Acerola

The acerola fruit is a round, approx. 2 cm large fruit from Central and South America. It resembles the cherries that are native to our region. The botanical name is Malpighia glabra. Other names are acerola cherry, maple cherry, Antillean cherry, Puerto Rican cherry, West Indian cherry, Jamaican cherry and Barbados cherry. The small fruit from the tropics got its name from Spanish conquerors. "Azarole" means something like "pretty and useful". The fresh fruit is rather unsuitable for transport because it spoils quickly. Therefore, the fruit is usually harvested early for export, freeze-dried and ground into powder.