Researcher Find Way to Extend Shelf Life of Tomato

Nearly 20 percent of all tomatoes are lost due to spoilage, according to the USDA Economic Research Service. To help alleviate that problem and give the fruit a longer shelf life, researchers are manipulating compounds known as polyamines that play a role in the plant’s growth, flowering, development and ripening. By introducing a yeast gene into the plant, a specific polyamine known as spermidine was elevated. This increase promoted vegetative growth and extended the tomatoes postharvest shelf life. Learn more.