The apple's only drawback is its tendency to lose its glossy sheen and crunchy texture within a few days – a problem that a team of scientists in Australia now claims to have solved. For the past 20 years, researchers at Queensland Primary Industries and Fisheries (QPIF) have been developing a new variety of apple which they claim can stay fresh for months. The apple, called RS103-130, which is a deep red in colour, stays “crispy” for up to 14 days if kept in a fruit bowl, and if stored in a fridge it can remain edible for four months. The RS103-130 variety has a naturally strong resistance to apple scab, also known as black spot, a disease caused by the fungus venturia inaequalis which affects both the foliage and fruit. The apple is not genetically modified but is produced conventionally using a gene from the Asiatic apple variety Malus floribunda which has a proven resistance to black spot.
