Marketing Scoops: Strawberries and Health: The Hidden Risks When Mixed With Medications

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The strawberry season has just begun. Not everyone is aware that consuming them with certain medications can be hazardous to our health. Which combinations should we avoid? Let’s find out. We anticipate their arrival all year long. After all, strawberries aren’t just delicious; they’re also celebrated for their numerous health benefits. They make an excellent addition to various dishes and are enjoyed by older and younger household members.….Story continues…

By: PŻm

Source: MSN

Critics:

Some people experience an anaphylactoid reaction to eating strawberries. The most common form of this reaction is oral allergy syndrome, but symptoms may also mimic hay fever or include dermatitis or hives, and, in severe cases, may cause breathing problems. Proteomic studies indicate that the allergen may be tied to a protein for the red anthocyanin biosynthesis expressed in strawberry ripening, named Fra a1.

Homologous proteins are found in birch pollen and apple, suggesting that people may develop cross-reactivity to all three species. White-fruited strawberry cultivars, lacking Fra a1, may be an option for strawberry allergy sufferers. Since they lack a protein necessary for normal ripening by anthocyanin synthesis of red pigments, the mature berries do not turn red like other cultivars.

They ripen but remain white, pale yellow or “golden”, appearing like immature berries; this also has the advantage of making them less attractive to birds. A virtually allergen-free cultivar named ‘Sofar’ is available. Strawberries are often grouped according to their flowering habit. Traditionally, this has consisted of a division between “June-bearing” strawberries, which bear their fruit in the early summer and “ever-bearing” strawberries, which often bear several crops of fruit throughout the season.

One plant throughout a season may produce 50 to 60 times or roughly once every three days. Strawberries occur in three basic flowering habits: short-day, long-day, and day-neutral. These describe the day-length sensitivity of the plant and the type of photoperiod that induces flower formation. Day-neutral cultivars produce flowers regardless of the photoperiod.

Strawberry cultivars vary widely in size, color, flavor, shape, degree of fertility, season of ripening, liability to disease and constitution of plant. On average, a strawberry has about 200 seeds on its external membrane.Some vary in foliage, while others vary materially in the development of their sexual organs. In most cases, the flowers appear hermaphroditic in structure, but function as either male or female.

In addition to being consumed fresh, strawberries can be frozen or made into jam or preserves, as well as dried and used in prepared foods, such as cereal bars. Strawberries and strawberry flavorings are a popular addition to dairy products, such as strawberry milk, strawberry ice cream, strawberry milkshakes/smoothies and strawberry yogurts. In the United Kingdom, “strawberries and cream” is a popular dessert consumed at the Wimbledon tennis tournament.

Strawberries and cream is also a staple snack in Mexico, usually available at ice cream parlors. In Sweden, strawberries are a traditional dessert served on Midsummer’s Eve. Depending on area, strawberry pie, strawberry rhubarb pie, or strawberry shortcake are also common. In Greece, strawberries may be sprinkled with sugar and then dipped in Metaxa, a brandy, and served as a dessert. In Italy, strawberries are used for various desserts and as a common flavoring for gelato (gelato alla fragola).

Fresh strawberries are used as cocktail garnishes to add flavor and texture to a drink. Polyphenol extracted from strawberries have been used in Kanazawa, Japan, to create melting-resistant popsicles. In 2022, world production of strawberries was 9.6 million tonnes, led by China with 35% of the total and the United States and Turkey as other significant producers (table).

Due to the relatively fragile nature of the strawberry, approximately 35 percent of the $2.2 billion United States crop was spoiled in 2020. This led to an Idaho company planning to launch gene-edited strawberries in the near future in an effort to make them more durable. In the U.S., as of 2021, it cost growers around $35,000 per acre to plant and $35,000 per acre to harvest strawberries, with more durable berries potentially reducing the rate of spoilage.

For purposes of commercial production, plants are propagated from runners and, in general, distributed as either bare root plants or plugs. Cultivation follows one of two general models—annual plasticulture, or a perennial system of matted rows or mounds. Greenhouses produce a small amount of strawberries during the off season. The bulk of modern commercial production uses the plasticulture system.

In this method, raised beds are formed each year, fumigated, and covered with plastic to prevent weed growth and erosion. Plants, usually obtained from northern nurseries, are planted through holes punched in this covering, and irrigation tubing is run underneath. Runners are removed from the plants as they appear, to encourage the plants to put most of their energy into fruit development.

After harvesting, the plastic is removed and the plants are plowed into the ground. Strawberry plants produce more and better fruit when they are young. After a year or two, they decline. Replacing them annually improves yields and enables denser planting. However, this necessitates a longer growing season, for the plants to establish themselves. It also costs more to annually purchase plants, form new mounds, and cover them with (new) plastic.

The other major method retains plants for multiple years. This is most common in colder climates. The plants are grown in rows or on mounds. This method requires lower investment and lower maintenance, overall. Yields are typically lower than in plasticulture. Another method uses a compost sock. Plants grown in compost socks have been shown to produce significantly more flavonoids, anthocyanins, fructose, glucose, sucrose, malic acid, and citric acid than fruit produced in the black plastic mulch or matted row systems.

Similar results in an earlier study conducted by USDA confirms how compost plays a role in the bioactive qualities of two strawberry cultivars. Strawberries may also be propagated by seed, though this is primarily a hobby activity, and is not widely practiced commercially. A few seed-propagated cultivars have been developed for home use, and research into growing from seed commercially is ongoing.

Seeds (achenes) are acquired either via commercial seed suppliers, or by collecting and saving them from the fruit. Strawberries can also be grown indoors in strawberry pots. Strawberries will not grow indoors in winter unless aided by a combination of blue and red LED lights. In Florida, winter is the natural growing season and harvesting begins in mid-November. The Kashubian strawberry is the first Polish fruit to be given commercial protection under EU law.

In the United States in 2017, the collective commercial production of strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries was a $6 billion industry dominated by the California growing and marketing company Driscoll’s. In 2017, strawberries alone were a $3.5 billion market of which 82% was for fresh fruit.

To increase consumer demand in the 21st century, commercial producers of strawberries cultivated them mainly for favorable aroma characteristics similar to those of wild strawberries, in addition to having large size, heart-shape, glossy red exterior, firmness, and slow ripening for long shelf-life favorable to ship by ground transportation from farms to stores nationwide for consumption within two weeks of harvest.

In US and Canadian grocery stores, fresh strawberries are typically sold in plastic clamshells, and are among the top fresh produce items in grocery revenues. One marketing analysis identified strawberries and other berries as a source of “happiness” for consumers.

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