tag:theconversation.com,2011:/us/topics/strawberries-5666/articlesStrawberries – The Conversation2020-02-10T13:57:33Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1305242020-02-10T13:57:33Z2020-02-10T13:57:33ZHow a Native American coming-of-age ritual is making a comeback<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/314229/original/file-20200207-27538-htczkz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Ojibwe women conduct a year-long ritual for their girls when they start menstruation.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/native-indian-male-fancy-dancers-and-women-in-jingle-news-photo/629544909?adppopup=true">Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The Ojibwe, one of the largest indigenous groups in North America, with communities from Quebec to Montana, are revitalizing the “<a href="https://jps.library.utoronto.ca/index.php/ijih/article/view/31677">berry fast</a>,” a coming-of-age ritual for girls. </p>
<p>Ojibwe women historically <a href="https://www.mnhs.org/mnhspress/books/chippewa-customs">conducted a ritual</a> for their girls when they started their first menstruation, part of which included fasting from eating strawberry, or heart berry, known as Ode’imin, for an entire year. This was also a time to learn valuable wisdom from women elders. </p>
<h2>A time for growth</h2>
<p>As a <a href="https://www.rosalynlapier.com/">scholar</a> of the environment and indigenous peoples, I have studied how Native Americans find religious meaning in the natural world. Indigenous people often view <a href="https://www.nebraskapress.unl.edu/university-of-nebraska-press/9780803232761/">menstruation</a> as a time when girls and women are spiritually powerful. </p>
<p>It is also believed to be a time when young women can have visions. Such stories are often told by the elders within the Ojibwe community. In one such story, a <a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/297099/holding-our-world-together-by-brenda-j-child/9780143121596">girl born in 1830</a> had a vision of a great bear. The story goes that as the bear walked toward the girl “it got smaller in size, and when it was right beside her, she suddenly became the bear. She felt wonderful – powerful and strong.”</p>
<p>She became known as “Bear Woman.” It is said that she had a long life and overcame many challenges with “a strong heart and the courage of a bear.”</p>
<p>Historically, women built a small wooden house for a girl to <a href="https://uofmpress.ca/books/detail/life-stages-and-native-women">live in seclusion</a> during her menstruation each month. It would serve as a place for personal reflection as well as a space for learning from elders. </p>
<p>Today, Ojibwe girls do not live in a separate house during menstruation, but instead seclude themselves from family and community interactions. For the Ojibwe and other indigenous people, seclusion was seen as a special time without chores, when the girl worked on personal growth and learned from elders.</p>
<p>At the end of the year <a href="https://www.nebraskapress.unl.edu/bison/9780803275720/">a feast</a> is held for the whole community to celebrate the girl’s transition. At the feast the girl receives gifts from her community, and in turn she gives gifts. Strawberries and other berries are served to the young woman to eat as she ends her “berry fast.”</p>
<h2>Power of womanhood</h2>
<p>Many Ojibwe women discontinued this ritual when most of their religious and cultural practices were made <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-rights-of-indians-and-tribes-9780199795352?cc=us&lang=en&">illegal</a> by the U.S. and Canadian governments in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. </p>
<p>But the knowledge was not lost.</p>
<p>Today, many Ojibwe communities are <a href="https://rewire.news/article/2019/02/20/monthly-moons-menstruation-rituals-indigenous-women/">reawakening</a> such female-centered cultural practices. </p>
<p>As one Ojibwe cultural leader recently told me, after a berry fast, the young woman is looked up to as a “leader” by her peers. It is “a beautiful and intentional year-long consideration of the power of womanhood,” she said.</p>
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<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rosalyn R. LaPier does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Historically, indigenous people celebrated a girl’s transition to womanhood with a year-long ritual. Many such ritual practices were made ‘illegal’ by the US and Canadian governments.Rosalyn R. LaPier, Professor of HIstory, University of Illinois at Urbana-ChampaignLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1036702018-09-24T06:32:09Z2018-09-24T06:32:09ZWhy the increased penalties for strawberry sabotage will do little to prevent the crime<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/237669/original/file-20180924-7728-ro7x01.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Attorney-General Christian Porter announced that sabotaging food will now attract a penalty of up to 15 years' imprisonment.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">AAP/Lukas Coch</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The fruit contamination crisis has delivered a devastating blow to the growers of Australia. The crisis is now so big it seems to have <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-09-23/needles-found-in-australian-strawberries-sold-in-new-zealand/10296224">reached New Zealand</a> as well.</p>
<p>Producers and consumers have been justifiably outraged that someone, for reasons no one knows or understands, has decided to place sewing needles into packaged strawberries. The question for authorities is how to prevent this. </p>
<p>Prime Minister Scott Morrison was quick off the mark, <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/national/sewing-needles-removed-from-woolies-shelves-amid-strawberry-scare-20180920-p504ve.html">foreshadowing amendments to legislation</a> to create new offences and to change proof requirements. He also announced plans to increase the penalties for this type of crime: imprisonment for up to 15 years. Morrison said:</p>
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<p>That’s how seriously I take this; that’s how seriously our government takes it. That will be an increased penalty for those who engage in this sort of thing.</p>
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<p>Two matters arise from these announcements. One requires a legal explanation; the other involves some criminological and political speculation.</p>
<p>The legal issue is the role of the federal government in dealing with criminal laws and setting criminal penalties, matters that are usually the preserve of the states and territories. The power of the federal parliament to legislate is brought about by the fact that goods are bought and sold in trade and commerce, a key plank of the federal parliament’s lawmaking authority.</p>
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<p>To that end, section 380 of the <a href="http://www5.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/cth/consol_act/cca1995115/sch1.html">Commonwealth Criminal Code Act</a> makes illegal any activity that involves the contamination of goods, including food, where there is an intention to cause anxiety, harm or loss.</p>
<p>Attorney-General Christian Porter has foreshadowed a change to the mental element for this crime. No longer will it require proof of a specific intention to cause harm. It will be sufficient for prosecutors to prove reckless indifference that harm might be caused.</p>
<p>Also before the federal parliament is the <a href="https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Bills_Legislation/Bills_Search_Results/Result?bId=r6022">Espionage and Foreign Interference Bill</a>, which contains new “sabotage” offences that make it a crime to cause damage to Australia’s critical infrastructure.</p>
<p>In light of the fruit contamination crisis, the definitions of “sabotage” and “infrastructure” will be amended to include tampering with goods intended for human consumption, where that tampering is deemed prejudicial to national security.</p>
<p>It is now time for some speculation. Leaving to one side the new offences and the alteration to the intention threshold, which may or may not increase the number of future arrests and conviction rates, can we confidently assume we will all be safer as a result of the increased penalties? The answer is no. </p>
<p>We have known for a long time that deterrence theory is highly speculative. There is little hard evidence that punitive approaches have a consistent deterrent effect. </p>
<p>Indeed, how does one ever know what conduct, and how much conduct, has been deterred by a rise in a penalty? And how do we know whether it was that specific legislative change that caused any recorded drop in crime?</p>
<p>Sentencing specifically for deterrent purposes is equally problematic. Magistrates and judges must sentence a myriad of personalities, in circumstances that change from case to case, to achieve a broad range of often inconsistent sentencing goals (not just deterrence), using a limited range of penalties, and guided by case law and legislation that is often contradictory. It is a tough ask to expect that this exercise alone will achieve a specific deterrent outcome.</p>
<p>Indeed, deterrence theory is premised upon a “free will” view of human motivation. That is, the theory assumes all offenders are rational decision-makers who weigh up the pros and cons of their actions. It is a brave assumption. </p>
<p>Moreover, for the deterrent penalty to be effective, a close relationship has to exist between the severity of the sanction and an offender’s perceived risk of being apprehended and convicted. That relationship rarely exists. So it is fanciful to think that a saboteur will think twice about his or her actions on the strength of penalties being increased from 10 to 15 years.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/strawberry-sabotage-what-are-copycat-crimes-and-who-commits-them-103423">Strawberry sabotage: what are copycat crimes and who commits them?</a>
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<p>It is also unrealistic to suggest that it is in the public interest to sentence to, say, a dozen years behind bars someone who, for reasons unknown, engages in a “copycat” crime and presents to a police station or media outlet with a contaminated package that they themselves have tampered with. </p>
