Michigan State Foods

Cherry STATUS Unofficial THE FOOD Cherries A cherry is a small, fleshy, red or reddish-black fruit that contains a hard little pit, usually sold with the slender stem still attached. Some varieties are tart, and are usually preserved with sugar as jam or used for pies and other baked goods. Sweet cherries are usually eaten fresh, though they’re also the base for maraschino cherries. Both ripen in July in Michigan. Cherries are valued for their pleasant flavor, as well as for containing potassium, vitamin C, fiber, and antioxidants. THE SIGNIFICANCE Cherries came to the U.S. with early European settlers in the 1600s, but commercial cherry production in Michigan didn’t begin until 1852. Michigan now grows almost three quarters of the tart cherries produced in the United States. It also ranks as the country’s fourth largest sweet cherry grower, with a total of about four million cherry trees in the state. Traverse City bills itself as the Cherry Capital of the World and hosts the National Cherry Festival each July. Eau Claire is affectionately known as the Cherry Pit Spitting Capital of the World. Mint STATUS Unofficial THE FOOD A Garden of Mint Mint is an aromatic perennial herb cultivated for its essential oil, which is used in candy and gum, toothpaste, medicines, and other products. Peppermint, Mentha piperita, and spearmint,Mentha spicata, are the most commonly cultivated varieties. The essential oil is extracted from the mint plant’s leaves by steam distillation, and is highly concentrated. Carvone and menthol are the chemicals that give the oil its recognizable flavor. THE SIGNIFICANCE Ancient Romans and Greeks appreciated mint’s fragrance and used it to flavor cordials, condiments, and fruit compotes. Mint oil from Michigan’s prairies, however, was at first mostly medicinal. Plants were brought to the state in 1835. By 1900, most of the world’s mint oil came from the area around Kalamazoo and was increasingly used to flavor toothpaste and gum. Farming and distillation techniques have both improved over the years, and Michigan is still known for producing high-quality mint oil. The state ranks sixth in the U.S. in spearmint production. St. Johns, Michigan, is nicknamed Mint Festival City. Bean STATUS Unofficial THE FOOD Navy Beans Beans are a generic term for edible legumes, the dried fruit of plants in the genus Leguminosae or Fabaceae. They’re among the oldest cultivated plants, long grown around the world. Beans are generally small and hard when dried, though they come in a range of shapes and colors, including black, brown, tan, red, and yellow. Flavor also varies, but most beans have a mild, nutty taste. They are inexpensive and nutritious, containing protein, fiber, iron, calcium, and thiamine. Beans are either dried or commercially canned for sale. Dried beans must be soaked and boiled before eating. THE SIGNIFICANCE Michigan is a major producer of dry, edible navy beans, black beans, and cranberry beans. The state has about 295,000 acres of bean fields, roughly half of which are navy beans. Most of Michigan’s beans are canned commercially; the remainder, about 10 percent, are sold dried. -World Trade Press