Everything about The Kiwifruit totally explained
The
kiwifruit (or kiwi) is the edible
berry of a
cultivar group of the
woody vine Actinidia deliciosa and
hybrids between this and other species in the genus
Actinidia. The Actinidia is native to
Shaanxi,
China.
The most common
cultivars of kiwifruit are oval, about the size of a large hen's egg (5–8
cm / 2–3
in long and 4.5–5.5 cm / 1¾–2 in diameter). It has a fibrous, dull green-brown skin and bright green or golden flesh with rows of small, black, edible seeds. The fruit has a soft texture and a unique flavour.
Originally known as the
Chinese Gooseberry, the fruit was renamed for marketing reasons in the mid-20th century, first to
melonette, and then to
kiwifruit. The latter name was chosen for the indigenous New Zealand bird,
kiwi, which is one of the country's
national symbols. The first renaming was done in order to avoid a
tariff on
melons imported into the US. It isn't uncommon outside New Zealand and Australia for the fruit to be referred to simply as "kiwi". Today, kiwifruit is a commercial crop in several countries.
History
Actinidia deliciosa is native to southern
China, where it's declared as the "National Fruit" of the
People's Republic of China. Other species of
Actinidia are also found in India and range east to
Japan and north into southeastern
Siberia. Cultivation spread from China in the early 20th century, when seeds were introduced to
New Zealand by
Mary Isabel Fraser, the principal of
Wanganui Girls' College, who had been visiting mission schools in Yichang, China. The seeds were planted in 1906 by a Wanganui nurseryman,
Alexander Allison, with the vines first fruiting in 1910.
The familiar cultivar
Actinidia deliciosa 'Hayward' was developed by Hayward Wright in
Avondale, New Zealand around 1924. It was initially grown in domestic gardens, but commercial planting began in the 1940s. Italy is now the leading producer of kiwifruit in the world, followed by China, New Zealand,
Chile,
France,
Greece, Japan and the
United States. In China, kiwifruit was traditionally collected from the wild, but until recently China wasn't a major producing country. In China, it's grown mainly in the mountainous area upstream of the
Yangtze River. It is also grown in other areas of China, including
Sichuan.
Names
This fruit had a long history before it was commercialised as
kiwifruit and therefore had many other older names.
In
Chinese:
- Macaque peach (獼猴桃 míhóu táo): the most common name
- Macaque pear (猕猴梨 míhóu lí)
- Vine pear (藤梨 téng lí)
- Sunny peach (阳桃 yáng táo)
- Wood berry (木子 mù zi)
- Hairy bush fruit (毛木果 máo mù guǒ)
- Unusual fruit or wonder fruit (奇異果 qíyì guǒ): the most common name in Taiwan and Hong Kong (奇異果 kay yee goh). A quasi-transliteration of "kiwifruit", literally "strange fruit".
When introduced to New Zealand by Isabel Fraser it was called
yáng táo in China. People in New Zealand thought it had a
gooseberry flavour and began to call it the
Chinese gooseberry, although it isn't related to the
Grossulariaceae (gooseberry) family.
New Zealand exported the fruit to the US in the 1950s. Among the exporters was the prominent produce company Turners and Growers, who were calling the berries
melonettes, because the name
Chinese gooseberry had political connotations due to the
Cold War. An American importer, Norman Sondag of
San Francisco, complained that
melonettes was as bad as
Chinese gooseberry because melons and berries were both subject to high import tariffs. In June 1959, during a meeting of Turners and Growers management in
Auckland, Jack Turner suggested the name
kiwifruit which was adopted and later became the industry-wide name.
Most New Zealand kiwifruit is now marketed under the brand-name label
Zespri which is trademarked by a marketing company domiciled in New Zealand, ZESPRI International. The branding move also served to distinguish New Zealand kiwifruit from fruit produced by other countries who could cash in on the "Kiwi" name, as it wasn't trademarked. From 2005, Zespri launched a new promotional campaign worldwide featuring Japanese superstar
Ayumi Hamasaki as their spokeswoman.
Cultivars
Almost all kiwifruit in commerce belong to a few cultivars of
Actinidia deliciosa: 'Hayward', 'Chico', and 'Saanichton 12'. The fruit of these cultivars are practically indistinguishable from each other and match the description of a standard kiwifruit given at the head of this article.
A new Cultivar Group of
Actinidia chinensis known as Gold Kiwifruit or "Hinabelle", with yellow flesh and sweeter, less acidic flavour resembling a tropical
fruit salad, was produced by the New Zealand
Crown Research Institute,
HortResearch and is being marketed worldwide in increasing volumes. Some wild vines in India have yellow fruit but are small and not commercially viable. Seeds from these plants were imported to New Zealand in 1987 and the company took 11 years to develop the new fruit through cross-pollination and grafting with green kiwi vines. Gold Kiwifruit have a smooth, bronze skin, a pointed cap at one end and distinctive golden yellow flesh with a less tart and more tropical flavour than green kiwifruit. It has a higher market price than green kiwifruit. Unlike the green cultivars, it's less hairy, so it can be eaten whole after rubbing off the thin, fluffy coat.