<p>So there must be something more behind the government’s announcement. There is. It is caught up in what we refer to as “desert” theory. This is the idea that any penalty structure should reflect a relationship between the seriousness of a particular crime and the harshness of the punishment. Desert theory, moreover, demands the imposition of sanctions that are of a nature and sufficient degree of severity to express the public’s abhorrence of the crime for which the penalty was imposed.</p>
<p>Viewed in this light, the government’s announcements make complete sense. But we need to remember that the changes the government has foreshadowed have a far greater likelihood of making political mileage by expressing our collective outrage than of altering the behaviour of an unknown person’s twisted mind.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/103670/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rick Sarre receives funding from the Criminology Research Council. He is affiliated with the Australian Labor Party. </span></em></p>After a spate of sewing needles being found in strawberries, the federal government has moved quickly to tighten penalties for those who sabotage fruit. But it is unlikely to be a strong deterrent.Rick Sarre, Adjunct Professor of Law and Criminal Justice, University of South AustraliaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1036852018-09-21T04:30:56Z2018-09-21T04:30:56ZVIDEO: Michelle Grattan on strawberries, Sudmalis, schools, and the au pair affair<figure>
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<p>Michelle Grattan speaks with University of Canberra Vice-Chancellor Deep Saini about the week in politics. They discuss rushed legislation on strawberry contamination, the Liberals continued women problem with Ann Sudmalis’ announcement she won’t recontest her seat, the government’s new funding package on schools, and Peter Dutton’s Senate inquiry into the au pair affair.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/103685/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Michelle Grattan does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Michelle Grattan speaks with University of Canberra Vice-Chancellor Deep Saini about the week in politics.Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of CanberraLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1036262018-09-20T12:01:02Z2018-09-20T12:01:02ZGrattan on Friday: Morrison aims to make agility his prime ministerial trademark<p>Strawberries and hay have provided unlikely lenses for an insight into how Scott Morrison will conduct his prime ministership from now to the election.</p>
<p>The needles-in-the-berries contamination has been alarming for consumers and devastating for the industry. Anyone involved deserves the full force of the quite heavy penalties available, and the public should be encouraged to eat (with due care) this delicious fruit.</p>
<p>But when the government rolls out the Prime Minister, the Attorney-General, the Home Affairs Minister, the Australian Federal Police chief and the Border Force Commissioner, and then rushes new legislation through parliament in a single day – well, you know a political point is being made.</p>
<p>A serious crime was turned into a national crisis. MPs donned aprons, grabbed knives and started slicing.</p>
<p>The legislation naturally received bipartisan support, with little discussion of whether the changes are actually needed. Its extremely hasty passage was despite the fact it won’t apply retrospectively to this criminal action.</p>
<p>As the strawberry crisis gripped the parliament, we’re reminded how rapidly a government can escalate an issue. In this case, the worst that could be said is that it’s an over-reaction with a political vibe. But you don’t need much imagination to think how a similar drama could be concocted with darker motives.</p>
<p>As for the hay: this was an announcement of liberalised rules for carting fodder so more could be sent faster to drought-affected farmers. Normally you’d expect a ministerial press release. Morrison turned it into a prime ministerial occasion, on Thursday being photographed climbing into a truck somewhere outside Canberra.</p>
<p>Earlier in the week, he’d called a “drought summit” for next month. Dealing with the drought has been one of his central themes, from his first news conference, followed by his interview on Australia All Over, and his visit to see things on the ground in Queensland.</p>
<p>These examples – and the very important one of the weekend announcement of a royal commission into aged care – show Morrison’s style. He will pick up and run with whatever is around - issues he sees as resonating with ordinary people.</p>
<p>“Scott likes to move quickly”, says a colleague. He’s not – if he can help it - going to get caught having to respond to others’ agendas. The royal commission was announced a day before the ABC’s aged care expose.</p>
<p>Morrison is also clearing away irritants as rapidly as possible. Thursday’s $4.6 billion decade-long package for private schools drew a line under the damaging row between the government and the vociferous Catholic sector. Negotiations have been underway for some time, but the deal’s now landed.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/government-unfurls-4-6-billion-private-schools-package-calming-catholic-critics-103599">Government unfurls $4.6 billion private schools package, calming Catholic critics</a>
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<p>Morrison won’t get bogged down in process. When he recently dumped the commitment to increasing the pension age to 70, he acted before the full cabinet had ratified what was a significant policy shift.</p>
<p>The new PM is tactically quicker than Malcolm Turnbull, just as in his messaging he can cut through with greater sharpness. He’s more attuned to the emotional and knee-jerk drivers of today’s politics, in the age of the continuous news cycle and social media. Malcolm liked to mull over moves.</p>
<p>He is also freer to act than his predecessor, who was hemmed in by enemies as well as allies of convenience, like Peter Dutton, who turned into enemies.</p>
<p>For the Liberals, Morrison is the end of the pre-election leadership line, and that gives him a good deal of latitude to set his own course. He might be displeasing the hard right Liberals by not exiting the Paris climate agreement, but he’s able to stare them down or fob them off. They know he’s in the seat until the election.</p>
<p>Defining your opponent can be critical in our semi-presidential contests. “The Prime Minister is a blank canvass”, says one Labor man. “Both sides are trying to fill in the colours”.</p>
<p>Morrison’s brush strokes on his own portrait are designed to create the image of a leader tuned to the voters’ concerns, rather than the “Canberra bubble”. If sometimes this makes him look more like the mayor of Albury than the prime minister of Australia – well, he just hopes it works. Like the latecomer desperately working the room, he knows he has practically no time.</p>
<p>In his one departure from pragmatism during these first prime ministerial weeks, Morrison has flagged he’s willing to stir the hornets’ nest of religious freedom. Although unclear about the problem, he told Sky on Monday “there’s nothing wrong with a bit of preventative regulation and legislation”. Especially given the time constraints, it’s hard to see that battle is worth the likely costs.</p>
<p>To highlight Morrison’s agility and hyper-activity is not to overlook the government’s parlous situation, with a sour electorate, a still-shocked backbench, divisions in the ranks, all sorts of trouble over the “women problem”, and the uncertainty of the Wentworth byelection.</p>
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<a href="https://theconversation.com/view-from-the-hill-morrisons-challenge-with-women-goes-beyond-simple-numbers-103467">View from The Hill: Morrison's challenge with women goes beyond simple numbers</a>
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<p>It’s rather to say, the way the game’s being played has changed. Labor is alert to this, wondering, for instance, whether Morrison will appeal to some of its male “battler” type voters.</p>
<p>The PM said in question time on Thursday that Bill Shorten “isn’t looking as certain as he was two weeks ago.” Despite the political bonuses being handed almost daily to Labor, this is probably true. The opposition is still seeking to get its fix on its new opponent.</p>
<p>However Morrison goes over coming months, this week should give the Liberals cause to reflect that they had a lucky escape when Dutton failed to get the numbers in the coup he started.</p>
<p>The Senate inquiry into the au pair affair, which reported on Wednesday, was dominated by Labor and the Greens, so it was always set to produce a majority report very critical of Dutton. Even allowing for that, a couple of things are clear from the facts of the two cases the inquiry examined.</p>
<p>In assisting these women, Dutton did go above and beyond what would normally have been expected – all stops were pulled out. And he did mislead parliament when he denied any personal connections.</p>
<p>In the case of the woman who landed in Brisbane, he had a past acquaintanceship (via their mutual police service) with her prospective employer.</p>
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<a href="https://theconversation.com/dutton-back-in-spotlight-after-split-senate-report-on-au-pair-affair-103552">Dutton back in spotlight after split Senate report on au pair affair</a>
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<p>But misleading parliament is no longer taken seriously. Morrison’s certainly not going to worry that his Home Affairs Minister – who has oversight of the independent agencies of the Australian Federal Police and ASIO – did not tell parliament the truth. Canberra bubble and all that.</p>
