(Radio Iowa) – A type of berry that’s considered a “superfood” for its potential health benefits is being tested on plots in Iowa to see how it adapts to our soil and climate, though it grows wild in parts of Canada. Honeyberries are also known as honeysuckle berries or haskaps. Randall Vos, a horticulture fruit crops field specialist at the Iowa State University Extension, says new varieties of purple-blue honeyberries are being developed that are very promising.
“Some of the larger ones are going to be maybe not quite the size of your typical seedless table grape, but somewhere around there, and some of them are going to be like the size of a dime,” Vos says. “The newer ones are larger, they are less acidic, so they’re less tart. They’re still tart, but just not quite as tart as the earlier ones.” Some Iowa garden centers are carrying honeyberry bushes now, and you might spot the berries at a farmers market, but not at big grocery chains.
“There’s some growers in the Cedar Rapids area that I know are doing some wholesaling to some local food vendors. There’s some pick-your-own places,” Vos says. “I don’t see it hitting the mainstream grocery store anytime in the near future. It’s more of a niche product right now.” Honeyberries are gaining recognition as an up-and-coming “superfood” and they’re generating a buzz among some growers and consumers.
“I’m not a physician, but you read research reports that say they have positive impacts, antioxidants, they have anti-inflammatory characteristics, or some of the compounds in these fruits do,” Vos says. “Some even go so far as to say they have a positive benefit on things like cancer.” Honeyberries can be consumed in a variety of ways — just popped in your mouth as a snack, as a side dish, on your breakfast cereal, or baked into pies.
“One grower is selling them for fresh eating and making jams and jellies, and that works really well because those are fairly sugary and the acidity provides some balance to that,” Vos says. “But smoothies, yogurt, I think it could be all the above. It just depends on kind of where it best fits for you.” The I-S-U Horticulture Research Station in Ames is hosting a free field day on honeyberries, and other fruit and vegetable crops, from 2 to 5 P-M on July 29th.
Registration is requested by July 24th to help plan for a free meal following the field day.
https://go.iastate.edu/77HD9P
