Kinnow
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Kinnow (or kinoo) is a citrus fruit variety Mandarin majorly grown in Punjab Pakistan and to a lesser extent in north Indian states, mainly Punjab and Rajasthan. Kinnow was developed by H.B. Frost at the University of California at Riverside in 1935 by cross-pollinating the King tangor and the Willow Leaf or Mediterranean Mandarin[1]. Courtesy of the parent stock, another name of this hybrid Citrus is Wilking.
Description
The small orange fruits have more seeds per wedge in comparison to other citrus fruits. The seeds of kinnow are naturally diploid or tetraploid. Seedless triploid varieties have been developed, but these are still undergoing testing whether the fruit is healthy for consumption.
Kinnow season starts in November and ends in March, a longer picking season than any other citrus variety.
Production and consumption
Kinnow is a hybrid of two citrus cultivars; "King" and "Willow Leaf" and is classified as kinnow mandarin. It was introduced from California to the Punjab Agricultural College and Research Institute, Lyallpur (now University of Agriculture, Faisalabad) in the sub-continent in 1943-44. This "easy peal" citrus has assumed special economic importance and export demand being acknowledged for its high juice content, special flavour, delicious taste and as a rich source of vitamin-C. In per capita terms, the annual availability of citrus is nearly 12.5 kg of which kinnow makes up about 8 kg. A consumption of 8 kg per capita implies the availability of 1206 milligrams of vitamin-c, 1520 milligrams of calcium, 684 milligrams of phosphorous and nearly 16 milligrams of iron, per head during the citrus production season. In the citrus production season, kinnow consumption can make a significant contribution to improve human diet in terms of total micronutrients intake.
Most of the target export markets of Pakistani kinnow are those of developing countries. Only 2.6 per cent of kinnow exports target markets of developed countries, which is due to the emerging demand for seedless kinnow by the developed countries. About 61 per cent of total world exports of oranges and mandarins are of seedless varieties. Unfortunately, Pakistan is not producing seedless kinnow, due to which its target markets are limited and mostly confined to Middle East countries. Some important export markers of kinnow in the world are: Bahrain, Dubai, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Afghanistan, Netherlands, Philippines, Singapore, U.K., Vietnam, etc. [2]
Fruit Processing
Food processing includes the selection of good-quality mandarins. They are selected according to firm to slightly soft, heavy for its size. It is also chosen according to smooth-skinned with no deep grooves.
Another important factor associated with Food processing is the coloring will be deep orange to almost red. Human hands can better judge and avoid product with soft spots, dull and faded coloring or rough and bumpy skin.
Juice Processing
There are some juice extracting units in Pakistan, producing Kinnow Juice concentrate which is meant for exports to USA and the EU. In India, Kinnow juice processing industry is developing rapidly. In 2008 two new juice processing plants, each having a processing capacity of about 400 tons/day have started. Tropicana and Jain Irrigation has hired these plants from PunjabAgro to produce Kinnow juice concentrate. Recently, Thapar Institute of Engineering & Technology, Patiala has developed a patented method of debittering its juice.
References
- ^ Y. H. Hui, M. Pilar Cano, and Josef Barta (Editors). Handbook of Fruits and Fruit Processing. Wiley, John & Sons. 2006. ISBN 9780813819815; page 312.
- ^ Marketing of Fruits Under WTO Regime, Dr. M. Sharif and Burhan Ahmad, Social Sciences Institute, NARC Islamabad
India: PepsiCo starts processing of Kinnow in Punjab. [http://www.freshplaza.com/news_detail.asp?id=16019
Pakistan: Kinno exports expected to rise with seedless variety in sight[1]