<p>Anyway, Morrison has a lot to thank Dutton for. After all, Dutton delivered him the prime ministership.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/103626/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Michelle Grattan does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Morrison is tactically quicker than Turnbull, just as in his messaging he can cut through more sharply. He’s more attuned to the emotional and knee-jerk drivers of today’s politics.Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of CanberraLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1034232018-09-19T05:24:29Z2018-09-19T05:24:29ZStrawberry sabotage: what are copycat crimes and who commits them?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/237017/original/file-20180919-158228-6bcebp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Needles have now been found in six different brands of strawberries, as well as apples and bananas, suggesting the possibility of copycat crimes.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Erik Anderson/AAP</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Last week, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2018/sep/12/strawberries-scare-consumers-urged-to-throw-out-fruit-after-needles-found-inside">authorities urged consumers</a> in Queensland, NSW and Victoria to throw away strawberries from two Queensland brands after needles were discovered in punnets purchased at a Woolworths. </p>
<p>Since then, the localised fruit tampering has mushroomed into a major health scare. Needles <a href="https://www.news.com.au/national/crime/needles-in-apples-bananas-as-strawberry-contamination-scare-spreads-to-six-states/news-story/198040913db8cd47ceb293c0e655c34f">have been discovered</a> in six different brands of strawberries, as well as apples and bananas, across six states. </p>
<p>New Zealand’s two largest food distributors also <a href="https://www.news.com.au/world/breaking-news/nz-chain-halts-australian-strawberries/news-story/fb601d7cd83f816e31ac32e16558f777">pulled</a> Australian strawberries from supermarket shelves.</p>
<p>And on Wednesday, Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced harsher penalties for those tampering with fruit, <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-09-19/strawberry-needle-scare-new-penalties/10281838">increasing the maximum prison sentence</a> from 10 to 15 years.</p>
<p>As the tampering has spread, a word has repeatedly popped up in media coverage: “copycat”. Police have yet to identify the culprits behind any of the incidents or a possible motive, but they haven’t discounted the possibility of <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/national/act-of-treachery-nsw-police-warning-to-fruit-contaminators-copycats-20180918-p504hq.html">copycat crimes</a> being committed.</p>
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<h2>What is a copycat crime?</h2>
<p>Crimes that are inspired by a previous act are commonly referred to as copycat crimes. The offenders typically incorporate some aspect of a previous crime into their own actions, such as how they choose or approach their victims, or the methods they use. </p>
<p>In some instances, crimes with basic similarities are also described as copycat simply by virtue of their proximity in time. </p>
<p>To determine whether an incident may really involve copycatting, however, involves at least three steps:</p>
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<li>Establish that a different person or people are indeed responsible for similar crimes.</li>
<li>Differentiate between an increase in reporting and an actual increase in the criminal behaviour.</li>
<li>Establish whether offenders had any knowledge of the original crime. </li>
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<p>With regard to the ongoing fruit tampering in Australia, it has yet to be established if different people are responsible for the crimes, though the geographically widespread nature of the cases makes it unlikely that a single individual or group is responsible. </p>
<p>On the second point, the risk of injury to consumers and the rarity of food tampering in general means that cases of this type are unlikely to go unreported. </p>
<p>And if more than one person is involved, the third point might be assumed due to the media saturation of stories about sabotaged strawberries. </p>
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<a href="https://theconversation.com/from-copy-cats-to-child-witnesses-the-ethics-of-reporting-school-shootings-11405">From copy cats to child witnesses – the ethics of reporting school shootings</a>
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<p>The key characteristic of true copycat behaviour is the presence of <a href="http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0093854813496997?journalCode=cjbb">media exposure describing the original crime</a>. But the motivation behind the criminal behaviour is also important. </p>
<p>Being inspired to commit a crime by the behaviour of someone else is generally referred to as a <a href="https://www.ncjrs.gov/App/Publications/abstract.aspx?ID=82845">“contagion effect”</a> rather than a copycat crime, although the public tends to use these descriptors interchangeably. </p>
<p>Many theorists working in this area are careful to note that while media depictions of criminal behaviour can be copied, they are unlikely to <em>cause</em> criminality. </p>
<p>In other words, someone who wasn’t already motivated to commit a crime wouldn’t suddenly become motivated to do so just because he or she saw something in a newspaper. A contagion effect is therefore rare. </p>
<p>A copycat crime involves a person using real life or fictional media depictions to inform the specifics of their existing criminal behaviour or future plans. For example, at least three spree killings committed by young couples around the world <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1359178915000336">have been linked</a> to the film <a href="https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/natural_born_killers/">Natural Born Killers</a>. The couples used methods similar to those in the movie and provided justifications similar to those of the fictional offenders. </p>
<h2>Who perpetrates copycat crimes?</h2>
<p>The available research on copycat crimes generally discusses the impact of media on violent behaviour more generally. The evidence suggests that those who watch violent films and television or play violent video games are more likely to learn
specific techniques for violence, understand when violence is accepted by society and develop attitudes supportive of aggressive behaviour. </p>
<p>Although many people have the potential to be influenced by the media, those viewing violent content in childhood <a href="https://trove.nla.gov.au/work/19777314?q&sort=holdings+desc&_=1537321991222&versionId=208013904">may be particularly susceptible</a> to aggressive behaviours, especially if they also have models of violence in their lives. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-media-need-to-think-twice-about-how-they-portray-mass-shooters-91972">The media need to think twice about how they portray mass shooters</a>
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<p>There appear to be some personal characteristics that make people more prone to copycat behaviour, too. For instance, those who have an avid interest in crime reporting, as well as those who favour video games and the internet over other types of media, are generally more susceptible to copycat crimes.</p>
<p>A person’s criminal history is also thought to influence whether he or she will attempt a copycat crime. Other factors also include low self-control, high innovativeness, disinhibition and a propensity for sensation-seeking.</p>
<h2>Why do people perpetrate copycat crime?</h2>
<p>Research on <a href="http://www.christopherjferguson.com/CJBGames.pdf">copycat crimes</a> has found a catalyst effect by the media. This means copycat criminals are already motivated to commit an offence, and use media coverage of a previous crime for instructions or ideas. </p>
<p>The underlying motivations are therefore likely to be as various as general criminal motivations, <a href="https://eprints.qut.edu.au/107855/">including</a> revenge, thrill, hatred, concealment of other criminality, material gain or jealousy. </p>
<p>In the case of alleged copycat food tampering, this means that motivations would differ from perpetrator to perpetrator. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/grand-theft-auto-doesnt-cause-crime-but-poverty-and-alienation-will-56499">Grand Theft Auto doesn't cause crime, but poverty and alienation will</a>
</strong>
</em>
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<p>For example, someone may be motivated by a desire to exact revenge on employers or ex-employers. Their motivation might be to make a political statement about the rights and treatment of farm workers, to conceal another crime, to profit financially by suing fruit companies or supermarkets, to gain attention or bragging rights, or perhaps, because of the excitement the behaviour involves. </p>
<p>Since so little is known about what causes copycat crime, preventing and predicting it is difficult. This means that if copycat fruit tampering is happening in Australia, it is likely to persist or even increase for a period of time until someone is caught or the media saturation dies down. </p>
<p>In the meantime, the risk to the public and impacts on struggling farmers will, unfortunately, continue.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/103423/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Claire Ferguson does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Copycat criminals are inspired by media depictions of previous crimes. But they also have to have a criminal mindset to start with.Claire Ferguson, Senior Lecturer, Faculty of Law, School of Justice, Queensland University of TechnologyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/869072018-01-23T11:19:48Z2018-01-23T11:19:48ZHealthy to eat, unhealthy to grow: Strawberries embody the contradictions of California agriculture<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/193852/original/file-20171108-14159-4dgdct.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Suspected infestation of Macrophomina phaseolina, a "novel" soil pathogen, in the non-fumigated buffer zone of a strawberry field</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Julie Guthman</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Agricultural abundance is a pillar of the California dream. In 2016 the state turned out <a href="https://www.cdfa.ca.gov/statistics/">more than US$45 billion worth</a> of meat, milk and crops. Long before nutritionists agreed that fresh fruits and vegetables should be the center of American diets, California farmers had planted much of their land in these products, and today they produce <a href="https://www.cdfa.ca.gov/farm_bill/">half of the nation’s fruits, vegetables and nuts</a>. </p>
