Until recently, America's pomegranate lovers could indulge their passion for its ruby red seeds for less than half the year. Now, the trendy fresh fruit that's packed with health benefits will be available in the United States year-round.
"I've seen fads for all kinds of fruit, like kiwi and blueberries, but not like this — it just keeps growing and won't peak," said Kevin Day, a pomegranate expert at the University of California, Davis.
Pomegranates — about the size of an apple, with a thick, reddish skin and hundreds of seeds embedded in tough, white pulp — grow in temperate climates in the fall and winter. U.S. domestic supply comes largely from California's San Joaquin Valley, augmented by imports from Israel, Turkey, Lebanon, Greece and Mexico.
In the past, fresh pomegranates disappeared from U.S. stores in spring and summer. While the fruit thrives in the Southern Hemisphere and India, those countries had not exported it in large quantities until last week.
It's not just the seeds that are popular. Annual sales of pomegranate juice sold by California-based POM have risen from $12 million a year in 2003 to more than $100 million.
In the past two years, "pomegranates have exploded in consumption as the public has found out about the health benefits," said Dorn Wenninger, vice president of the international division of importer S. Katzman Produce.
Steve - unlike acai, mangosteen, and the other hyped super fruits that are all the rage right now, pomegranate will outlast them all.
2 comments:
pomegranates, yes - but, is the juice sold in stores all that healthy?
4 oz. servings of POM is completely healthy :)
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