Dried Italian Mulberries

History

The debate among historians on the origin and first introduction of the mulberry in Italy is still ongoing. Many agree that the two main species of mulberry, Morus alba and Morus nigra, come from Asia, the former from Persia and the latter from the Far East, but it seems that it was the black mulberry (Morus nigra) which was the first to be adapted and grown by the Ancient Greeks and Romans for its fruit, and not only for food but also for medicinal purposes. The white mulberry, on the other hand, was introduced in the West along with the silkworm in the twelfth century. Its great importance stemmed from the fact that it was practically irreplaceable food for the silkworm. In Italy it was introduced in the twelfth century by Roger II, King of the Two Sicilies. Silkworm cultivation developed in Europe during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. However, when this business became increasingly marginalized in Italy, the mulberry was grown more sporadically and in general, one can only find older specimens near farmhouses where they are used to provide shade or fruit for occasional picking.  

The mulberry belongs to the Moraceae family and to the genus Morus. The plant is a shrub that can grow from 3 to 10 m in height, with a diameter of 0.5 m. The foliage is extensive and globular, the branches grey or yellowish-grey, and the bark of the trunk is deeply furrowed and thick. The male flowers are gathered in short catkins, while the female ones are gathered in subglobular inflorescences that give rise to a false fruit, the 'sorosis', also called mulberry. In mulberries, soroses are made up of small achenes, each surrounded by a fleshy perianth. These mulberries have a length of 3—4 cm, with a colour varying from white to yellowish and purple, and when they reach maturity they fall while still retaining their peduncle. They are rather soft and do not travel well. The berries have the shape of an elongated raspberry, with a short peduncle. It is not really a fruit but an infructescence, or aggregate fruit, formed by the floral wraps that have become fleshy, i.e. by small drupe-shaped fruit. These are violet-blackish, shiny, thick and juicy, with a sweet yet acidulous taste in the black mulberry variety; white-greenish or reddish and with a sweeter taste in the white variety. Morus alba fruits are generally very sweet, while black mulberry fruits are attractive, large, juicy, with a good balance between sweetness and sourness that makes them very tasty. In short: the black mulberry (Morus nigra) is characterized by rather stiff, heart-shaped leaves at the base, rough on the upper side and hairy on the lower side. The fruits are quite sessile and purplish-black in colour with, as already said, a pleasant taste. The tree is deciduous and grows 15— 20 meters high. Its bark is furrowed and brownish-grey. It grows more slowly than the white mulberry and has a globose, expanded crown. The white mulberry, by contrast, has tender leaves, obliquely heart-shaped at the base, whole or lobed especially in the suckers, glabrous on the upper side and pubescent in the lower one, with toothed edges according to the cultivar. The white mulberry tree grows fast and can reach a large size (up to about 20 meters high) if left to develop naturally. 

Source: 

Nutspaper, 4/2018 

Properties

Each pack of 500 g of dried Italian mulberries contains about 17 portions of 30 g that provide:

• 68% of the Nutrient Reference value of Vitamin K.
• 25% of the Nutrient Reference Value of Manganese;
• 19% of the Nutrient Reference value of Potassium

Individual needs will vary according to age, gender, weight and physical activity. A varied and balanced diet and a healthy lifestyle are the basis of your well-being. 

Affordable price

Affordable price means to us offering our clients dried Italian mulberries with no added sugar - containing only natural sugars - that everyone can enjoy.

We want, on the one hand, to place the proper value on raw materials in order to obtain a quality product by paying our farmers a fair price; on the other hand, we want to fulfil your needs when it comes to pricing. 

We establish fair long-term relationships with our producers to avoid race-to-the-bottom pricing and that are based on trust as part of our efforts to offer you the finest and most natural product. 

Not only that: by choosing large packs of dried mulberries you are also contributing to the reduction in the use of plastic. 

Storage

You can store dried Italian mulberries in cool, dry places away from heat and moisture. Here are 4 useful tips: 

• The best way to store dried mulberries is in a refrigerated environment. Nuturally dried Italian mulberries can also be stored at room temperature during the winter season due to low temperatures. During summer, however, it is advisable to store the product in the refrigerator or in the coolest possible environment as increased temperatures could encourage decay. 
• The ideal container for the storage of dried mulberries is glass. Indeed, because of its composition it is impervious to chemical agents and gases, and, as it has excellent insulation properties, it holds the initial temperature for longer than other materials. It is even better if the glass is coloured: using coloured glass blocks the entry of certain wavelengths of light (including ultraviolet), and thus certain nutritional and organoleptic characteristics remain unaltered.  
• The type of closure of the container is also important as an airtight cap ensures that the food is protected from excessive contact with oxygen that can lead to lipid oxidation and encourage the growth of aerobic bacteria. 
• The best kind of storage environment is one which is well ventilated because ventilating the premises keeps internal humidity under control, which otherwise could escape from windows, thereby guaranteeing the right balance to lessen the onset of mould.