<p>But although fruits and vegetables are vaunted as healthy foods, their impact as crops is quite different. On many California produce farms wages are low, working conditions are poor, and farmers use enormous quantities of pesticides and precious water. This is the central contradiction of California agriculture.</p>
<p>For the past five years I have been studying California’s strawberry industry, which currently is the state’s <a href="https://www.cdfa.ca.gov/statistics/">sixth</a> most important commodity in terms of the value of crops sold. Strawberries are attractive, reasonably nutritious and occasionally tasty fruits and can be grown and eaten within California nearly year-round. But the industry’s growth has relied on heavy use of toxic chemicals and now growers face heightened restrictions on some of their most favored chemicals: soil fumigants. Unfortunately, less toxic or non-chemical strategies that would allow strawberries to be grown for a mass market, maintaining affordable prices, are elusive and likely to remain so. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/202607/original/file-20180119-110084-46utwf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/202607/original/file-20180119-110084-46utwf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/202607/original/file-20180119-110084-46utwf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=388&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202607/original/file-20180119-110084-46utwf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=388&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202607/original/file-20180119-110084-46utwf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=388&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202607/original/file-20180119-110084-46utwf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=488&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202607/original/file-20180119-110084-46utwf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=488&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202607/original/file-20180119-110084-46utwf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=488&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Strawberry pickers in Salinas, Calif., photographed April 27, 2009.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/10/Xp3-dot-us_DSC8991.jpg">Holgerhubbs</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Chemical dependence</h2>
<p>Although strawberry production once was scattered throughout the state, by the 1960s it had concentrated in coastal zones to take advantage of sandy soils and mild temperatures. Thereafter, the industry saw tremendous growth in productivity. In Monterey and Santa Cruz counties alone, <a href="https://doi.org/10.3733/ca.2016a0001">acreage more than tripled and production increased tenfold</a> from 1960 to 2014. Much of this growth was enabled by advances in plant breeding and use of plastic tarps to absorb heat, allowing growers to increase the length of strawberry seasons. </p>
<p>But the main driver of growth has been the use of pre-plant chemical fumigants. Growers hire pest control companies to fumigate soils before planting strawberries in order to kill soil-borne pests – most importantly, plant pathogens such as <em>Verticillium dahliae</em> and <em>Macrophomina phaseolina</em>. Without such treatment, these pathogens cause strawberry plants to wilt and die. </p>
<p>Now, however, the industry’s fumigant of choice – methyl bromide – can no longer be used in strawberry fruit production. In 1991 methyl bromide was banned under the <a href="http://ozone.unep.org/en/treaties-and-decisions/montreal-protocol-substances-deplete-ozone-layer">Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer</a>. The United States was supposed to phase out use by 2005, a deadline that was extended to 2015 and didn’t really take effect until two years later. Even so, this toxic chemical can still be used in nursery production to ensure that starter plants are virus- and pathogen-free. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/202609/original/file-20180119-110103-1x1y52i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/202609/original/file-20180119-110103-1x1y52i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/202609/original/file-20180119-110103-1x1y52i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202609/original/file-20180119-110103-1x1y52i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202609/original/file-20180119-110103-1x1y52i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202609/original/file-20180119-110103-1x1y52i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202609/original/file-20180119-110103-1x1y52i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202609/original/file-20180119-110103-1x1y52i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Recently fumigated field in Watsonville, Calif., Oct. 11, 2009.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://flic.kr/p/791REj">Benketaro</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
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</figure>
<p>One potential replacement, methyl iodide, was approved for use in late 2010. But it was <a href="http://calag.ucanr.edu/Archive/?article=ca.2016a0003">withdrawn from the market in 2012</a>, following an activist campaign and lawsuit that accused California regulators of performing an inadequate review of potential health risks to workers and the general public. Among other things, the chemical is a known <a href="http://www.stpp.ucla.edu/sites/default/files/Final%20Report%20SRC.pdf">neurotoxin and carcinogen</a>. </p>
<p>Other fumigants are still allowed, but their use is increasingly restricted by buffer zones and township quotas. Consequently, growers are contending with <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/15538362.2012.697000">heightened levels of plant disease</a>, some from pathogens that had never before been evident in California strawberry fields. </p>
<h2>An embedded system</h2>
<p>Can California find a less toxic way to raise <a href="http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/LyraEDISServlet?command=getImageDetail&image_soid=FIGURE%207&document_soid=FE971&document_version=1">90 percent of the nation’s fresh strawberries</a>? Although the strawberry industry is <a href="http://www.calstrawberry.com/Portals/0/images/2013-CSC_enviroreport_web.pdf">investing significant resources into non-chemical alternatives to manage soil-borne disease</a>, the obstacles are formidable. The entire production system, including reliance on fumigants, is <a href="https://doi.org/10.3733/ca.2017a0017">embedded into the cost of land</a>. </p>
<p>Fumigation has allowed growers to plant on the same blocks of land, year after year, and not worry about soil disease. With fumigation available to control pathogens, strawberry breeders have emphasized productivity, beauty and durability rather than pathogen resistance. Meanwhile, nursery production has shifted away from prime fruit growing regions along the coast to take advantage of different environments for plant propagation, enabling coastal land to be used solely for growing fruit. </p>
<p>Together these innovations have allowed growers to keep prime strawberry land in production every year for much of the year, yielding exceptional amounts of fruit. High land prices reflect these expectations and make it unprofitable to grow strawberries using less intensive methods. The Pacific Ocean’s natural summer air-conditioning is attractive to suburbanites as well as strawberries, so coastal development is putting additional pressure on the cost of strawberry land while at the same time increasing public pressure to control use of fumigants. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/202622/original/file-20180119-110106-1rcwmmh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/202622/original/file-20180119-110106-1rcwmmh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/202622/original/file-20180119-110106-1rcwmmh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=316&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202622/original/file-20180119-110106-1rcwmmh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=316&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202622/original/file-20180119-110106-1rcwmmh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=316&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202622/original/file-20180119-110106-1rcwmmh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202622/original/file-20180119-110106-1rcwmmh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/202622/original/file-20180119-110106-1rcwmmh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Official logo of the California Strawberry Commission.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fe/California_Strawberry_Commission_Logo_-_Color.jpg">CA Strawberry Commission</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Chemical-free strawberries for the few</h2>
<p>Informed and concerned consumers ingrained with California’s deep culture of environmentalism have turned to organic strawberries, which they see as a more sustainable option. As conventional growers took note of this vibrant market, <a href="https://doi.org/10.3733/ca.2016a0001">organic strawberry production rose fivefold between 2000 and 2012</a>, to reach about <a href="http://www.organicproducenetwork.com/article/351/organic-strawberries-in-short-supply?utm_source=OPN+Connect+Weekly+Newsletter&utm_campaign=1ad7c5557e-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_01_11&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_558944fdc9-1ad7c5557e-123782331">3,300 acres planted in 2017</a>, which represents 12 percent of all strawberry acreage. </p>
<p>But although organic growers use non-chemical soil fumigation methods or rotate strawberries with crops that have a mild disease-suppressing effect, such as broccoli, few of them fundamentally alter the production system in other ways. In my research, I have observed that some growers are finding land away from prime areas that can be quickly certified for organic production, but have no long-term plans to manage soil diseases when they inevitably arise – a practice that is not in the spirit of organic production. </p>
