"Botanical Source. It is native to the southern part of Brazil, and Paraguay. This herbaceous
perennial plant grows to 1.0 to 1.5 metres (3.3 to 4.9 ft) tall with 30 or more trough-shaped and pointed leaves 30 to 100
centimetres (1.0 to 3.3 ft) long, surrounding a thick stem. The pineapple is an example of a multiple fruit: multiple,
spirally-arranged flowers along the axis each produce a fleshy fruit that becomes pressed against the fruits of adjacent
flowers, forming what appears to be a single fleshy fruit.
Source, History, and Preparation..
The natives of southern Brazil and Paraguay spread the pineapple throughout south America and it
eventually reached the Caribbean. Columbus discovered it in the Indies and brought it back with him to Europe. The Spanish
introduced it into the Philippines, Hawaii (introduced in the early 19th century, first commercial plantation 1886),
Zimbabwe and Guam. The fruit was successfully cultivated in European hothouses, and pineapple pits, beginning in 1720.
Commonly grown cultivars include 'Red Spanish', 'Hilo', 'Smooth Cayenne', 'St. Michael', 'Kona Sugarloaf', 'Natal Queen',
and 'Pernambuco'.
The pineapple was introduced to Hawaii in 1813, Pineapples were sold canned by 1892. Pineapple cultivation
by U.S. companies began in the early 1900s on Hawaii[citation needed]. James Dole started a pineapple plantation in Hawaii
in the year 1900. The companies Dole and Del Monte began growing pineapple on the island of Oahu in 1901 and 1917,
respectively. Maui Pineapple Company began pineapple cultivation on the island of Maui in 1909. In 2006, Del Monte announced
its withdrawal from pineapple cultivation in Hawaii, leaving only Dole and Maui Pineapple Company in Hawaii as the USA’s
largest growers of pineapples. Maui Pineapple Company markets its Maui Gold brand of pineapple and Dole markets its Hawaii
Gold brand of pineapple.
In the USA in 1986, the Pineapple Research Institute was dissolved and its assets were divided between
Del Monte and Maui Land and Pineapple. Del Monte took 73-114, which it dubbed MD-2, to its plantations in Costa Rica, found
it to be well-suited to growing there, and launched it publicly in 1996. (Del Monte also began marketing 73-50, dubbed CO-2,
as Del Monte Gold). In 1997, Del Monte began marketing its Gold Extra Sweet pineapple, known internally as MD-2. MD-2 is a
hybrid that originated in the breeding program of the now-defunct Pineapple Research Institute in Hawaii, which conducted
research on behalf of Del Monte, Maui Land & Pineapple Company, and Dole.
Chemical Composition.
Pineapple contains a proteolytic enzyme bromelain, which breaks down protein. Pineapple juice can thus
be used as a marinade and tenderizer for meat. The enzymes in pineapples can interfere with the preparation of some foods,
such as jelly or other gelatin-based desserts. The bromelain breaks down in the canning process, thus canned pineapple can
generally be used with gelatin. These enzymes can be hazardous to someone suffering from certain protein deficiencies or
disorders, such as Ehlers-Danlos syndrome. Pineapples should also not be consumed by those with Hemophilia or by those with
kidney or liver disease, as it may reduce the time taken to coagulate a consumer's blood.
Action, Medical Uses, and Dosage.
The root and fruit are either eaten or applied topically as an anti-inflammatory and as a proteolytic
agent. It is traditionally used as an antihelminthic agent in the Philippines.
