A dwarf, creeping, evergreen shrub (Vaccinium oxycoccos), native to N temperate regions on boggy, acid soils; stems very slender, rooting; leaves 48 mm/0·150·3 in, oblong-oval, pointed, bluish beneath, margins inrolled; flowers on long, slender stalks, 56 mm/0·20·25 in, pink, four petals, curling backwards; berry round or pear-shaped, red- or brown-spotted, edible. (Family: Ericaceae.)
| iCranberry | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Cranberry fruit |
||||||||||||||
| Scientific classification | ||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||
| Species | ||||||||||||||
|
Vaccinium erythrocarpum |
Cranberries are a group of evergreen dwarf shrubs or trailing vines in the genus Vaccinium subgenus Oxycoccus, or in some treatments, in the distinct genus Oxycoccus.
Cranberries are low, creeping shrubs or vines up to 10 cm tall (often less), with slender, wiry stems, not thickly woody, and small evergreen leaves.
There are three to four species of cranberry, classified in two sections:
Subgenus Oxycoccus, sect. Oxycoccoides Vaccinium erythrocarpum or Oxycoccus erythrocarpus (Southern Mountain Cranberry) native to southeastern North America at high altitudes in the southern Appalachian Mountains, and also in eastern Asia.Cranberries are related to the bilberries, blueberries, and huckleberries, all in Vaccinium subgenus Vaccinium.
Some plants of the completely unrelated genus Viburnum are sometimes inaccurately called "highbush cranberries".
Cranberries are susceptible to false blossom, a harmful but controllable phytoplasma disease that is most common in the eastern production areas of Massachusetts and New Jersey.
Etymology and history
The name cranberry probably derives from their being a favourite food of cranes, though some sources claim the name comes from "'craneberry' because before the flower expands, its stem, calyx, and petals resembled the neck, head, and bill of a crane".
Cranberries have been eaten by Arctic peoples for millennia and remain a very popular fruit for wild harvesting in the Nordic countries and Russia. In North America, Native Americans were the first to recognise and use the cranberry as a source of food. They are reported to have introduced the cranberry to starving English settlers in Massachusetts around 1620, who incorporated the berry into the traditional Thanksgiving feast. American Revolutionary War veteran Henry Hall is alleged to be the first to cultivate the cranberry commercially, in the Cape Cod town of Dennis around 1816.
Cultivation and uses
Cranberries are a major commercial crop in the American states of Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, Oregon, Washington, and Wisconsin, as well as in the Canadian provinces of British Columbia, New Brunswick, Ontario, Nova Scotia, and Quebec. Wisconsin has led the United States in cranberry production since 1995.
Historically, cranberry beds were constructed in wetlands. Currently cranberry beds are constructed in upland areas that have a shallow water table.
Cranberry vines are propagated by mowing vines from an established bed. The cost of establishment for new cranberry beds is estimated to be about US$70,000 per hectare.
A common misconception about cranberry production is that the beds remain flooded throughout the year. During the growing season cranberry beds are not flooded, but are irrigated regularly to maintain soil moisture.
Cranberries are harvested in the fall when the fruit takes on its distinctive deep red color. To harvest cranberries the beds are flooded with six to eight inches of water. Harvested cranberries float in the water and can be corraled into a corner of the bed and conveyed or pumped from the bed. From the farm, cranberries are taken to receiving stations where they are cleaned, sorted, and stored prior to packaging or processing. In 2005 a new type of cranberry harvester called the Ruby Slipper was introduced into the industry.
White cranberry juice drinks are made from regular cranberries that have been harvested after the fruit are mature, but before they have attained their characteristic dark red color.
About 95% of cranberries are processed into products such as juice, sauce, and sweetened dried cranberries. Cranberries destined to processing are usually frozen in bulk containers shortly after arriving at a receiving station. Cranberries for fresh market are stored in shallow bins or boxes with perforated or slatted bottoms to allow air movement to prevent decay. Because harvest occurs in late fall cranberries for fresh market are frequently stored in thick walled barns without mechanical refrigeration.
Usually cranberries as fruit are served as a compote or jelly, often known generically as cranberry sauce.
Cranberry juice, usually sweetened to reduce its natural severe tartness and make "cranberry juice cocktail" or blended with other fruit juices, is a major use of cranberries.
Cranberries are a source of polyphenol antioxidants, chemicals which are known to provide certain health benefits to the cardiovascular system and immune system.
There is some use of cranberry juice by people with spinal paralysis; Cranberries also act as a prebiotic, promoting the growth of beneficial lactobacillus bacteria while inhibiting the growth of harmful E.
An autumn 2004 caution from the Committee on Safety of Medicines, the UK agency dealing with drug safety, advised patients taking warfarin not to drink cranberry juice after adverse effects were reported.
Cranberries also contain significant concentrations of benzoic acid, which in combination with Vitamin C forms small amounts of the group 1 carcinogen benzene (pdf file).
Cranberry juice contains a chemical that blocks pathogens that cause tooth decay .
Marketing and economics
History
Cranberry sales have traditionally been associated with the United States holidays of Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Cranberry growers have a long history of cooperative marketing. Chaney, a fruit broker from Des Moines, Iowa, organized Wisconsin growers into a cooperative called the Wisconsin Cranberry Sales Company to receive a uniform price from buyers.
With surplus cranberries and changing American households some enterprising growers began canning cranberries that were below-grade for fresh market. The Ocean Spray cooperative was established in 1930 through a merger of three primary processing companies: Ocean Spray Preserving company, Makepeace Preserving Co, and Cranberry Products Co. The new company was called Cranberry Canners, Inc. (The percentage may be slightly higher in Canada than in the U.S.)
A turning point for the industry occurred on November 9, 1959 when the secretary of the United States Department of Health, Education, and Welfare Arthur S. The market for cranberries collapsed and growers lost millions of dollars. New products such as cranberry apple juice blends were introduced, followed by other juice blends.
Cranberry handlers (processors) include Ocean Spray, Cliffstar, Inc., Northland Cranberries, Clement Pappas & Co., Decas Cranberry Products as well as a number of small handlers and processors.
Nutrition
Cranberries exhibit a level of tannins, in addition to antioxidants.
User Comments Add a comment…