<p>A small but dedicated set of growers have learned how to raise strawberries for the long haul without fumigants. However, even they use starter plants produced on fumigated soil, since no nurseries produce organic plants. Crucially, for these growers strawberries are a minor crop in what are otherwise highly diversified systems. And most of these producers are located outside of prime strawberry growing regions, where land is cheaper. Their approach therefore is not nearly replicable for growers producing for the mass market.</p>
<p>These exceptions tell us as much about the limits of California strawberry production as does mainstream production. Consumers who want organic strawberries must be willing to live with compromises, pay premium prices – and eat their broccoli. For others, the dream of affordable year-round strawberries grown without toxic chemicals is already an impossible one.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/86907/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Julie Guthman has received funding from the National Science Foundation in support of this research. She is currently a co-principal investigator on a USDA-funded project that aims to develop pathogen-resistant strawberries. </span></em></p>California produces 90 percent of the US strawberry crop, but growers face curbs on toxic chemicals that have helped their industry expand. Can a system centered on mass production become more sustainable?Julie Guthman, Professor of Social Sciences, University of California, Santa CruzLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/442912015-07-07T05:22:06Z2015-07-07T05:22:06ZThe science of strawberries: why do they taste so good?<p>Each year, spectators at the <a href="https://theconversation.com/two-weeks-of-top-spin-and-net-returns-wimbledon-by-numbers-43932">Wimbledon tennis tournament</a> get through a whopping 30 tons of strawberries in the course of a summer fortnight. It is no wonder that the association between Wimbledon and strawberries is such a marketing triumph. But why do we fall for it?</p>
<p>Scientists have actually worked out what it is we love so much about strawberries by pinning down the molecular basis of the its aroma. This can also explain why wild strawberries often taste better than shop-bought ones. The good news is that the work is helping them uncover how to make them even more delicious.</p>
<h2>Serendipitous strawberries</h2>
<p>Strawberries have a long and proud history – even the ancient Romans ate them. We know this from the works of poets <a href="http://www.poets.org/poetsorg/poet/virgil">Virgil</a> and <a href="http://www.poets.org/poetsorg/poet/ovid">Ovid</a>, which referred to them as <a href="https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=IhwPAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA16&lpg=PA16&dq=poets+Virgil+fraga&source=bl&ots=IM_rOyqd0c&sig=JCj7dfpGopk_OJz97Wid_EwRmlI&hl=en&sa=X&ei=4H6aVfqXJIjbUd6GgfAI&ved=0CCQQ6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q=poets%20Virgil%20fraga&f=false">fraga</a>. The medieval artist <a href="http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/artists/hieronymus-bosch">Hieronymus Bosch</a> had several strawberries in his triptych the “Garden of Earthly Delights”, painted around 1500.</p>
<p>Some 500 years ago, the <a href="http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/forb/fraves/all.html">wood strawberry</a>, <em>Fragaria vesca</em>, <a href="http://specialcollections.nal.usda.gov/speccoll/collectionsguide/darrow/Darrow_TheStrawberry.pdf">was around in Europe</a> and the musk strawberry, <em>Fragaria moschata</em>, <a href="http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/berried-treasure-120534521/?no-ist">was starting to be cultivated</a>. These were what we would recognise today as wild strawberries, characterised by small, misshapen fruit. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/87459/original/image-20150706-16806-jvr941.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/87459/original/image-20150706-16806-jvr941.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=452&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/87459/original/image-20150706-16806-jvr941.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=452&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/87459/original/image-20150706-16806-jvr941.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=452&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/87459/original/image-20150706-16806-jvr941.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=568&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/87459/original/image-20150706-16806-jvr941.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=568&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/87459/original/image-20150706-16806-jvr941.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=568&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Garden of Earthly Delights central panel.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fd/Bosch,_Hieronymus_-_The_Garden_of_Earthly_Delights,_central_panel_-_Detail_Strawberry.jpg">Hieronymus Bosch/wikimedia</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The most common type of strawberries we eat today came to us by coincidence via the transatlantic explorations of Christopher Columbus and his successors. First the very hardy <a href="http://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=FRVI">Virginia strawberry</a> (<em>Fragaria Virginiana</em>), a native of North America, reached Europe in the 17th century. Then early in the 18th century, the large <a href="http://journal.ashspublications.org/content/132/4/501.full">Chilean strawberry</a> (<em>Fragaria Chiloensis</em>) <a href="http://www.botgard.ucla.edu/html/botanytextbooks/economicbotany/Fragaria/index.html">came to France</a>. </p>
<p>As a result of an <a href="http://www.botgard.ucla.edu/html/botanytextbooks/economicbotany/Fragaria/index.html">initial fortuitous pollination</a>, these two species were crossed, giving rise to the cultivated strawberry we eat today, <a href="http://www.pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Fragaria+x+ananassa"><em>Fragaria ananassa</em></a>, sometimes known as the “garden strawberry”. This combined in one fruit two particular traits inherited from its forerunners: hardiness and large fruit.</p>
<h2>The chemistry of taste and smell</h2>
<p>When I was young – in the 1950s – you only saw strawberries in the shops for a couple of weeks of the summer, roughly coinciding with Wimbledon. Now we have them all the year round. </p>
<p>This is because strawberry breeders have been aiming for fruit with particular (and marketable) properties such as uniform appearance, large fruit, freedom from disease and long shelf-life. But by concentrating on genetic factors that favour these qualities, other genes have been lost, such as some of the genes responsible for flavour.</p>
<p>The balance of sweetness and acidity is very important to the taste of a strawberry. As strawberries ripen, their <a href="http://theconversation.com/how-to-make-strawberries-sweeter-without-adding-calories-28550">sugar content rises</a> from about 5% in unripe green fruit to 6–9% on ripening. At the same time, the acidity decreases, meaning ripe strawberries taste much sweeter. </p>
<p>The ripening process is controlled by a hormone called auxin. When its activity reaches its peak, it causes the cell wall to degrade and so a ripe strawberry becomes juicy as well as sweet. At the same time, gaseous molecules from the strawberries make their way up the back of the throat to our nose when we chew on them, where they plug into “smell receptors”.</p>
<p>But how do scientists know which molecules are responsible for taste and smell? More than 350 molecules have been identified in the vapour from strawberries – and around 20 to 30 of those are important to their flavour. </p>
<p><a href="http://www.chm.bris.ac.uk/motm/raspberry-ketone/rkh.htm">Unlike raspberries</a>, there is <a href="http://www.rsc.org/images/EiC03_12-strawberries_tcm18-216747.pdf">no single molecule with a “strawberry smell”</a>. So what we smell is a blend – these molecules together give the smell sensation we know as “strawberry”. Chemists made up a <a href="http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/jf960366o">model strawberry juice</a> containing what they thought were the most important odorants, at the same concentration found in the original juice extract. Sensory testers agreed that this model closely matched the real extract. </p>
<p>They then made up a series of new mixtures, each containing 11 of the 12 main odorants, with a different molecule missing from each. The testers could therefore find out if omitting that molecule made any difference to the odour. For example, leaving out <a href="http://webbook.nist.gov/cgi/cbook.cgi?ID=3658-77-3">2,5-dimethyl-4-hydroxy-3(2H)-furanone</a> or <a href="http://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/cis-3-Hexenal">(Z)-3-hexenal</a> was noticed by virtually all the testers – and omitting compounds known as <a href="http://www.chemguide.co.uk/organicprops/esters/background.html">esters</a> – chemical compounds – such as <a href="http://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/Methyl_butyrate">methyl butanoate</a>, <a href="http://www.rsc.org/learn-chemistry/wiki/Substance:Ethyl_butanoate">ethyl butanoate</a> or ethyl <a href="http://www.chemspider.com/Chemical-Structure.455530.html">2-methylbutanoate</a> were also spotted by most.</p>
