Yes… Pink pineapples seem to be available for purchase online and are available in some grocery stores. How different is it? Is it safe to consume? How does it look?
When I heard of Pink pineapples, Food suddenly became Science to me. Genetically modified food is approved for human consumption! And we get to decide our creativity levels 🙂
How does it look?
Look at the color inside
Pinkish in color inside (instead of golden yellow), the pink pineapples seem to the named aptly.
Taste
While regular pineapples are sweet with a tinge of sourness at the end, pink pineapples are said to be more sweeter, less sour and juicier!
Health benefits
Pineapples are known to help build immunity against cough and cold and are good for a sore throat. It is very common to see grocery stores leave cut pineapple pieces on the sides of stalls for visitors to eat while shopping! The health benefits seem to remain the same across the golden and pink pineapples.
Why or How do the pineapples turn pink?
In pineapples, lycopene turns the flesh pink. Actually, lycopene already occurs naturally in pineapples. The reason the fruit isn’t pink is that pineapples also produce enzymes that convert lycopene into the familiar golden pigment.
can we grow them anywhere?
Usually pineapples grow in tropical regions. They also make good indoor potted plants (3-5 feet large containers). One needs to remove the crown carefully and plant it in soil for it to grow. Typically one plant produces one fruit in about 14-18 months. They need about 6 hours of full sunlight. Indoor plant fruit size might be smaller than that of outdoor plants.
Coring a pineapple
Removing the center cylindrical part of the pineapple is called as ‘coring’ a pineapple. While I have seen and used a pineapple corer, the machine in grocery stores was interesting to see as well! Put in a full pineapple and in 20 seconds, the machine removes the sides and core and we get a ready to eat pineapple 🙂
Genetically modified food seems to be a new wave in the food industry! Look forward to more such interesting experiments in the food zone!