"UK: 'Revolutionary tomatoes that resist blight "

Scientists have developed the world's first blight-resistant tomato.The revolutionary tomatoes are the result of eight years of research and development between breeder Simon Crawford and Bangor University PhD student James Stroud.

Mr Crawford, one of the UK's leading plant breeders, initially stumbled across the disease-resistant genes while carrying out trials at his farm in Yorkshire in 2006.

While most of his varieties were duly wiped out by blight, one was untouched by the deadly bug. He teamed up with Mr Stoud, whose PhD was about tomato and potato blight, and using that variety they embarked on a complicated breeding programme using the strain.

By cross-breeding the variety they were able to create the first ever tomato to boast the PH2 and PH3 genes, which are resistant to the pathogen Phytopthera infestans, the Latin name for blight.

The tomatoes, called Crimson Crush, are being mass-grown at a nursery in East Yorkshire and will be available from January 8 from Devon-based Suttons Seeds.

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