<p>This analysis led to the <a href="http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/jf960366o">characterisation of basic sensory impressions of strawberries</a>. One of these was a sweet caramel-like scent, which is due to two molecules with a structure containing five-membered rings of carbon atoms called <a href="http://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/Furaneol">furaneol</a> and <a href="http://www.chemicalregister.com/Mesifuran/Suppliers/pid75614.htm">mesifuran</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/87484/original/image-20150706-1008-1vfw7qg.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/87484/original/image-20150706-1008-1vfw7qg.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=454&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/87484/original/image-20150706-1008-1vfw7qg.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=454&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/87484/original/image-20150706-1008-1vfw7qg.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=454&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/87484/original/image-20150706-1008-1vfw7qg.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=570&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/87484/original/image-20150706-1008-1vfw7qg.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=570&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/87484/original/image-20150706-1008-1vfw7qg.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=570&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Common or garden strawberry.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/53/Strawberry_gariguette_DSC03063.JPG">David Monniaux/wikimedia</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Another impression was a fruity scent, due to the esters, which are responsible for the aroma of many other fruit, including banana and pineapple. They can make up 90% of the aroma molecules from a strawberry. It’s important that the contribution of the esters are balanced – too much <a href="http://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/gamma-Decalactone">gamma-decalactone</a> for example, and the strawberries will start to taste like peaches. The analysis also pinpointed a green note due to (Z)-3-hexenal responsible for the smell of “cut grass”. </p>
<h2><em>Fragaria futura</em>?</h2>
<p>Some modern varieties of strawberry are lacking in the quantity and range of molecules. Scientists have <a href="http://pub.jki.bund.de/index.php/JABFQ/article/viewFile/2392/2751">analysed wild varieties of strawberries</a>, like the musk strawberry and wood strawberry to find out why. </p>
<p>It turns out that while this fruit may not look so good, it produces a greater quantity of flavour molecules, as well as molecules that are not found in many of the strawberries we buy in the shop. <a href="http://www.sigmaaldrich.com/catalog/product/aldrich/w268208?lang=en&region=GB">Methyl anthranilate</a> is one of these, it is also found in grapes and contributes a strong and sweetish edge to the aroma. Another is <a href="http://www.chemspider.com/Chemical-Structure.21105944.html">methyl cinnamate</a> with a spicy note.</p>
<p>In their quest for better tasting fruit, scientists are starting to investigate <a href="https://theconversation.com/genetics-link-found-in-search-for-sweet-strawberries-25706">the genes responsible for making particular flavour molecules</a>. </p>
<p>Some 20 years ago, experiments on the effect of <a href="http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/jf950701t">adding cream to the flavour of fresh raspberries</a> were carried out. These found that heating enhanced raspberry aroma, but adding cream decreased it. </p>
<p>While this exact experiment does not seem to have been carried out in strawberries, scientists working with the food chain Morrisons <a href="https://home.bt.com/lifestyle/revealed-the-perfect-strawberries-and-cream-formula-for-summer-11363983334003">recently reported</a> that the perfect strawberry-to-cream weight ratio is 70:30. What’s more, you should eat it within two minutes and 50 seconds of serving, before the strawberries start to get soggy and shrink. Perhaps you should carry out this experiment yourself this summer? Enjoy your strawberries.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/44291/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Simon Cotton does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Scientists have discovered why strawberries often don’t taste as good as they used to - and what can be done about it.Simon Cotton, Senior Lecturer in Chemistry, University of BirminghamLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/285502014-07-01T05:00:22Z2014-07-01T05:00:22ZHow to make strawberries sweeter without adding calories<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/52641/original/s869zpkx-1404126709.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Sugar is not the secret to sweetness.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/settme3/4748421253/sizes/l/in/photolist-8eAUcX-2CCufX-2CBWnK-8eAUm2-5uap9w-8aFL71-8VyMeN-5GZFew-4sdY8m-4X8M3J-8aCwrR-8uXp7e-9NsCqJ-2CC4YV-8uXpKZ-4X4tLM-6SxJt6-6geSQD-5kTZKV-4X4tQZ-5rYJUY-7TT1Xh-4oi9rU-8v1rXs-6xmo9u-7Utg4V-cC3aD3-9kgVnF-abCzyH-3bWhGq-s2pUD-eiNo6k-8vfWTJ-9GKvD1-iXpH1F-4SvD7D-MGAa8-7Kmxq1-ECGmA-6dXLLd-9FGqY-5SP4x2-5RFfFs-4SzRN1-eBf4k-eBf2n-65HWDq-5RFfpQ-4SzREq-2guV5/">Yodatheoak </a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/">CC BY-NC-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Strawberries and cream are symbolic of Wimbledon and appreciated worldwide for their oh-so-sweet flavour. Researchers at the University of Florida, including myself, studied more than 30 varieties of strawberries and found that what makes them so sweet is not just sugar. We have identified a handful of chemicals that can make strawberries sweeter, without needing to increase the amount of sugar in them.</p>
<p>The sense of smell depends on our interaction with thousands of chemicals that we are surrounded by every day. We interact with them when we stop to smell a rose or when we take a drink of lemon juice. These are volatiles – chemicals which diffuse in the air – that are responsible for fragrance and flavour. Volatiles that increase perception of sweetness without adding sugar will have far-reaching effects in food chemistry, and also provide targets for breeding improved flavour in strawberry and other fruits. </p>
<h2>It’s all about ingredients</h2>
<p>The sense of taste allow humans to take a chemical inventory of food or drink in the mouth. When we consume we qualify these chemicals in terms of savoury, salty, bitter, sour and sweet. Smell enriches these flavours. And it does so when we chew and swallow food or drink, because volatile chemicals are forced up the back of the throat to the nasal cavity, which triggers smell upon exhalation. This is called the “retronasal” path.</p>
<p>In the brain, different areas receive different sensory information. In the case of taste and smell, there is some overlap. For instance, sensory information from the tongue and retronasal smell overlap, whereas “orthonasal” smell, which is inhaling through the nostrils, acts independently. It is the integration of taste and retronasal smell that gives rise to how we perceive flavour. </p>
<p>Genetic distinctions between varieties of strawberries create different flavours through levels of sugars, acids and volatile chemicals. There are thousands of varieties of strawberry available today. Much of this genetic diversity exists as a result of more than 250 years of breeding. </p>
<p>At the University of Florida Plant Innovation Program, we wanted to capture this diversity of strawberry flavours and determine the sensory effects on consumers. Perhaps we could find that ingredient which results in a more preferable strawberry. So, over two years, we cultivated more than 30 genetic varieties of strawberries and tested them. </p>
<p>We recorded the amount of different types of volatile chemicals, sugars and other chemicals in each type of strawberry. Then we asked 100 consumers to score each sample for its hedonistic and sensory properties. Our results have been published in the journal <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0088446">PLOS ONE</a>.</p>
<h2>Making strawberries sweeter without adding sugar</h2>
<p>We found, not surprisingly, that the total sugar content in strawberries is the most predictive of sweetness intensity. However, we were surprised that, among the potential 300 volatiles, only a handful contributed to the intensity of strawberries’ flavour.</p>
<p>The volatile linalool, for instance, was found to be associated with strawberry flavour intensity, and is also found in orange blossoms and blueberries. Another volatile, mesifuran, is strongly associated with strawberry flavour and has been focus of research strawberry research for a while.</p>
<p>The best part of the study was that we identified specific volatiles in strawberry that make contributions to perceived sweetness independent of sugar concentration in the fruit. These sweet enhancing volatiles, such as 1-penten-3-one, had been overlooked in the past. </p>
<p>Our research has identified these individual volatile chemicals which greatly enhance the perceived strawberry flavour and sweetness intensity independent of sugar. These effects are happening in a retronasal manner rather than orthonasal. The sensory integration of retronasal smell and taste happening in the brain allows certain volatile chemicals to influence perceived sweetness.</p>
<p>These findings are being used by the University of Florida breeders to develop more flavourful and sweeter varieties of strawberries. Screening volatile chemicals in strawberry selections can ensure that newly developed varieties offer the best “recipe” to consumers. Also, the identification of genes responsible for the presence or quantity of specific volatiles will allow for the development of molecular markers, a type of genetic testing. Maybe in the near future the Wimbledon strawberry tart will not need extra sugar.</p>
<hr>
<p><em>Next, read this: <a href="https://theconversation.com/its-fruit-but-not-as-we-know-it-how-bubbleberries-can-look-like-strawberries-and-taste-of-gum-26247">These strawberries taste like bubble gum</a></em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/28550/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Michael Schwieterman is a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Florida for the Department of Environmental Horticulture and Plant Innovation Program. This work is supported by grants from USDA Specialty Crop Block Grant.</span></em></p>Strawberries and cream are symbolic of Wimbledon and appreciated worldwide for their oh-so-sweet flavour. Researchers at the University of Florida, including myself, studied more than 30 varieties of strawberries…Michael Schwieterman, Postdoctoral Research Fruit Flavor Biochemistry and Genetics, University of FloridaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/268402014-05-19T14:39:04Z2014-05-19T14:39:04ZOur favourite fruits come in thousands of varieties, but no supermarket will ever sell them<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/48750/original/c5q9m273-1400256912.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Bubble berries are very much the exception to modern fruit retail</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.waitrose.presscentre.com/Press-Releases/Anyone-For-Bubbleberries-and-Cream-e3f.aspx">Waitrose</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The bubble berries <a href="https://theconversation.com/its-fruit-but-not-as-we-know-it-how-bubbleberries-can-look-like-strawberries-and-taste-of-gum-26247">trialling in Waitrose supermarkets</a> may taste of bubble gum, but they are not some clever 21st century genetic modification. These beautifully fragrant fruits, which are a variety of small strawberry, were in fact popular in the 19th century. Then they fell out of favour and had been all but forgotten by modern consumers. </p>
