Sweet Overload: The Impact of Genetically Modified Fruits on Zoo Animals

Contemporary fruit, having been genetically altered over the years, is proving excessively sweet for zoo animals. Australian zookeepers have started reducing the fruit intake of some animals due to the heightened sweetness that may harm their health.

Modern-day farming technology has accelerated the breeding of crops, enhancing their resistance to diseases and pests. This progress, however, has led to significant changes in fruit characteristics. Business Insider reports that watermelons now have a deeper red interior, bananas bear smaller seeds, eggplants lack their traditional spines, and peaches have grown 64 times larger and 27% juicier.

Such sugar-rich fruits have adverse effects on red pandas and other primates, who prefer these modified fruits over their natural equivalents. These animals are experiencing weight gain and signs of tooth decay.

Contrarily, the fructose found in raw fruits is beneficial for humans due to its packaging within fibers, which slows its absorption into our bloodstream. This makes it harder to metabolize, hence preventing a spike in blood sugar levels, unlike the refined sugar found in candies and sodas, as per Quartz.

Zookeepers used to feed red pandas and monkeys a diet rich in fruit, emulating their wild diets. However, discovering the high sugar content in these cultivated fruits has prompted a shift towards healthier alternatives.

Dr. Senaka Ranadheera, a food scientist at the University of Melbourne, notes, “Almost all cultivated fruit varieties are sweeter than their wild counterparts.” Some fruits, like plums, have almost twice the soluble sugar content compared to two decades ago.

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Does the saying “one rotten apple spoils the whole barrel” hold any truth? Absolutely. When an apple becomes damaged or begins to decay, it generates a gas called ethylene. This gas elevates the apple’s internal temperature slightly, initiating the breakdown of chlorophyll and the creation of other pigments. Concurrently, the fruit’s starch is transformed into simple sugars, and pectin—a fiber component acting as a binder for cell walls—starts to break down, thus softening the apple’s texture. This cascade of changes not only affects the single apple, but it also instigates a domino effect, triggering similar processes in the surrounding apples.

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It is a little-known fact that apples are not originally from North America but rather hail from Kazakhstan, in central Asia east of the Caspian Sea. Interestingly, the capital of Kazakhstan, Alma Ata, which was renamed Almaty in 1993, means “full of apples” in the Kazakh language. It is said that the wild apple forests […]

In medieval times, all fruit…

In medieval times, all fruit and vegetables were cooked as it was believed that raw fruit and vegetables caused disease. One book from 1500 even warns: “Beware of green salads and raw fruits, for they will make your master sick”.