Cranberries, raw (organic?)

There are about 175 known varieties of cranberries, which range from red (fenberries) to black in color. Cranberries can be consumed both fresh and cooked. The Vaccinium macrocarpon, also known as the American cranberry and bearberry, is native to North America and is commonly cultivated in the United States, Canada, and Chile. In contrast, Vaccinium oxycoccos, also known as the bog cranberry, is widespread in the UK and northern Europe.

Culinary uses — cranberries:

Ripe fresh cranberries are rarely available in supermarkets in Europe; they are usually sold frozen. What do cranberries taste like? Cranberries have a sour flavor because of the high amounts of fruit acid that they contain and the tart flavor caused by their tannins. Dried cranberries have usually been sweetened with sugar.

In North America, cranberry sauce is an essential part of Thanksgiving. Cranberries are similar to lingonberries and can be made into jam, compote, and juice.

Dried cranberries can also be used in desserts and are a popular substitute for raisins and sultanas. You can add sweetened or unsweetened dried cranberries to stollen, cakes, tarts, cookies, and muesli bars. You can also add cranberries to salads and smoothies.

If you are using dried cranberries to replace fresh cranberries in a recipe, use about 50 g of dried cranberries as a substitute for every 100 g of fresh cranberries called for in the original recipe. You can also soak dried berries in cranberry juice or apple juice for a few hours then drain and eat them like fresh berries.

Recipe for Banana Bread with Fresh Cranberries:

Ingredients: 150 g brown sugar, 150 g wheat flour or spelt flour, 2 teaspoons baking powder, 2 large ripe bananas, 80 mL canola oil, 100 g fresh cranberries

Preparation: Peel the bananas and mash in a bowl with a fork. Mix the dry ingredients (sugar, flour, and baking powder) in another bowl, then add bananas and oil, and knead until the mixture forms a smooth dough. Add the fresh cranberries to the dough. Pour the mixture into a greased baking pan or muffin pan. Bake at 170 °C for about 25 minutes.

Tea with fresh cranberries:

To make one liter of tea, you will need about 150 g fresh cranberries. Wash the cranberries thoroughly and juice them before using. Alternatively, crush the berries and boil them in water for about 5–8 minutes. Let the berries steep for 20–30 minutes and then let the tea cool. Cranberry tea is especially delicious when sweetened with honey or brown sugar.

You can find vegan recipes with cranberries at the bottom of the text or in the sidebar: “Recipes that contain the largest amounts of this ingredient.”

Purchasing — where to buy cranberries?

Fresh cranberries can only be found in selected supermarkets and online shops. However, most supermarkets stock dried cranberries year-round such as Walmart, Whole Foods Markets, Kroger, and Safeway (United States); Extra Foods, Metro, and Freshmart (Canada); Asda, Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Aldi, and Lidl (Great Britain); and Woolworths, Coles, Aldi, and Harris Farm (Australia). Cranberries are sometimes added to nut mixes that contain a variety of nuts including cashews and almonds. Dried cranberries are usually sweetened with sugar and sometimes with pineapple juice or other fruit juices.

You should ideally purchase organic cranberries because nonorganic cranberries grown on monoculture plantations are sprayed with high amounts of pesticides.¹ Organic fruit should nonetheless be washed well before eating.

You may be able to find dried cranberries that have not been treated with sulfur, oil, or separating agents in health food stores and organic supermarkets.

Finding wild:

You can find the Vaccinium macrocarpon (North American cranberry) in raised bogs and moor heaths in North America.² The Vaccinium macrocarpon was introduced to Germany and the Dutch islands Terschelling and Vlieland.³

Storing:

Fresh cranberries can be stored in the refrigerator for 2–3 months without spoiling, as long as they are not bruised and are not packed too tightly together. You can test how fresh cranberries are through the bounce test. If you drop a cranberry from a height of about 20 cm onto a kitchen table and it bounces back, it is fresh.

Dried berries keep for a year or longer if stored in their original packaging or an airtight container in a cool and dry place.

