A new fruit variety is bringing a striking visual difference – and a potentially differentiated nutritional profile – to the UK table grape category.

Boombits Red Berry Grapes have launched at Tesco, following availability at M&S and Ocado, offering consumers a grape that looks familiar on the outside but has naturally vivid red flesh inside. The variety has been developed through natural breeding and is being positioned as a new way to add colour and variety to everyday fruit consumption.

Unlike conventional red and black table grapes, Boombites have anthocyanin-rich pigments distributed through both the skin and flesh. Analysis conducted at the University of Murcia found that the grapes contained six times more anthocyanins than a traditional black-skinned table grape when tested.

Anthocyanins are naturally occurring pigments responsible for the red, purple and blue colours found in many fruits and vegetables. They are also a growing area of interest in food and nutrition research because of their antioxidant properties and potential links with cardiovascular health.

The development highlights how natural breeding is being used to create fruit varieties with distinctive characteristics beyond appearance and taste. For consumers, the result is a grape designed to deliver the familiar convenience of a snackable fruit while offering a visibly different eating experience.

The red-fleshed characteristic also provides an example of how colour can become an important part of food innovation. As interest grows in plant-rich diets and naturally occurring bioactive compounds, fruit and vegetable varieties with differentiated nutritional profiles could offer growers and food businesses new ways to add value to established categories.

Research cited by Boombites also points to the potential importance of the wider food matrix. The grapes contain fibre and a range of vitamins and minerals alongside polyphenols including anthocyanins and resveratrol. Emerging research from AINIA in Valencia is investigating whether the combination of polyphenols, fibre and other components in red berry grapes could influence glucose uptake compared with standard grape varieties, although further research is required.

For the UK market, Boombites Red Berry Grapes are currently available for a limited seasonal period, with the variety now sold nationwide through Tesco as well as M&S and Ocado.

The launch reflects the use of natural breeding and scientific analysis to develop familiar foods with new characteristics, while responding to growing consumer interest in colour, variety and naturally occurring nutritional compounds.

Rather than creating an entirely new food category, red berry grapes demonstrate how to add differentiation to a product that consumers already know and use.