FUN FACTS ABOUT PAPAYAS

BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON PAPAYAS
Papayas are pear-shaped tropical fruits with thin skin that ranges in color from dark green to golden yellow. Like many other fruits, papayas continue to ripen after harvesting. When they are ripe and ready to eat the skin will be golden yellow and the fruit will be slightly soft. The flesh of ripe papayas can be yellow, orange, pink or even red, depending on the variety. No matter what color it is the yummy fruit tastes like a cross between melons and peaches.

TYPES OF PAPAYAS
There are two types of papayas grown around the world. Hawaiian papayas (also called “Solo” papayas) are usually about 6 inches long and typically weigh about a pound. Mexican papayas are much larger. They can grow up to 24 inches long and weigh up to 10 pounds! Because of their large size, Mexican papayas are usually sold in chunks. Hawaiian papayas are usually much sweeter than the Mexican type.

HOW DO PAPAYAS GROW?
Many people are surprised to learn that the papaya tree is actually an herb, but unlike many of its cousins, this herb can grow 10 or 12 feet tall! The Mexican variety can grow even taller. Papaya trees can be one of three sex types: male, female or hermaphrodite. Only the female and hermaphrodite trees produce fruit, but the quality of the fruit is not the same. Fruit from the hermaphrodite trees is the best, and is the fruit you’re likely to find in a supermarket.

WHERE DO PAPAYAS GROW?
The papaya tree is native to Mexico and Central America, but the trees are now grown in every tropical and subtropical country. Brazil is the leading papaya producing country, but most of the papaya sold in the U.S. comes from Mexico. Papaya grown in Hawaii is usually sold to Canada and Japan.

GREAT WAYS TO EAT PAPAYAS
Fresh papaya makes a great snack! It’s so sweet and refreshing. Before you eat a papaya, make sure it is ripe by gently pressing it with your thumb. If you can press it in a bit, it’s ready to eat. Just cut the papaya in half, scoop out the seeds, and then scoop out and eat the delicious fruit. Papaya is also yummy mixed with other tropical fruits like mango, bananas and pineapple. It’s fun to make a tropical fruit salad for dessert! You can also buy canned tropical fruit salads that include papaya.

ARE PAPAYA SEEDS EDIBLE?
Most people only eat the sweet delicious flesh, but you can also eat the small, black seeds in the center of the fruit. The seeds taste like black pepper. People in some countries use papaya seeds in place of black pepper corns.

NUTRIENTS IN PAPAYAS
One-half of a Hawaiian papaya counts as one serving of your 5 A Day. A serving of papaya is an excellent source of vitamin C and a good source of fiber and folate. Papayas also contain beta-cryptoxanthin, an antioxidant phytochemical found in many orange-yellow fruits and vegetables that helps protect cells from the harmful effects of pollution.

This fact sheet is provided courtesy of Dole Food Company’s Nutrition & Health Program.
© 2002 Dole Food Company, Inc.