EAT POOP STAR

# Cantaloupe

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"Rockmelon" redirects here. For the band, see Rockmelons. For other uses, see Cantaloupe (disambiguation).

**Cantaloupe** (**muskmelon**, **mushmelon**, **rockmelon**, **sweet melon**) or **spanspek** (South Africa) is a variety of the *Cucumis melo* species in the Cucurbitaceae family.

Cantaloupes range in weight from 0.5 to 5 kilograms (1 to 11 lb). Originally, *cantaloupe* referred only to the non-netted, orange-fleshed melons of Europe, but may mean any orange-fleshed melon of *C. melo*.[2]

## Contents

* 1Etymology and origin
* 2Types
* 3Production
* 4Consumption
	+ 4.1Nutrition
* 5See also
* 6References
* 7External links

## Etymology and origin[edit]

The name *cantaloupe* was derived in the 18th century via French *cantaloup* from Italian *Cantalupo,* which was formerly a papal county seatnear Rome, after the fruit was introduced there from Armenia.[3] It was first mentioned in English literature in 1739.[2] The cantaloupe most likely originated in a region from South Asia to Africa.[2] It was later introduced to Europe and, around 1890, became a commercial crop in the United States.[2]

*Melon* derived from use in Old French as *meloun* during the 13th century, and from Medieval Latin *melonem*, a kind of pumpkin.[4] It was among the first plants to be domesticated and cultivated.[4]

The South African English name *spanspek* is said to be derived from Afrikaans *Spaanse spek* ("Spanish bacon"); supposedly, Sir Harry Smith, a 19th-century governor of Cape Colony, ate bacon and eggs for breakfast, while his Spanish-born wife Juana María de los Dolores de León Smith preferred canteloupe, so South Africans nicknamed the fruit "Spanish bacon."[5][6] However, the name appears to predate the Smiths and date to 18th-century Dutch Suriname: J. van de wrote in 1770, "*Spaansch-spek* is the name for the form that grows in Suriname which, because of its thick skin and little flesh, is less consumed."[7]

## Types[edit]

Macro photograph of the skin of a North American cantaloupe (muskmelon)

The **European cantaloupe**, *C. melo* var. *cantalupensis*, is lightly ribbed with a sweet and flavorful flesh and a gray-green skin that looks quite different from that of the North American cantaloupe.[2]

The **North American cantaloupe**, *C. melo* var. *reticulatus*, common in the United States, Mexico, and some parts of Canada, is a different variety of *Cucumis melo*, a muskmelon that has a "net-like" (reticulated) peel.[2] It is a round melon with firm, orange, moderately sweet flesh.

## Production[edit]

In 2016, global production of melons, including cantaloupes, was 31.2 million tonnes, with China accounting for 51% of the world total (15.9 million tonnes).[8] Other significant countries growing cantaloupe were Turkey, Iran, Egypt, and India, with each producing 1 to 1.9 million tonnes.[8]

## Consumption[edit]

Cantaloupe is normally eaten as a fresh fruit, as a salad, or as a dessert with ice cream or custard. Melon pieces wrapped in prosciuttoare a familiar antipasto. The seeds are edible and may be dried for use as a snack.

Because the surface of a cantaloupe can contain harmful bacteria—in particular, *Salmonella*[9]—it is recommended to wash and scrub a melon thoroughly before cutting and consumption. The fruit should be refrigerated after cutting it and consumed in less than three days to prevent risk of *Salmonella* or other bacterial pathogens.[10]

A moldy cantaloupe in a Peoria, Illinois market in 1943 was found to contain the highest yielding strain of mold for penicillin production, after a worldwide search.[11]

### Nutrition[edit]

Raw cantaloupe is 90% water, 8% carbohydrates, 0.8% protein and 0.2% fat, providing 140 kJ (34 kcal) and 2020 μg of the provitamin A orange carotenoid, beta-carotene per 100 grams. Fresh cantaloupe is a rich source (20% or more of the Daily Value or DV) of vitamin C (44% DV) and vitamin A (21% DV), with other nutrients in negligible amounts (less than 10% DV) (table).

## References[edit]

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7. **^** http://www.fullstopcom.com/media-room-mainmenu-18/press-releases-2/2687-how-spanspek-got-its-south-african-name.html
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## External links[edit]

* Media related to Cucumis melo cantaloupe group at Wikimedia Commons
* Sorting Cucumis names– Multilingual multiscript plant name database

Categories:

* Cantaloupe
* Melons
* Crops originating from Asia

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* This page was last edited on 23 March 2019, at 23:24 (UTC).
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