<p>Whether their return is for a few weeks or for the long term, they are a reminder of the wide sub-species of popular fruits that exist around the world but rarely appear in supermarkets. We are used to seeing the same two or three versions of our most familiar fruits and give little thought to their thousands of cousins. We’ll talk about why this happens in a moment, but first a little bit of information on the best-known fruits on the market. </p>
<p>The top five are apples, bananas, grapes, strawberries and clementines. Between them they make up 64% of the Scottish market (the UK market follows much the same pattern). </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/48715/original/gjcrh9pf-1400236704.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/48715/original/gjcrh9pf-1400236704.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/48715/original/gjcrh9pf-1400236704.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=292&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48715/original/gjcrh9pf-1400236704.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=292&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48715/original/gjcrh9pf-1400236704.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=292&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48715/original/gjcrh9pf-1400236704.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=367&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48715/original/gjcrh9pf-1400236704.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=367&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48715/original/gjcrh9pf-1400236704.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=367&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The fruit hit parade, Scotland 2011.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Cesar Revoredo-Giha</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Apples</h2>
<p>There are more than 7,500 varieties of apple, but only very few are ever available. Varieties such as Braeburn, Gala, Golden Delicious and Granny Smith dominate the volume sales market, while Bramley is the cooking apple of choice. These come in ahead of other supermarket regulars like Pink Ladies, Jazz and Cox, which represents about 50% of apples harvested in the UK. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/48746/original/bz6vjj3d-1400255376.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/48746/original/bz6vjj3d-1400255376.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/48746/original/bz6vjj3d-1400255376.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48746/original/bz6vjj3d-1400255376.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48746/original/bz6vjj3d-1400255376.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48746/original/bz6vjj3d-1400255376.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48746/original/bz6vjj3d-1400255376.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48746/original/bz6vjj3d-1400255376.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Braeburn crunched!</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/sethladd/2202963268/in/photolist-6atDvH-gC5kAf-7AXvC-7AXy2-5cqTzZ-8HMU3G-7yQAYw-AJDUk-kCECM8-5ZLpJy-kCF8nn-7QBipA-aQyNXv-7QxYbD-7QBkiU-dPUnZ-5wyf1y-6jRqf6-9geypv-6frjXk-6NYpw1-4mBTdA-4mELej-6HQeGT-6z9UUk-e6spVb-8ManDt-4nBFMR-9D2E6o-6zoW2C-4wM1q1-4nqm8q-5rqyz9-5rmezg-bMBQk8-5E9amr-byHbuA-YR37c-6i37LV-6KpP6L-5Edrk7-8zkmaN-4JqFKh-4JmtnX-C9bfd-JpLmH-7fZ8Ho-7JjbJm-8zkkRC-5RAyxu">Seth Ladd</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Bananas</h2>
<p>Bananas may not bring in the most money, but they are the most popular fruit in the UK by consumption per capita. They surpassed apples a few years ago (see graphic) thanks to clever advertising and excellent prices, not to mention a large number of plus points: they are easy to open, high in fibre, vitamins and energy, low in calories and a first-class hangover cure! </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/48719/original/mrbhm3cg-1400237479.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/48719/original/mrbhm3cg-1400237479.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/48719/original/mrbhm3cg-1400237479.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=289&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48719/original/mrbhm3cg-1400237479.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=289&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48719/original/mrbhm3cg-1400237479.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=289&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48719/original/mrbhm3cg-1400237479.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=363&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48719/original/mrbhm3cg-1400237479.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=363&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48719/original/mrbhm3cg-1400237479.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=363&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The rise and rise of the ‘nana.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Cesar Revoredo-Giha</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><a href="http://www.chiquitabananas.com/Banana-Information/exotic-banana-types.aspx">There are more than 400 banana varieties</a> grown in the world. The Cavendish variety has dominated since the 1950s when it <a href="http://www.raw-food-health.net/Gros-Michel.html">replaced the Gros Michel</a>, which was susceptible to fusarium wilt and hence less suitable for cultivation in large commercial plantations. In 2010 the Cavendish <a href="http://www.promusa.org/Cavendish+subgroup">accounted for 40%</a> of global banana production. </p>
<h2>Grapes</h2>
<p>The UK <a href="http://www.cbi.eu/system/files/marketintel/2011_Fresh_grapes_in_the_United_Kingdom.pdf">ranks about 11th-largest consumer</a> of grapes in the EU behind Italy, France and Spain. Their popularity is also waning, having peaked in 2005. </p>
<p>The number of grape varieties is immense, including both table grapes and wine grapes. But only a limited number are retailed in supermarkets, including Sultana (Thompson seedless), Flame, Muscat, Almeria and Concord grape.</p>
<h2>Strawberries</h2>
<p>Strawberries were a waning product that made a comeback. This was on the back of a big push in Dutch strawberries, which were developed in the 1980s and 1990s and replaced home-grown varieties such as Cambridge Vigour, Hapil and <a href="http://www.crocus.co.uk/plants/_/strawberry-honeoye/classid.2000008915/">Honeoye</a>. </p>
<p>There has also been an increase in strawberry production in the UK, including Scotland, where the main varieties grown are Elsanta and Sonata. As many as 90% of them are grown in polytunnels and with the season expanded from six weeks to six months. </p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/48745/original/t5b2ysp9-1400255250.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/48745/original/t5b2ysp9-1400255250.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/48745/original/t5b2ysp9-1400255250.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48745/original/t5b2ysp9-1400255250.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48745/original/t5b2ysp9-1400255250.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48745/original/t5b2ysp9-1400255250.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48745/original/t5b2ysp9-1400255250.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48745/original/t5b2ysp9-1400255250.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Pass the cream!</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/seelensturm/9377915230/in/photolist-bDcqKE-8hqo8x-NFSsW-bS79VT-bDcqs5-8DL1T-e4sBMH-8JCr55-9H4VNo-5kbFFc-7XQCoY-9KWgqx-85W3Ei-kNRdus-6jaW55-etBDt-65GAhA-4G7wHd-62nmSy-44XpH8-3e2qrG-8aG2um-jZi3D-6vjRFH-32opMD-p69s-7UjiPo-j8LS1x-4ESEp9-iYAnAt-9XKCj8-bVA8uM-5UArw7-ewH5b-6rXi8n-4UjFCJ-59LswB-4EtPH2-a1NRc9-fhGgtC-23PvUG-dnDvQJ-bp9oU3-8ahYMA-2HARhP-DWMAo-69i8g9-bAx3am-fHF76-2A5vec">F_A</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>These berries have largely overshadowed lesser known UK varieties such as Cambridge favourite, Christine, Marshmellow, Pegasus, Rhapsody, Rosie, Symphony or Alpine strawberries. But despite the healthy home market, a large number of our strawberries still come from the likes of Spain and Israel. </p>
<h2>Clementines</h2>
<p>Clementines are a citrus variety which is a hybrid between a mandarin and a sweet orange. This means they don’t come in lots of varieties, unlike the rest of the top five fruits. They are usually grown in north Africa and southern Europe. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/48748/original/g4hck55j-1400255576.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/48748/original/g4hck55j-1400255576.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/48748/original/g4hck55j-1400255576.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=531&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48748/original/g4hck55j-1400255576.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=531&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48748/original/g4hck55j-1400255576.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=531&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48748/original/g4hck55j-1400255576.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=668&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48748/original/g4hck55j-1400255576.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=668&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48748/original/g4hck55j-1400255576.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=668&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Oh ma darlin’…</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/federico_soffici/3153856962/in/photolist-5NGkNb-5KpGv2-9u35Ck-9svNSy-9siyMw-7ZNzR4-avGPf1-dZM2AH-9TssaY-8XZMHi-9t1aFg-7BnCb3-b8ZSRH-gwyWx-hMt8nZ-cVhNXb-9wUm1t-9uRTCE-9u62iC-3azqJo-9wUnCv-9sJDKp-7L5f4-a9qvqP-9u31eV-er2a2-duSvNo-64JCHo-9wXn8U-9sJFM8-4apj8a-dEkJDN-5NhGWw-6FqKhE-a9tk3o-9svWm3-e5aypt-62b9Gc-79t6a-4cNT3Y-b6SSE-brd6FL-7FfFU1-4xPcjc-4xTooQ-dZM3Zv-7Z3qee-47T6jw-71shtN-4xTony">Federico Soffici</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>To explain why we see so few of the thousands of varieties of these fruits in our supermarkets, clementines excepted, you have to look at the changes in the supply chains and particularly retailing since the 1990s. These changes <a href="http://www.emeraldinsight.com/journals.htm?articleid=870566">have been put down to</a> a number of factors.</p>
