Genetically Modified Tomato Purée

Forgotten Food & Drinks · 1996–1999

From February 1996, Sainsbury’s and Safeway sold tomato purée openly labelled as genetically modified.

They were not fresh GM tomatoes: the altered processing fruit made a thicker purée and reduced waste, allowing it to sit beside a conventional version. It initially sold well, but demand fell as opposition to GM food grew. Sainsbury’s supply ended in 1999; Safeway’s end date is unclear.

Why It Mattered

The label made an emerging food technology visible at the shelf. A House of Commons committee later reported that the GM purée initially outsold its conventional equivalent by about two to one.

Its short lifespan showed how quickly public trust could change. Value and clear labelling found an early market, but did not settle the wider argument over GM food.

How the Tomatoes Were Modified

  • The modification reduced production of polygalacturonase, an enzyme involved in breaking down pectin during ripening.
  • The processing tomatoes consequently remained firmer and retained more pectin.
  • The retained pectin improved processing yield and produced a thicker purée.
  • The products were unrelated to Calgene’s American Flavr Savr fresh tomato.

Packaging, Pricing and Retail Presentation

  • Sainsbury’s and Safeway used separate own-brand packaging rather than a shared product line.
  • Safeway described a 170g tin sold for the price of a 142g conventional tin; reporting at the time gave the price as 29p.
  • The retailers supported the tins with shelf notices, leaflets or customer-information services.
  • Photographs show more than one Sainsbury’s label design, but the dates of the variants are unknown.

Sales, Withdrawal and Preservation

  • Safeway reported selling more than 600,000 cans by June 1998.
  • Sainsbury’s said demand weakened during late 1998 and ended supply at the close of June 1999.
  • A later account by Don Grierson also cited the failure to obtain European cultivation clearance; the relative effects of demand, regulation and supply remain unresolved.
  • An original 1996 Sainsbury’s can appeared in the Science Museum’s Future of Food exhibition in 2025–26.

Associated With

Sainsbury’s - retailer; Safeway - retailer; Zeneca Agrochemicals - commercial developer; Professor Don Grierson and the University of Nottingham - research

Defining Feature

Own-brand tomato purées prominently labelled “made with genetically modified tomatoes”

Status

Unresolved - Sainsbury’s supply ended in June 1999; Safeway’s withdrawal date is unknown

Primary Records

Image Sources

Rights Notice

Images are included for historical and archival reference.

Rights holders may contact Forgotten Archive through the publishing account to request a credit correction or removal.

Gallery and image credits

Tightly cropped, low-resolution photograph of a tomato purée tin label with red “TOMATO PUREE” lettering, “DOUBLE CONCENTRATE,” and a yellow panel reading “MADE WITH GENETICALLY MODIFIED TOMATOES”; narrow parts of adjacent tins appear at both edges.

Label close-up showing the declaration “made with genetically modified tomatoes.”

Image source

BBC

editorial review

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The black Sainsbury’s California Tomato Purée can stands beside the blue Safeway Double Concentrated Tomato Purée can. Both front labels explicitly identify genetically modified tomatoes.

Sainsbury’s and Safeway launched Britain’s first clearly labelled genetically modified supermarket food in February 1996.

Image source

bgf / biotech-gm-food.com

editorial review

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Close, angled photograph of several black-and-red tomato purée tins arranged in a receding row; the foreground labels show partial Sainsbury’s and “California” wording, white “TOMATO PUREE” lettering, tomato illustrations, and yellow bands referring to genetically modified tomatoes.

Sainsbury’s California Tomato Purée tins carrying a prominent genetically modified tomato declaration.

Image source

Chemistry World

editorial review

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A black Sainsbury’s Californian Tomato Purée can stands beside three red tomatoes and two small capped glass vials against a black background. The can’s yellow label reads “Made with genetically modified tomatoes” and “Double concentrate.”

A surviving Sainsbury’s can photographed for the product’s thirtieth anniversary, alongside tomatoes and research vials.

Image source

Johnathan Napier

editorial review

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