Nutrients — nutritional information — calories in cranberries:

Cranberries’ nutrients are very similar to lingonberries. They contain just 46 calories per 100 g, with 0.13 g fat and 0.46 g protein per 100 g. Cranberries are approximately 12 % carbohydrates.⁴

Cranberries contain several vitamins. While they do not contain a particularly high content of vitamin C (14 mg/100 g), when eaten in combination with other vitamin-C rich fruits and vegetables they can contribute to your daily dose of vitamin C. Quinces and prickly pears contain similar amounts of vitamin C, while seaberries and Malpighia glabra are two of the richest edible fruits in vitamin C, at 450 mg/100 g and 1678 mg/100 g respectively.⁴

At 1.3 mg/100 g, vitamin E is an important antioxidant found in cranberries. Vitamin E is fat soluble and protects against free radicals. It is primarily found in nuts (almonds: 25.6 mg/100 g) and vegetables (cabbage: 2.3 mg/100 g), but fruit can also be a good source of vitamin E (for example, kiwi: 1.5 mg/100 g).⁴

American cranberries contain 5 µg of vitamin K per 100 g. Other berries contain considerably more vitamin K, for example, blackberries and blueberries contain almost 20 µg/100 g, red currants 11 µg/ 100 g, and raspberries 7.8 µg/100 g. Vitamin K is fat soluble and is important for blood clotting and bone metabolism.⁴

Both Vaccinium macrocarpon (American cranberries) and Vaccinium oxycoccos (bog cranberries, fenberries) contain approximately 80 mg/100 g potassium. Bananas have the highest content of potassium of all the fruits, at 360 mg/100 g. Herbs, legumes, and nuts contain far more potassium, for example, parsley contains 2,680 mg/100 g and white beans 1,795 mg/100 g.⁴

Manganese is important for healthy connective tissues, cartilage, hair, and nails. Cranberries contain 0.27 mg/100 g, which is comparable to the quantity found in bananas. You can get your daily dose of manganese in a vegan diet by eating nuts (hazelnuts: 6.2 mg/100 g), seeds (pumpkin seeds: 4.5 mg), and whole grain cereals (rolled oats: 3.6 mg).⁴

Select CLICK FOR under the photo of cranberries to see the nutrient tables. These tables provide complete nutritional information, the percentage of the recommended allowance, and comparison values with other ingredients.

Ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acids in berries:

Cultivated berries and wild berries usually have a very good ratio of omega-6 (linoleic acid, LA) to omega-3 fatty acids (alpha-linolenic acid, ALA). In general, berries contain very little fat, and accordingly the amounts of omega-3 and omega-6 are also low.

The body absorbs alpha-linolenic acid and uses it to produce eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), both of which have anti-inflammatory effects. On the other hand, the body absorbs linoleic acid to produce arachidonic acid, which promotes inflammation. Raspberries’ healthy ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acids is another reason why they are considered a healthy food.

Detailed information on the amount of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids in a variety of berries (source: USDA, Önwt, Debinet).

Health benefits — effects:

Why are cranberries so healthy? Cranberries are red in color, and blue and red fruits contain high levels of phytonutrients. These water-soluble pigments (anthocyanins) are said to have cell-protective and antibiotic properties.¹ For example, blueberries contain proanthocyanidins, which are said to have antioxidant and anticarcinogenic effects.²

Studies indicate that cranberries can have positive effects on coronary arteries. Regularly consuming cranberries is said to protect the heart.⁵

Cranberries have been shown to have positive effects on lower urinary tract symptoms in elderly men. Prostate problems significantly decreased in the participants of the study.⁶

Cranberries can be used like lingonberries to prevent urinary tract infections and cystitis. Certain nutrients that cranberries contain are supposed to prevent bacteria from adhering to the mucous membranes of the urinary tract.^2,7 However, this benefit has not been clearly proven. There are studies that disprove the effect of proanthocyanidins on E. coli bacteria in urine. The studies involved giving female nursing home residents cranberry capsules to treat bacteriuria and pyuria.⁸

There are some factors that prevent a clear positive effect of cranberries on the urinary tract from being demonstrated. First, cranberry juice and cranberry capsules may have different effects, and second different people respond differently to cranberry products. The benefits of cranberry juice for the urinary tract are significantly lower than previously assumed. It is often the amount of liquid that one consumes when drinking the juice that has the positive effects rather than the cranberry juice itself. Study participants may also stop drinking the juice because they do not want to take it for a longer period of time, skewing results.⁹

Questioning the credibility of studies is important, particularly given the fact that some cranberry manufacturers also finance the studies on cranberries.

