NATIONAL EAT A CRANBERRY DAY

 

Today is National Eat a Cranberry Day, so of course it's something we like to celebrate here in Wisconsin, where we are the biggest producer of cranberries in the nation. Here are some more wonderful facts about this delectable fruit:

• Almost ¾ of the world’s cranberries come from the U.S. and 62% of the U.S. crop comes from Wisconsin, America’s Dairyland (and Cranberryland).

• Wisconsin leads the nation in cranberry production, supplying 60 percent of the nation’s cranberry crop.

• At $936 million in total value added, the cranberry sector in Wisconsin is just shy of being a one billion dollar industry. In total, cranberries are responsible for nearly 4,000 jobs in Wisconsin.

• Cranberries are grown on 21,000 acres across 20 counties in Wisconsin. The sand and peat marshes in central and northern Wisconsin create the perfect growing conditions for cranberries.

• Contrary to popular belief, cranberries do not grow in water. A perennial plant, cranberries grow on low running vines in sandy bogs and marshes. In Wisconsin, cranberry marshes are flooded with water to aid in harvesting. Because the tart, tiny berries contain a pocket of air, when the marsh is flooded, the berries float to the surface to be picked up by harvesting equipment.

• Cranberries are harvested each year from late September through October.

• Early European settlers called the fruit “crane berries,” because the flower of the blank resembles the head and neck of a sandhill crane.

• About 20% of all cranberries produced each year are eaten during the holiday season.

• Only 5% of them are sold as fresh fruit. The other 95% is made into sauce, juice, dried fruit and other tasty foods.

• It takes about 4,400 cranberries to make a gallon of juice.

• Native Americans were the first to use cranberries for food, mostly as an ingredient in pemmican. They also made fabric dyes and medicines from them.