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The Blackberry Revolution

04 July 2017

The blackberry is often an underrated product. I make this statement because the fact of the matter is, that as a berry, it provides phenomenal health benefits. This is largely down to it being a black fruit. They are associated with high levels of phenolic flavonoid phytochemicals, such as anthocyanins. Currently, the blackberry can have a reputation of being somewhat acidic, but today's modern genetics are offering near to market varieties with a significantly improved sugar content. This is higher than almost all strawberry varieties in the market.

So, what is it that prevents it from totally dominating our supermarket shelves? Well, firstly the poor commercial blackberry still has to overcome the fact that some people in the media and indeed at home refer to it as a bramble. In the UK, a bramble is something that grows wild, often in a hedgerow and of course along with the birds you can pick them for free. Very few people do, but it is possible. And yes, they do taste ok, I grant you that. 

So, moving on to the cultivated blackberry. This beauty is gaining popularity in many quarters of the world as a result of, yes you guessed it, continually improved genetics. The variety Tupy can take a great deal of credit for this. Widely grown in Mexico and Chile, this terrific blackberry is large, ships well and is full of flavour. Sadly, for those that work with the variety, it has large thorns and is somewhat of a wild beast to control. The parents of this variety are no longer around and Tupy itself has not proven to be a good parent in new breeding.

While Tupy is not grown the world over, it is the one to beat in certain countries. The improvements in flavour are all out there in the hands of our breeders. The thorns in just about all modern-day blackberry selections have been removed. We now need to make sure these selections have the yield and that they will ship. I would suggest we have exciting times ahead in the blackberry industry. 

All we need is a little time. But not much...watch this space.

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