You’re Picking What?

by Deanna Altomara

Scuppernongs. Or, as they’re more commonly known, muscadines.

Muscadines (or Vitis rotundifolia) look like grapes, but have a rounder shape and thicker skin. Ripe muscadines are a dark plum black, have a slight give, and fall from the stem at the slightest touch. Some people like to bite the top and slurp up the juicy insides; I just pop them in whole.

I recently had the opportunity to pick muscadines at a local vineyard. Under the hot Georgia sun, we took our buckets into the seemingly endless rows of grapevines. We expected to traverse several rows of the heart-shaped leaves, but quickly realized just how bountiful the vines were. Each plant dangled huge bunches of shiny purple-pink marbles.

The scene seemed straight from a Greek fresco... except, of course, for the dusty mounds of ants reaching up for the bounty of fallen fruit. But despite the insects and slippery-thin spiderwebs, we managed to reach into the bushes up to our elbows and fill our buckets to the brim. Altogether, we picked over 1,650 pounds. These fruits are native to the southeast US, where the climate is warm and humid. Muscadines are hardy, in part because of their thick skin, so they require less pesticides than other fruits. They are also resistant to Pierce’s disease, a bacterial infection transmitted by sharpshooter insects, which devastates grape crops in the southeast. Historically, the southern wine industry was largely based on muscadines until Prohibition. Today, they’re used to make wines, jellies, and juices.

As an added bonus to the natural sweetness, muscadines are rich in cancer-fighting antioxidants. Two of the more wellknown muscadine polyphenols, resveratrol and ellagic acid, are also found in red wine. Tuck in!

We volunteered at Courson’s Winery, which had offered to donate its surplus fruits to a local food bank run by Putnam Christian Outreach. To do so, the winery partnered with Concrete Jungle, an organization dedicated to fighting food waste in Georgia. In particular, Concrete Jungle focuses on rescuing and delivering fresh produce to people experiencing food insecurity. In the land of plenty, hunger is all too common. People living in food deserts have little access to healthy fruits and vegetables, sometimes with no grocery stores for miles.

Food deserts are often located in low-income communities where people might not have cars, compounding the problem of availability with cost and transportation logistics. As a result, residents have to rely on prepackaged, processed items sold at fast food stops and convenience stores, where prices are generally high and quality low. Yet a healthy diet is critical to help prevent diabetes, cardiovascular problems, hypertension, and a host of other chronic diseases.

It’s no wonder that food insecurity is associated with so many of these health problems. Yet the true shame isn’t that we don’t have enough healthy food; it is simply not distributed efficiently or fairly. Up to 40% of the US food supply goes to waste. Food loss occurs at every stage of the production chain. During production, food can be damaged by insects, mold, rodents, or bacteria. In retail outlets such as stores, over-ordered or blemished produce can get tossed. Yet more food goes bad while sitting in the back of the consumers’ fridge.

This waste doesn’t just affect the millions of food-insecure Americans. It also wastes time, money, and fossil fuels involved in the production process. As a result, it’s an active threat to health, the economy, and the environment. In response to these challenges, the EPA and USDA have declared a joint goal of halving food waste by 2030. This reduction requires reshaping the food distribution system, with agriculture producers and retailers adjusting their business models to minimize food waste and deliver the surplus to people in need.

But as an individual, there are ways to help:

• Only buy what you need.

• Enjoy your leftovers.

• Find creative ways to use that last bit of rice or milk.

• Explore ways to use the ends of your vegetables—for example, carrot tops make a great pesto!

• Visit the farmers’ market.

• Donate extra canned goods to your local food bank. • Deliver groceries for elderly or housebound neighbors.

• Pick fruit for organizations like Concrete Jungle, or volunteer with other nonprofits in your area.

• And last but not least...enjoy your fruits and vegetables!

Helpful Resources: How to Cut Food Waste and Maintain Food Safety Tips to Reduce Food Waste 25 Ways to Use Leftover Food The Concrete Jungle Map of Fruit Trees (Atlanta)

Bio: Deanna graduated from Emory University with a double major in Creative Writing and Human Health. She’s fascinated by the intersections of infectious disease, sustainability, and social justice. And oh yes...she loves some fresh produce!

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