The new onion variety Sunions, which does not cause tears, has been nominated for the Fruit Logistica Innovation Award, the AgroBusiness portal reports.
According to BASF breeders, it took more than 35 years to develop this variety.
Sunions is not a genetically modified product and has been bred through a natural crossbreeding program. Unlike any other variety, it only gets sweeter with each passing day. The volatile compounds contained in the bulb are responsible for tearing and pungent taste. The amount of these compounds in onions of other varieties remains unchanged or increases with time. In Sunions bulbs, their concentration is reduced to create a sweet and mild taste that does not induce tears.
Sunions has received a lot of positive consumer feedback in tests conducted by Leatherhead Food Research. Experts believe that the product has a good chance of winning the Fruit Logistica Innovation Award at the Berlin exhibition of the same name in April this year.
The idea for the variety originated more than 35 years ago when BASF breeder Rick Watson wanted to create a sweet onion that could be sold during the winter months, right in the vegetable store.
The variety has been certified tearless in tests conducted by BASF's Vegetable Seeds Sensor Lab and Ohio State University. It is currently grown only in Nevada and Washington. Its taste is consistently sweet, soft and crunchy.