King Orchards Tart Cherry Juice

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Tart Cherry Facts
Tart Cherry Nutritional Analysis

Fast Facts about Tart Cherries

The leading producer of tart cherries is Michigan, producing 70 to 75 percent of the crop each year. The amount of tart cherries produced each year varies, depending on a number of factors, including the age of the trees and weather conditions. Generally, Michigan produces 200 to 250 million pounds of tart cherries; the U.S. crop is 275 to 350 million pounds.

Tart Cherry Industry Overview

The red tart cherry, Prunus cerasus, is a perennial tree fruit related to the plum, peach, apricot, almond, and numerous other species of the north temperate zone. It is grown commercially for its tart and juicy fruit, which is primarily used in baking and cooking. Fully ripened tart cherries may be eaten raw, but are too acid for many palates. The raw fruit stores poorly and its shelf life is too short for the fresh-market trade.

Cherry Varieties and Uses

There is good evidence suggesting that P. cerasus arose from an unreduced pollen grain of P. avium crossed with P. fruticosa; this occurred in the same geographic region as for sweet cherry. The sour cherry came to the US with English settlers, like sweet cherries. It is more tolerant of the humid, rainy eastern conditions, and therefore proliferated there more than sweets, where it is still cultivated today in greatest numbers. Sour cherries do not attain good size when grown in arid climates.

What is the difference between tart cherries and sweet cherries?

Sweet cherries are grown primarily for fresh eating. The tart cherry, also called "red tart", "sour cherry", or Montmorency, is widely used for canning and processing to make jams, preserves, and pies. Tart cherry pie filling is the number one pie filling sold in the U.S. The name "Montmorency" refers to the most widely grown variety of tart cherries.

Tart cherries have a distinctive, bright red color. In fact, the same compounds that give tarts their color contain the antioxidant properties that researchers are investigating.

While sweet cherries are grown in several parts of the country, tarts are grown primarily in northwestern Michigan. Michigan has 3.8 million tart cherry trees. All of the recent research into the health benefits of cherries is referring to tart cherries.

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updated- February 14th, 2003
 Apple Journal

Common Sense, Health and Diet
Tens of thousands of us suffer from chronic and often debilitating pain. Many strategies and products have emerged promising relief. Sorting through the claims and counter-claims is not easy.

We recommend that you become informed and excercise discretion when reading promises of miracle cures. As always, consulting closely with your physician is essential in any pain management program.

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King Orchards • 4620 N. M-88 • Central Lake MI 49622 • 1-877-937-5464