The nutrients that cranberries contain act as a mouthwash to counter bacteria similarly to how chlorhexidine effects streptococcus.^2,10 The effect of the polyphenols contained in cranberries against the formation of cavities has also been shown, at least in laboratory studies. Clinical studies are still lacking.¹¹

American cranberries can help to fight illnesses such as diarrhea, gastritis, and bacterial skin infections, for example, those caused by Helicobacter pylori.¹² Bacteria do not appear to develop resistance when treated with red and blue fruits of the Vaccinium genus.¹³

Dangers — intolerances — side effects:

Although cranberries are generally very healthy, some people are intolerant to the tanning agents that they contain. Signs of intolerance include stomachaches and other problems in the digestive tract.

If you have or have had kidney stones, you should avoid cranberries. Regular consumption of cranberries can lead to new kidney stones developing in susceptible individuals. Cranberries may also change the bleeding time (time that it takes for blood to clot) in some individuals, in which case taking certain blood thinners is not recommended if you are regularly consuming cranberries.¹⁴

There are not enough studies on the effects of cranberries during pregnancy and breastfeeding, so the general recommendation is to limit your intake of cranberries during this time.

Traditional medicine — naturopathy:

Indigenous peoples in North America have long recognized the healing properties of cranberries. Cranberry juice was, among other things, used to wash out wounds.²

Description— origin:

Vaccinium macrocarpon originated in North America. American cranberries are mainly grown on the northern East Coast of the US and in the eastern part of Canada (Quebec, Newfoundland, Prince Edward Island). Cranberries are also cultivated in Europe. Latvia is the largest European producer of cranberries, with an area of about 100 hectares dedicated to growing cranberries.¹⁵

Cultivation — harvest:

Cranberries cultivated on a large commercial scale are grown in low-nitrogen, wet soils with moderate to acidic pH values. Whether in large fields or in a garden, cranberries thrive in bright locations. The seeds require light to germinate, and cranberries reproduce through propagating root sprouts. The branches grow up to 1 m per year into a low-growing shrub, reaching maximum heights of 10–20 cm. Their evergreen leaves have a leathery, waxy coating.¹⁴

Cranberries are harvested between September and the beginning of November. The fields are flooded, and then special harvesting machines called water reels are used to loosen the berries from the vines. The berries float on the surface of the water, making them easy to collect. Berries are taken back to the farm where they are cleaned, sorted, and stored before being packed and processed. Cranberries are almost exclusively sold dried or frozen.

If you want to sell fresh cranberries, you have to harvest them dry. In the US, only about 5–15% of the harvest is picked dry using mechanical pickers. Dry harvesting has higher labor costs, but the revenue is much higher than with wet harvesting.¹⁴

Pests: The parasitic fungus Exobasidium perenne is a common pest in cranberry leaves. The Manchester treble-bar, cranberry fritillary, and the cranberry blue are all further potential pests of cranberries.

Danger of confusion:

Are cranberries and lingonberries the same? Cranberries and lingonberries (Vaccinium vitis-idaea) are often thought to be the same fruit, especially given their similar appearance. Both plants are of the blueberry genus, but they are two different species. Cranberries bear much larger fruits than lingonberries. They have four air chambers that make them lighter than water.

Cranberries may also be confused with the Andromeda polifolia (bog rosemary) because of their similar distribution area. The flowers and fruits of Andromeda polifolia are similar to American cranberries, but their leaves are more similar to rosemary leaves. Andromeda polifolia contains Grayanotoxin, which affects the body much like Aconitum (wolf’s-bane). They can cause burning sensations in the mouth, salivation, circulatory problems, and difficulty swallowing. Furthermore, eating them can lead to dizziness and intoxication. They are used in traditional medicine to lower blood pressure.²

General information about cranberries:

Cranberries (Vaccinium macrocarpon) are of the Vaccinium genus in the heath family (Vaccinium macrocarpon).

Alternative names for cranberries:

The traditional English name for the plant Vaccinium oxycoccos is fenberry, originated from plants with small red berries found growing in fen (marsh) lands of England.¹⁸ Cranberries are also known as craisins, although this is actually a brand name. Native Americans referred to cranberries by various names including sassamanesh, ibimi, and atoqua.

Literature — sources:

Author: Michael Weber | 18 Mar 2017