Published in Scientific Papers. Series B, Horticulture, Vol. LXVI, Issue 1
Written by Elena BARCANU, Ovidia-Loredana AGAPIE, Ion GHERASE, Bianca TĂNASE, Georgiana DOBRE, Costel VÎNĂTORU
One of the main tasks of the breeding programs is introduction of new vegetables crops in order to provide vegetable diversity to the growing population. At Vegetable Research Development Station Buzau, Romania, Cucumis metuliferus has been acclimatized and today seedlings and seeds of 'Tempus’ variety can be sold. Kiwano, it has multiple health benefits and plays an important role in supporting diverse and nutritious diets. But the fruit is not well known and is underutilised, due to the lack of promotion. Hence, the goal of this study was to investigate the consumer preference and also to popularize the fruit to a large scale of people. In our survey we have investigated a number of 57 respondents, aged between 18 and over 45 years. From our results, 51 people are opened to include the kiwano fruit in their diets. Also, a percentage of 85.9% from our respondents are interested in growing the jelly melon. It can be concluded that kiwano has a great commercial potential and, aimed at certain markets, could be an excellent source of cash for small farmers.
[Read full article] [Citation]
