11/25/05 Red Delicious and antioxidants

11/25/05 Red Delicious and antioxidants

For the last few years, the proud flagship of the Northwest apple industry, the Red Delicious variety, has fallen by the wayside in many respects. Not as profitable as in year's past, its plantings and subsequently its crop yield, have dropped. Not as sexy as in year's past, its popularity with growers, marketers, and consumers has decreased as new varieties from Fuji to Honeycrisp have been introduced. But this once proud variety could possibly return to some of its former glory. A recent study conducted by Agriculture and Agri-food Canada may have put the Red Delicious front and center as the top health tool, as the findings show that just the skin of that apple variety contains six times more antioxidants than the flesh of the apple. It was such big news that the findings even received press time in the form of a recent story in U.S.A. Today. Needless to say, many in the Northwest fruit industry are excited about this latest news, like fieldman and consultant Nick Stephens. STEPHENS: Of course everybody knows about wine and its antioxidant capacity. Not enough people are talking about red apples and the high antioxidant capacity in the skin of the apples. So now the trick is how various apple industry supporters and promoters can use this news about Red Delicious to promote the variety and increase sales.
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