Arctic Bilberry – what is the difference between blueberry and bilberry
Arctic
Flavours Association
Kauppakatu
20
FI-89600
Suomussalmi
simo.moisio@arctic-flavours.fi
www.arctic-flavours.fi
Press
release
Arctic Bilberry is growing wild in Finland, Vaccinium myrtillus L. Depending on the growing conditions its annual crop is 100-300 million kg (average crop 184 million kg), of which about 10% is harvested. Picking of Arctic Bilberry is in Finland covered by the right of public access, or Everyman's Right, which means that it can be freely picked from the wild without permission from the landowner.
Arctic Bilberry has been gathered and used in Finland for centuries. Nowadays the most common products made from Arctic Bilberries are dried berries, powdered berries, cold-pressed juices, soups, snacks, smoothies and liqueurs. Some ingredients can be extracted from berries and used to make cosmetics and dietary supplements.
Unlike cultivated blueberries, Arctic Bilberries are blue both on the outside and in. Bilberries contain several times more flavonoids and four times as much anthocyanins than cultivated blueberries (Vaccinium angustifoloium , V. corymbosum).
Arctic Bilberry name is needed to help firms and consumers to avoid the mistakes in the market. It´s good to know that the Arctic Bilberry is much different compared to cultivated blueberry. Arctic Bilberry is growing in wild forests, blueberry is cultivated. Arctic Bilberry is a superior source of polyphenols and antioxidants, it is handpicked and grows ecologicallly without any carbon or water footprint. It is also available with organic certification because Finland has the world's largest organic-certified forest berry areas.
Compared to the cultivated highbush blueberry Vaccinium corymbosum, the berries of the Arctic Bilberry are smaller, 6-8 millimetres in size. Bilberries grow individually on the branches of a ramified shrub plant 10-40 cm tall. The skin of Arctic Bilberry is dark blue, waxy and soft and it breaks quite easily. The inside of Arctic Bilberry is dark blue. Because of the high anthocyanin content its flesh is fruity and dark blue or purple.
The anthocyanin levels of Arctic Bilberry are high when compared to other berries. It contains anthocyanins at a level that is 3-5 higher than that in highbush blueberry. Anthocyanins are bioactive compounds, which give the Arctic Bilberry its characteristic dark blue or purple colour inside and out. The difference in the colour of flesh between the bilberry and blueberry is visible, since the flesh of highbush blueberry is white.
The climate of Finland is colder than in the Finland's neighbouring countries, Sweden and Estonia. In mid-summer the time of daylight is 19 hours in southern Finland and in the northern Arctic Circle region the sun does not set at all. According to the studies the abundance of light stimulates the creation of anthocyanin compounds, and therefore the Arctic Bilberries contain anthocyanins at higher levels all over the Finland.
Cross-section of Arctic Bilberry
Photo Arctic Flavours Association
Cross-section
of cultivated blueberry.
Photo Arctic Flavours Association
Content of anthocyanins in Arctic Bilberry and cultivated blueberry
References:
Riihinen K., Jaakola L., Kärenlampi S., Hohtola A. Organ-specific distribution of phenolic compounds in bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus) and ‘northblue' blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum x V. angustifolium). Food Chemistry 110 (2008) 156-160. (s. 157, 158)
Määttä-Riihinen KR, Kamal-Eldin A, Mattila PH, González-Paramás AM, Törrönen AR. Distribution and contents of phenolic compounds in eighteen Scandinavian berry species. J Agric Food Chem. 2004;52(14):4477-86. (s. 4481)
National Institute for Health and Welfare, Nutrition Unit. Finnish food composition database. Release 16 (9.12.2013). Mustikka, metsämustikka (Bilberry): http://www.fineli.fi/food.php?foodid=442&lang=fi
USDA 2014. Agricultural Research Service United States Department of Agriculture. National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference Release 26, Blueberries, raw: http://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb/foods/show/2244?fg=&man=&lfacet=&count=&max=25&sort=&qlookup=Vaccinium&offset=&format=Full&new=&measureby
Lätti A, Riihinen K, Kainulainen P. 2008. Analysis of anthocyanin variation in wild populations of bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus L.) in Finland. J. Agric. Food Chem. 56, 190-196. 11
Misikangas M, Pajari AM, Päivärinta E, Oikarinen SI, Rajakangas J, Marttinen M, Tanayama H, Törrönen R, Mutanen M. 2007. Three Nordic berries inhibit intestinal tumorigenesis in multiple intestinal neoplasia/+ mice by modulating beta-catenin signaling in the tumor and transcription in the mucosa. J Nutr. 137(10):2285-90.
Åkerström Andreas (2010) Factors affecting the anthocyanidin concentration in fruits of Vaccinium myrtillus L. Faculty of Natural Resources and Agricultural Sciences, Department of Agricultural Research for Northern Sweden, SLU, Umeå. Acta Universitatis agriculturae Sueciae 2010:52 Thesis. http://pub.epsilon.slu.se/2342/1/akerstrom_a_100908.pdf (Accessed on 13.5.2015) rences: