Dear Mark: Are Hybrid Fruits and Vegetables Healthy?
Dear Mark,
I was wanting to know if there is any danger in eating hybrid foods. I recently tried broccolini and then discovered that it was a hybrid between broccoli and Chinese kale. Is this dangerous to eat? Is it similar to GM? I would greatly appreciate your input on this before I start eating more of it.
Thanks, Angelina
Thanks, Angelina, for the question. It’s a good one, because even when we don’t explicitly seek out the obvious hybrids (broccolini, pluots, apriums, etc.), we’re still exposed to them. In case you didn’t know, hybrid fruits and vegetables are created by cross-pollinating two closely related species of the same genus or two cultivars or varieties within the same species. Though we’re talking about the artificial, man-enabled variety in today’s question, this phenomenon happens quite frequently in nature. Random hybridization is essentially how new species of plants arise – stretched out over time. Artificial hybridization operates on the same principle as natural hybridization, only with authorial intent.
So, does eating a pluot, a tangelo, a plate of broccolini, some seedless watermelon, a golden kiwifruit, or salad of hybrid cherry tomatoes mean we’re consuming an unholy bastard child that our ancestors wouldn’t have recognized as food? Of course not. These are legitimate, interesting varietals that taste good and offer beneficial dietary nutrients, just like their parents.
Technically speaking, all fruits and vegetables are hybrids. You go back far enough and it’s just pollen and seeds and wind and bees – one big swirling floral orgy – and every single plant we know today has ties to that epoch of love. Modern hybridized fruits and vegetables like broccolini and grapples come about in much the same way (cross-pollination), but with a little guiding intervention. And remember that many if not most “normal” fruits and vegetables we eat today are modern creations – the familiar yellow banana, boysenberries (a hybrid of raspberries and blackberries), grapefruit, meyer lemons, and numerous apple varieties (but more on this tomorrow). We’ve been cross-pollinating plants for centuries.
But wait: how similar are hybrid foods to GMOs? I mean, both represent forms of human intervention into nature for the purpose of improving it, right? We’re generally suspicious and skeptical of GMOs, so why do hybrids get a pass?
GMOs involve the combining of DNA molecules from disparate sources into a single molecule to form a new set of genes. The organism that receives this new DNA molecule gets modified, or new, genes, including ones that improve a plant’s hardiness, imbue it with powerful endogenous pesticides and/or herbicides, or lengthen its shelf life. Others increase the vitamin content and some increase the uptake of minerals from the soil. Whatever your opinion on GMOs, hybrids aren’t the same.
At first glance, I understand the hesitation, the instinctual drawing back. Mankind may be damn good at creating complex tools, inventing machines, erecting global communication networks, and generally manhandling anything the world can throw at us, but we seem to trip up when we try to circumvent nature. More specifically, our attempts to improve upon nature in the dietary realm have been downright disastrous. Industrial solvent-extracted seed oils, Crisco, HFCS, wheat fortified with extra gluten, acres and acres of soil-depleting monoculture crops, and (potentially troublesome) untested, unproven GMOs – our track record inspires little confidence.
But hybridization isn’t some monolith to be universally condemned. You have every right to be wary of it, but be smart about it. Hybridized wheat bred to have triple the gluten? Avoid it – but not because it’s a hybrid. Avoid it because it’s wheat with triple the gluten. It’s the gluten that’ll get you, not the fact that a human interfered in its conception. There’s no toxic byproduct created out of thin air by the act of hybridization. But broccolini, demon spawn of the deadly broccoli and toxic Chinese kale? C’mon. If a person is going to posit that broccolini is dangerous, they need to give a better reason than “It’s a hybrid.” Hybridization happens in nature. In and of itself, it’s a perfectly legitimate process. You need to identify specifics. What are the toxic elements being introduced or concentrated? Where are the nutritional deficits? You need to point to the “gluten of broccolini,” if it even exists.
If you accept the nutritional legitimacy of broccoli and Chinese kale (and you should – they’re great), you shouldn’t fear their love child (it was an arranged marriage, sure, but it worked out in the end) broccolini on dietary grounds. Lightly steam it, stir-fry it with a bit of butter or coconut oil, or add it, chopped, to a soup right before serving, and you’re in business. It’s full of potassium, folate, iron, soluble fiber, and vitamin C. You might run into talk online of a rat gene being spliced into broccolini to increase its vitamin C production, but it’s unsubstantiated, and the folks who originally made the claim have retracted and corrected it.
The same goes for the others. For example, pluots are fine if you tolerate apricots and plums. Sure, there’s a bit more (or a lot more, as the case may be) sugar, but that’s plainly evident once you taste one. The fructose content is not a hidden danger. It’s considered a feature by the producers. Just don’t eat a bag of them in a sitting, just as you wouldn’t eat a sack of donut holes.
Use common sense and avoid utter nonsense, like this supposed drawback to hybrid fruits and vegetables that I kept coming across online: that they’re missing “vital electrics.” Vital electrics. Yes. Those. I’m not entirely certain what electrics are, but the fact that they unerringly appear coupled with “vital” makes me think I need them. So, yeah – hybrid foods apparently lead to vital electrics deficiency. If you’ve ever eaten a hybrid vegetable, be sure to get your electrics tested. It’s absolutely vital that you do. Fruitarian guru David Wolfe seems to be the source of this vital electrics business, and he’s also of the opinion that a hybrid fruit is to be avoided because “it is confused.”
Hybrids aren’t a big deal either way. They’re just another type of vegetable, only cross-bred to maximize desired traits, like durability, yield, size, and taste. Eat them, or don’t, but don’t fret. You’ve got bigger things to be concerned with – the vegetable oil your food is cooked in, the wheat and sugar that worm their way into seemingly everything, the quality of your meat and fat, the overabundance of stress and scarcity of sleep, the strength of your social ties, the intensity of your workouts – so don’t worry whether broccolini is out to get you.
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Posted By: Mark Sisson
Gaahh! Broccolini is out to get me!! lol. Good post mark, not something I would have ever thought about so that was definitely a good question. Didn’t even know that those mini-tomatoes were ‘man made’
Hybrid cars are alright too, right?
I believe they contain Vital Electrics, so yeah.
I guess I should be avoided – sometimes I am confused.
Electrics are vital to my computer(s) but they don’t enjoy fruit very much.
All plants contain toxins (natural pesticides) to ward off being eaten by animals or insects. The public is demanding less pesticides. Seed producers have responded by modifying the plants to contain more toxins so less pesticides can be used. The most infamous example is now wheat contains much more lectins than it used to.
So how do we tell if the modification was made to make the plant more nutritious or to kill insects (and us?)
One could argue it goes too far sometimes
http://www.youtube.com/watch?gl=US&client=mv-google&hl=en&v=Nmkj5gq1cQU&nomobile=1
Hybrid foods? I really missed something here, I’ve never heard of them or seen them before. Broccolini sounds interesting, gonna keep my eyes peeled.
they’re awesome. they run on gas on the highway, but on vital electrics in the city :p
Chris, you’re killin’ me!!!! But don’t confuse Steve. I remember my Dad planted F1Cross about 45 years ago, a hybridized corn. Mendel’s work with peas was about hybridization as much as about genetics. So, yes, hybrids have been around for a long, long time. And the genetic traits are similar and move in ‘clumps’. GMO, on the other hand, can take a completely different gene (like splicing an animal gene into a plant gene or chromosome)and create some pretty odd stuff.
I know what you mean when you say that all plants are the result of random hybridization, but it’s incorrect to say that’s how all new plant species arise. New species are formed by the process of speciation, and hybridization is a subset of that. For example, if you plant the same plant on two different islands with different environments, and after many generations they become two different species, that is called allopatric speciation. Sure, they’re hybrids of previous generations’ pollen, but it would not be accurate to have said the new species were a result of hybridization.
In truth, a LOT of foods we take for granted are hybrids, and modified versions of their early cousins. Take an orange for example…
The original was ugly, not uniform, and certainly was not a perfect round globe… They have been modified to what is universally recognised as an orange now. (Except at XMas, where mandarines and clemintines seem to be okay.)
As consumers, we are obsessed with price, quality, and uniformity for our food. Tomatoes all look the same because they were picked while green, gassed until they are various grades. (Green, Pink, Orange, Red respectively.)
Also, we have differing views on what is “normal” these days. In the case of broccoli crossed with Kale, that is nothing new, I believe it is called Guilan here in Chinatown, and believe me, it is awesome!
Interesting article, thanks. Going to need to digest this one for a while before forming an opinion.
This was a very interesting read. Just wanted to point out that Grapples (at least Grapple brand grapples), aren’t actually hybrids, but just apples that have been saturated with grape flavoring. And unless you’re a big fan of grape kool-aid, I’d say they are abominations ;-P
haha- I thought of the grapple when I read this… Definitely an abomination and NOT a hybrid!
Ah, yes. Substitute tangelo, peacotum, plumcot, aprium…
Brilliant.
“You go back far enough and it’s just pollen and seeds and wind and bees – one big swirling floral orgy – and every single plant we know today has ties to that epoch of love.”
Summer of ’67, right?
Way back before you were born, remember kids?
Another point with the GMO’s… corn, soybeans, etc. are being genetically modified to be “round-up ready” This allows the farmer to spray round-up on the whole field to get rid of weeds without harming the crop. so now there is round-up in your consumable crop. and the best part is the weeds are evolving and genetically modifying themselves. farmers are having to pay for the licensed gmo seeds AND having to spray harsher chemicals for weeds. Monsanto’s fix… working on plants that are resistant to the harsher herbicides… b/c that worked so well the first time!
I saw that documentary…scary!
And, they fly or drive around and dump seeds in organic fields to later on shut that farmer down for not having license to grow monsanto’s GMO plant.
Brilliant eh?!
They try to sabotage this organic movement and want to control ALL seeds to every food available on the planet…from what I saw in that documentary.
Vital electrics refer to the organism’s ability to naturally reproduce. Many hybrids need to be grafted in order to replicate. Similarly, hybridized animals are often sterile–beefalo, mules, dzo, etc.
What about one of the coolest animals on the planet… the Liger, the Tigon however is not so kick ass.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=191cPadaxCk
But many other hybrids can reproduce just fine. Grow cucumbers and melons in the same garden for a few years running and you’ll just need to look at the sprouts of your compost heap to see fertile hybridization at work.
The link to David Wolfe’s site made me laugh. I especially liked this part:
“Mangos transport you into the ecstatic state of summer fun. Bananas make you feel like a wild primate!”
The whole purity thing is pretty weird. I’m always suspicious of talk like that. A little too cult-ish for me.
I agree with David Wolfe, I feel blessed to be able to experience these very peaceful thoughts as I enjoy natural whole foods! I can only pity those who don’t allow themselves to have this ability. And no, I am not one to be superstitious or brainwashed by no cult.
Grapples aren’t hybrids, FWIW. They’re just apples bathed in “Concord grape flavor”.
Jeewhiz, don’t we have enough artificial junk on our shelves, do they even have to junk our natural food selections too? People should learn to appreciate and enjoy the nature of things more and stop demanding all this artificial man-made JUNK!
Isn’t broccoli a hybrid of spinach and cauliflower?
No, broccoli is not a hybrid of spinach and cauliflower!
There is no nutritional problem with hybrids, but as many are sterile or lack reproductive efficacy, they do pose a problem from a sustainability perspective in that many hybrid vegetable lines are controlled solely by large seed companies, most of which are controlled by Monsanto and the like. So, by buying fancy hybrid vegetables & fruits, you are indirectly supporting these. However, many of the non-fancy vegetables you see in the store, like plain old broccoli or spinach, are in fact hybrids themselves, only hybridized for things like shelf life, colour, size, and occasionally flavour. These too are likely from sterile seed stock distributed by Monsanto-linked seed suppliers.
Unfortunately, the only way around this is to buy from organic growers to whom you can actually speak and inquire as to the source of their seeds and whether the grower saves his/her own seeds and uses heritage, open-pollinated varieties. If you have no way of doing that, then there is no benefit in avoiding the fancy stuff.
” many hybrid vegetable lines are controlled solely by large seed companies, most of which are controlled by Monsanto and the like. ” Sarah
And there lies my problem with buying and consuming hybrids. I don’t want to support a company that has malicious intensions and an evil agenda.
broccolini + coconut oil = BLISS!
Hybrids certainly seem natural enough… I came across this article today though: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gjbYauB3WWZW2NuY5bwD7RluUv2A?docId=606e323dbd664ba1b021280b03aff34c
Don’t think I’ll be trying those any time soon. I’ll take my oxidizing apples the way they are.
Cruciferous vegetables contain goitrogens which interfere with thyroid function and other toxins. http://www.westonaprice.org/abcs-of-nutrition/177-bearers-of-the-cross.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goitrogens
The whole thing with hybrids become especially amusing if you consider the fact that some creationists take the banana as a sign that creationism is right. Cause something that brilliant MUST have a maker
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2z-OLG0KyR4
Wow, I’d take a ” big swirling floral orgy” any day.
I’d always heard that the lemon was a hybrid between a citron and a lime.
According to Wikipedia, it’s a citron and a sour orange (which I’d never heard of).
I’ve always wanted an old Citroen…
I bet “sour oranges” have bred out of existence – except for some lesser-known corner of Spain…
Seville oranges are readily available when they’re in season (usually February-April) – but really, you don’t want to eat them unless they’re marmalade. “Not palatable” doesn’t even begin to describe them.
Hey, fear not! Sour oranges are alive and well in my native Arizona!
I grew up in a neighborhood of Phoenix/Scottsdale called Arcadia, which was a colony of gigantic citrus orchards until about 1960 (when air conditioning made Phoenix somewhat livable…). When they started parceling out the orchards into subdivisions, developers built the homes around the “less palatable” varieties of fruit, leaving the good stuff for the farmers, but still giving new homeowners a picturesque yard full of colorful (but sour) orange trees.
I can’t imagine that people are really jonesing for sour oranges – not great for a whole lot except (totally un-Primal) orange meringue pies… but if you are, definitely let me know and I’ll ship you out a whole crate of those guys the next time I’m home
Peggy,
(in Australia)
We had a ‘sour orange’ tree in our back yard about 10 years ago
We now have about 10 old Citroens instead :S
No joke.
Thanks for the article Mark
Bok Choy, Broccoli, Brussels Sprouts, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Collards, Kale, Kohlrabi, Rutabaga, and Turnips are all the same species, so could that really be a hybrid?
I do like that you point out what we DON’T need to worry about. Any nutrient, diet, plant or animal–someone always makes a claim that there’s something to worry about. As a nutrition student I have to/tend to think about food A LOT, and it’s tiring; the last thing I want to do is worry about food.
I am still skeptical about the sugar content though (most fruit have significantly more sugar than 30 years ago due to selective breeding)…but I know there are bigger fish to fry.
Yeah, I do worry about food a lot. If everything is so wonderful about all of these foods, then why has autism spiked 4000% yes four thousand percent in the past 10 years? And it does concern me that viruses are used to invade the cells of the plants. And look at the illnesses that have rampaged unlike any we’ve seen in most of our life times.Something is not right with this crap, sorry to disagree, but I am not blind, deaf or dumb.
Mark,
I wouldn’t be so quick to demonize David Wolf; he may have something there about the seeds. We truly don’t know. Let’s keep Paleo and Primal diets open minded and positive. That, to me, is of the utmost; we aren’t like the militant vegans/vegetarians. We keep open minds about our foods, and other’s opinions. If I’m wrong, please tell me so.
Best,
Matt
I get such a kick out of your writing. This one had lots of fun phrases that others have already gleened from the text. Thanks for brightening my day with your wit. You are vitally electric!
I reckon I might be a hybrid myself.
So where does “Purple sprouting broccolli” fit?
I decided to let a few “volunteer” plants grow in my garden this year, and wow, did I get some confused vegetables that were bastard off-spring of previous crops. I had one plant that I swear was a hybrid of yellow crookneck squash and an english cucumber; very weird in appearance and taste.