07/25/07 Kiwi Fruit Part 2

Kiwifruit. Delicious and nutritious but weird. I'm Greg Martin with today's Fruit Grower Report. We talked yesterday about how The California Kiwifruit Commission deals with the image of kiwifruit. Small, brown and fuzzy. We also discussed the easiest way of eating one. Just cut it in half and scoop out the center. And we discovered that bite for bite, the kiwifruit is packed with nutrients. But where do they come from. Lindy LaFrancis is the President of the commission. LAFRANCIS: Kiwifruit is pretty much available year-round because of the imports that come in from the Southern Hemisphere this time of year. Fruit from Chile and New Zealand is available in the spring and summer and then California fruit is available in the fall and winter. We produce probably 98 to 99% in the U.S. in California. But there is a little bit in South Carolina and a little bit in Oregon and that's about it. According to LaFrancis, one of the most difficult things about kiwifruit is telling when it's ripe. LAFRANCIS: When it's picked, it's hard as a rock and it has starches in it that will convert to sugar once it's exposed to heat like room temperature or exposed to ethylene. That's the natural gas that's produced by other fruits and vegetables. So to ripen it, just put it our on your counter with some other and then it's ripe when it gives softly to pressure. To learn more about kiwifruit visit the California Kiwifruit Commission website at kiwifruit.org. That's today's Fruit Grower Report. I'm Greg Martin on the Northwest Ag Information Network.