Food value
Kiwifruit is a rich source of
vitamin C, 1.5 times the
DRI scale in the US. Its
potassium content by weight is slightly less than that of a
banana. It also contains
vitamins A and
E. The skin is a good source of
flavonoid antioxidants. The kiwifruit seed oil contains on average 62%
alpha-linolenic acid, an
omega-3 fatty acid. Usually a medium size kiwifruit contains about 46 kilocalories, 0.3-gram fats, 1 gm proteins, 11 gm carbohydrates, 75 mg vitamins and 2.6 grams dietary fiber.
Kiwifruit is often reported to have mild
laxative effects, possibly because of the high level of
dietary fibre.
Raw kiwifruit is also rich in the protein-dissolving enzyme
actinidin, (in the same family of
thiol proteases as
papain), which is commercially useful as a meat tenderizer but can be an
allergen for some individuals. Specifically, people allergic to
latex,
papayas or
pineapples are likely to be allergic to kiwifruit also. Reactions include tingling and sore mouth; swelling of the lips, tongue and face; rash; vomiting and abdominal pain; and, in the most severe cases, breathing difficulties, wheezing and collapse. The most common symptoms are unpleasant itching and soreness of the mouth, with the most common severe symptom being wheezing. Severe symptoms are most likely to occur in young children.
This enzyme makes raw kiwifruit unsuitable for use in desserts containing
milk or any other
dairy products which are not going to be served within hours, because it soon begins to digest milk proteins. This applies to gelatin-based desserts as well, as the actinidin will dissolve the collagen proteins in gelatin very quickly, either liquifying the dessert, or preventing it from solidifying. However, the
U.S. Department of Agriculture suggests that cooking the fruit for a few minutes before adding it to the gelatin will overcome this effect.
Sliced kiwifruit has long been regularly used as a garnish atop whipped cream on one of
New Zealand and
Australia's favourite dessert, the
pavlova.
Kiwifruit also serves as a natural
blood thinner. A recent study performed at the University of Oslo in Norway reveals that--similar to popular mainstream aspirin therapy-consuming two to three kiwifruit daily for 28 days significantly thins the blood, reducing the risk of clots, and lowers fat in the blood that can cause blockages
Cultivation
Kiwifruit can be grown in most temperate climates with adequate summer heat. Where
Actinidia deliciosa isn't hardy, other species can be grown as substitutes.
Kiwifruit is commercially grown on sturdy support structures, as it can produce several tonnes per hectare, more than the rather weak vines can support. These are generally equipped with a watering system for irrigation and frost protection in the spring.
Kiwifruit vines require vigorous pruning, similar to that of grapevines. Fruit is borne on one-year-old and older canes, but production declines as each cane ages. Canes should be pruned off and replaced after their third year.
Kiwifruit plants are normally
dioecious, meaning that individual plants are male or female. Only female plants bear fruit, and only when pollenized by a male plant. One male
pollenizer is required for each three to eight female vines. An exception is the cultivar 'Issai', a hybrid (
Actinidia arguta x polygama) from Japan, which produces perfect flowers and can self-pollinate; unfortunately it lacks vigour, is less hardy than most
A. arguta forms and isn't a large producer.
Kiwifruit is notoriously difficult to
pollinate because the flowers are not very attractive to bees. Some producers blow collected pollen over the female flowers. But generally the most successful approach is
saturation pollination, where the bee populations are made so large (by placing hives in the orchards) that bees are forced to use this flower because of intense competition for all flowers within flight distance.
Image:Kiwi-Flower, male.jpg|Female flower
Image:Kiwi-maennliche-bluete.jpg|Male flowers
Preparation and consumption
Kiwifruit can be eaten whole, like an apple (and, rarely, even including the skin, which increases the tartness), cut in half and eaten like a
passion fruit or peeled and sliced, like a pineapple. For people who prefer not to eat the skin, the fruit can be cut in half and then the flesh scooped out with a spoon. Kiwifruit is sometimes sold with a
spife, a plastic tool designed for this purpose with a spoon at one end and a knife at the other. Another method is to slice the fruit into several rounds about 5 mm (¼ in) thick, possibly cutting each round into quarters, and serving it, skin-on, as a platter or with plain yogurt.
Kiwifruit can be peeled using a potato peeler, drawing up from the bottom towards the thicker, harder end where the fruit was attached to its branch. Cutting "against the grain" releases juice which lubricates the blade and a swifter, cleaner cut results. If the kiwifruit is to be used in cooking,such as ice cream,the kiwifruit can be quickly peeled in a similar manner to a tomato. The kiwifruit is imersed for 10-30 seconds in boiling water,then placed in cool water. The skin is then scored with a sharp knife and peels easily away from the fruit. This however leaves a "slimy" texture on the outside of the fruit which may make the fruit usable only in situations where it's to be mashed,or diced.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Kiwifruit'.
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