Will M & M’s, Twix or Snickers soon change their taste thanks to biotechnology?

Chocolate under high technology. However, The American giant Mars. Consequently, owner of the emblematic M & M’s, Snickers, Twix, or Bounty, has just crossed a course in agrifood innovation. Consequently, The group announced on Thursday a strategic partnership with the Biotechnology Pairwise company. Furthermore, with the aim of improving cocoa cultivation thanks to genomic selection. For example, The goal: to have more robust cocoa, and a supply chain better prepared for climate challenges, which weaken this sector.

The secret weapon? In addition, CRISPR technology which allows DNA to be edited in an extremely precise manner. Meanwhile, without introducing foreign genes as do classic GMOs. Moreover, It would be a question of using it to speed up the natural selection process. Mars wants to rely on these tools to make cocoa plants more resistant to diseases, droughts, or environmental stresses. A way of securing supplies will m & m’s, twix in the face of the increasingly visible effects of climate change. especially in West Africa, where most of the world cocoa is produced.

Possible effects for taste – Will m & m's, twix

Genomic selection techniques do not fundamentally modify the taste or appearance of the final product. But the plants thus cultivated could produce slightly different cocoa beans. with aromatic profiles evolving over the crosses and genetic adaptations. Enough to question Twix or Mars lovers.

If the objective for the American company is not to change the taste of its products. this could be one of the indirect effects of a modification of the beans used. But other agro-industry companies could use the same technology to improve the taste and nutritional qualities of products. Everything is a question of will m & m’s, twix the gene that is targeted. In a report by France 24 on the subject, it is for example tomatoes that benefit from this technology.

In any case, in France, the revolution is not for immediately. The debate on the use of these genetic tools. often called NBT (“New Breeding Technologies”, or “new breeding technologies”) rises on the European scene. In the United States, where Mars is based, these innovations are well received by the authorities. On the other hand, they are very recent in the European Union. In June 2024. the Member States had not succeeded in agreeing on a deregulation project, leaving these technologies to the state of research on the Old Continent. It was only in March that an agreement was reached between the member states. This must still be examined by the European Parliament. The hunt for new March will have to wait a little longer.