<p>First, supermarkets react to increasing competition by having costs as low as possible. Fresh produce is one of the few categories that will make shoppers switch stores so the big players regularly broaden their offerings, but they’ll tend to do this in ways that don’t affect costs too much. So commonly they’ll restrict each type of fruit to as few varieties as possible. </p>
<p>The <a href="http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1990/16/contents">1990 Food Safety Act</a> requires buyers to take all steps to ensure the safety of the food they received from their suppliers. This was reinforced by the growth of supermarkets’ own-label products, which are very important to the fresh produce category. Both developments brought tighter supply-chain control. </p>
<p>Supermarkets sought more consistent quality in fresh produce and to squeeze costs out of the supply chain. This pressure has helped bring about fewer, larger, technically efficient and innovative suppliers. Note that these suppliers are not necessarily based in the UK but cover all parts of the world. </p>
<p>In short, the fruit supply chains were increasingly co-ordinated from producers to retailers to achieve specific standards that reflect the needs of each segment in the chain. This wouldn’t be compatible with selling many varieties of the same fruit because different varieties have different yields, pest resistance, flavour, maintenance of quality under cold storage, resistance to transportation, and so forth. There are also the economies of scale to think about: you save money by expanding your level of production of a single variety. </p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/48749/original/724wfpg9-1400256238.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/48749/original/724wfpg9-1400256238.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/48749/original/724wfpg9-1400256238.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48749/original/724wfpg9-1400256238.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48749/original/724wfpg9-1400256238.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48749/original/724wfpg9-1400256238.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48749/original/724wfpg9-1400256238.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/48749/original/724wfpg9-1400256238.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The sweetest peeling.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/kt/1473527090/in/photolist-3fddgu-xcqBN-4eycs4-9E2PAf-dSAz9g-ehWSEM-51k43D-fQambp-fwcfvH-6krzWQ-fQambH-fQrVph-fQrVoE-fQrVq5-8AVqm2-7JH2gK-9E2Pyj-9E2Po3-9DYVMe-9E2PvC-9E2Px5-9DYVL2-9DYVHg-8bgPm6-5Qh3G7-wVRAr-6MwYeZ-cBRbWN-8Nw7Dp-5mhzuR-5ZFdCs-cyTJW9-7UJ7fC-9eARcw-asQyXX-bX5xrN-bX5w5q-bX5DiW-9DYC32-dep5DE-dMSHy4-7DXsns-96VMDs-6krA9s-7KF76i-5Tz86c-4gWuGK-KkfwQ-adotgM-fwr1Ex">Kevin Trotman</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Then there is the consumer side of the equation. Cosmetic concerns demand a large enough crop that would allow a farmer or packer to select fruits with the minimum number of imperfections. Consumer simplicity is obviously a key reason for the fruits in the top five. They are all easy to eat, portable, and don’t have stones or lots of seeds. For all these reasons, our best-known fruits have tended to concentrate on just a few convenient varieties in recent years, where taste may not always be the top priority. </p>
<p>The Elsanta strawberry is an excellent example of this supply chain engineering. It is considered the supermarket dream fruit, with a bright appearance, long shelf-life and glossy firm skin. It can be transported long distances without bruising. Its huge berry makes it quick and cheap to pick. When this is available, why would you want to cultivate any alternatives?</p>
<p>So welcome to the modern supermarket fresh produce section. You’ll see a diverse assortment of fruit. From time to time interesting varieties such as bubble berries will come to the fore. But you won’t see many varieties of the same fruit. They just don’t fit the tried-and-tested model. </p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/26840/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The piece derives partly from work commissioned by the Scottish Government as part of the 2011-16 Research Programme on Food Security and Resilient and Sustainable Supply Chains.</span></em></p>The bubble berries trialling in Waitrose supermarkets may taste of bubble gum, but they are not some clever 21st century genetic modification. These beautifully fragrant fruits, which are a variety of…Cesar Revoredo-Giha, Senior Economist and Team Leader of Food Marketing Research, Scotland's Rural CollegeLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/262472014-05-08T11:31:34Z2014-05-08T11:31:34ZIt’s fruit, but not as we know it: how bubbleberries can look like strawberries and taste of gum<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/47972/original/6zhjkj9r-1399461498.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Just like bubblegum</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.waitrose.presscentre.com/Press-Releases/Anyone-For-Bubbleberries-and-Cream-e3f.aspx">Waitrose</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>British supermarket Waitrose is marketing “bubbleberries” in some of its stores, describing them as resembling a small strawberry that is “beautifully fragrant, with the unmistakable taste of bubblegum”. They are admittedly better smelling and tastier than most strawberries in the supermarket. So what is their secret?</p>
<p>If you buy strawberries in a shop today, it is almost certain that they will be the “garden strawberry”, a hybrid species of <em>Fragaria × ananassa</em>. This seems to have arisen quite fortuitously in 18th-century Europe, as an accidental cross between two imports into France, <em>Fragaria chiloensis</em> from the western side of America and <em>Fragaria virginiana</em>, from the eastern side of America. This hybrid acquired the characteristics of fruit that was both large and red, and over the centuries breeders have striven to produce strawberries with these characteristics, as well as others including long shelf-life and freedom from disease. </p>
<p>The result is that today, with the assistance of air-freight, we can buy strawberries all year round. This has come at a price, as genes for the production of key sensory molecules have been lost, which is why shoppers often complain that their strawberries have a rather bland taste. This is the result of a kind of “funnel effect”, a breakdown of genetic diversity – inbreeding, if you like.</p>
<p>Scientific researchers have made an intensive study of the hundreds of different molecules that contribute to the smell of strawberries. Strawberries get their flavour from a blend of odorant molecules – they contain <a href="http://dwb.unl.edu/teacher/nsf/C10/C10Links/ericir.syr.edu/Projects/Newton/11/tstesmll.html">no single “strawberry-smell” molecule</a> – which is why there is so much variation in flavour from one species to the next.</p>
<p>Experts talk about particular <a href="http://www.rsc.org/education/eic/issues/2012May/whats-in-your-strawberries.asp">sensory characteristics</a> of strawberries, which include caramel, fruity, green, milky lactone-like and buttery. There must be a balance of these in a fruit for it to smell right. For example, too much lactone leads to a strawberry that reminds you of a peach. Unripe strawberries have an excessive “green” smell, due to molecules like hexenal, the compound you smell when grass is cut. The caramel “note” comes from two molecules known as furaneol and mesifurane, while fruity smells come from a family of molecules called esters. </p>
<p>Researchers have found that wild strawberries have more intense aromas and richer flavours, not just because they contain greater amounts of these molecules, but they also contain a wider range. Some molecules, such as the highly aromatic terpenoids, are only found in wild strawberries.</p>
<p>This is where bubbleberries come in. They are described as “resembling small strawberries” – that’s because they are small strawberries, long known as musk strawberries.</p>
<p>The musk strawberry (<em>Fragaria moschata</em>) is known as hautbois in French. This name was anglicised to “hautboys”, and this is the “infinitely superior” strawberry which Jane Austen describes in Emma. Hautboys were very scarce then, and they were to become scarcer, as they are harder to cultivate than other varieties and do not travel well. </p>
<p>Today they can be discovered growing wild, particularly in highland parts of central Europe. Austrian and German scientists have in recent years identified many of the molecules responsible for their strong smell. Partly it seems to be due to the caramel-like mesifuran and furaneol but also to large amounts of methyl and ethyl esters, with a molecule called methyl butyrate especially significant, as well as methyl anthranilate (you may have smelt it in grapes). </p>
<p>Molecules such as methyleugenol and eugenol – found in cloves – give a spicy note, but some molecules are yet to be identified. Get hold of some musk strawberries and see if it becomes your favourite variety, as it was for Franklin Roosevelt and Jane Austen.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/26247/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Simon Cotton does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>British supermarket Waitrose is marketing “bubbleberries” in some of its stores, describing them as resembling a small strawberry that is “beautifully fragrant, with the unmistakable taste of bubblegum…Simon Cotton, Senior Lecturer in Chemistry, University of BirminghamLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.