氧化变色。

Critics and advocates of genetic² engineering say that the apple could be a turning point in the nation’s highly polarizing debate over genetically modified organisms (GMOs). While genetic modifications³ have in the past been mainly defended as a way to protect crops, the Arctic Apple would be one of the first GMOs marketed directly to consumers as more convenient.

基因工程的批评家们与支持者们均表示，美国国内在转基因生物的争论上，观点已呈两极化，“北极苹果”的试售可能会是这一局面的转折点。在过去，转基因技术主要运用于农作物的保护，而切片包装的“北极苹果”因其方便食用，将成为消费者直接吃进嘴里的第一种转基因水果。

“What companies are desperate for is some really popular GMO product to hit the market,” said McKay Jenkins. “Any successful product could lift the cloud over GMOs.”

麦凯•詹金斯表示：“企业渴望的是真正受市场欢迎追捧的转基因产品。任何转基因商品在市场上的成功都可能会打消人们对转基因生物的疑虑。”

Industry executives predict the apple could open a whole new trade in genetically engineered produce, potentially opening the market to pink pineapples, antioxidant-enriched tomatoes, and other food currently in development.

业内高管预测，“北极苹果”可以为转基因农产品打开一个全新市场，同时也为今后把粉色菠萝，抗氧化西红柿等尚在研发的转基因食物推向市场做好了铺垫。

“We see this as less about genetic modification⁴ and more about convenience,” said Neal Carter, founder⁵ of the company that makes the Arctic Apple. “I think consumers are very ready for apples that don’t go brown. Everyone can identify with that ‘yuck’ factor.”

“北极苹果”的生产商、加拿大奥卡诺根特色水果公司创始人尼尔•卡特认为：“在我们看来，该苹果的重点在于食用便利而非其转基因的身份。我相信消费者能够接受不变色的苹果。也能包容别人所谓的瑕疵。”

GMO critics say they are hopeful, however, that consumers will continue to show skepticism about the produce. Despite a growing consensus⁶ in scientific circles that GMOs pose little risk, environmental and consumer groups have successfuly mounted campaigns against GMOs over the past 30 years, successfully limiting the practice to commodity crops like soybeans and corn.

转基因生物的批评者们则表示，他们希望消费者们能继续对转基因产品保持怀疑态度。尽管科学界对转基因生物几乎无风险的事实已逐渐认可，但在过去30年里，反对转基因生物的环境组织和消费者团体的宣传力量不可小觑，这样一来就大大限制了大豆和玉米等农作物商品的转基因研究。

Anti-GMO groups have successfully pushed for GMO crop bans in places like Boulder⁷ County, Colo., and Sonoma County, Calif., and several major food brands have agreed not to use GM ingredients. Critics have also questioned how consumers will be able to judge the freshness of sliced apples when they don’t brown.

反转基因生物组织已成功地推动了科罗拉多州博尔德县和加州索诺玛县的转基因作物种植禁令，几大主要食品品牌也就不使用转基因原料达成了共识。同时，评论家们提出，如果转基因的切片苹果不会氧化变色，消费者要如何判断水果是否新鲜。

“This apple is understudied, unlabeled, and unnecessary,” said Dana Perls, the senior food and technology campaigner with environmental noNPRofit Friends of the Earth. “It’s only a matter of time before consumers realize they’re being falsely marketed to … And then there will be an uproar⁸.”

非盈利环保组织“地球之友”的资深食品和技术活动家德纳•帕尔斯表示：“这种转基因苹果仍有待研究，它不该与普通苹果混在一起卖，它的上架甚至是完全多余的。消费者迟早会意识到自己被市场误导愚弄，这只不过是时间问题。到那时将会一片哗然。”

Most Americans already consume a large number of GMOs or GMO-derived ingredients every day. Over ninety percent of all corn and soybeans grown in the US are engineered to improve agricultural efficiency and withstand frequent pesticide⁹ applications. The resulting corn and soy are frequently fed to animals intended for human consumption, or routed into processed foods as corn starch¹⁰, corn syrup¹¹, soy lethicin and dozens of other derivatives¹².

大多数美国人每天已然在消费大量的转基因或含转基因成分的食物。美国对国内所种植的90%以上的玉米和大豆都进行了品种改良，以此来提高农业生产效率，使其禁得起杀虫剂的频繁使用。这些玉米大豆常用作肉用家禽饲料，或加工成玉米淀粉、玉米糖浆、大豆卵磷脂等食品和其他数十种衍生产品。

This non-browning technology could theoretically be applied¹³ later to any number of tree fruits, including pears and cherries, which Okanagan’s scientists have already begun to research.

理论上，这种防褐变技术将会大量应用于梨树、樱桃树等果树，奥卡诺根公司的科学家们已经开始着手研究了。