A member of the family of stone fruit, peaches (Prunus persica)
were cultivated in Western China long before written history. Peach
cultivation and introduction followed the Silk Road through Kashmir
and into ancient Persia (Iran). Reference is made to the cultivated
fruit in Egyptian records dating 3400 years ago, and it is thought
to have been introduced to Greece by Alexander the Great after his
epic wars in Central Asia. Europeans, thinking that the fruit came
from Persia, named it “persica”. The Greeks and Romans
spread the peach throughout Europe and England, where it was further
disseminated by European explorers and colonists to North and South
America as well as Africa.
Description:
There are thousands of peach cultivars worldwide, and they are
grown in quantities that surpass apples or pears. Peaches are bred,
and thus no single variety is dominant worldwide or even nationally,
but they grow easily and have taken root wherever they are introduced.
Peaches are classified according to whether the stone or pit adheres
to the flesh (clingstone) or falls out easily when the fruit is
cut in half (freestone).
The dried fruit is produced from the freestone varieties of peaches,
which are dried as halves. They offer a good source of Vitamin A,
Vitamin B3 (niacin), potassium, phosphorus, beta carotene, iron
and copper. While wonderfully sweet and juicy peaches do not keep
or store well when fresh. Thus, dried peaches have been gaining
popularity. New uses are continually arising as manufacturers find
new applications for this very popular fruit. Bedemco sources the
best dried peaches throughout the world for the North American market
at the most competitive prices for all sizes.
Harvest:
Argentina and South Africa both harvest peaches in the spring,
with new crop dried fruit coming to market in early summer.
Origin: