The development and evolution of human beings have an uncut relationship with fruits: from three-color vision to complex taste, from grape wine in the luminous glass to pomegranate meaning "more children and more happiness" in traditional culture. Both the human body and socio-economic culture are closely linked to foods such as fruits. In modern society, due to technological advancement, the variety, appearance, and taste of many fruits can be shaped according to human will, but in the long history, fruits are more like loyal witnesses and recorders on the road of human development.
In terms of vision, the nocturnal ancestors of humans do not have strong color vision ability, only developed dark vision adapted to the night. In the later evolutionary process, humans gradually depended on foods such as fruits and buds, which made it necessary for humans to distinguish colors. Because of this, the cone cells on the human retina gradually developed. Why is it important to distinguish colors? Because different colors of plants represent different growth stages, for example, bright red tender leaves are usually a toxic warning sign, and red fruits are a sign of maturity and edibility. Only those human ancestors who are good at choosing the right food can avoid toxin intake, get more nutrition, and have more opportunities to reproduce and pass on their genes, and these genes are also deeply engraved in our genetic system.
The transition from nocturnal to nocturnal also makes humans more dependent on special chemicals, such as vitamin A and beta carotene. During the day, our retinas are subjected to intense sunlight stimulation, bringing too much free radicals. To deal with these free radicals with strong killing ability and ensure the normal function of the retina, a lot of antioxidants are needed, which is why we need to supplement vitamin A and beta carotene. All this was decided millions of years ago when human ancestors chose fruits and other fruits as food.
There are always some amazing contrasts in this world. As far as plant-based ingredients are concerned, the Chinese are undoubtedly the masters of cooking in this area. Even for fruits, we have a way to make them fit into the table reasonably. Sour papaya fish stew in Dali, Yunnan, and pineapple gulp meat in Guangdong are enough to catch people's intestines. In stark contrast to our highly original cooking method: the Chinese market has a large number of non-native fruits from all over the world. Not to mention watermelons from Africa, melons from Central Asia, navel oranges from the Americas, even the familiar apples come across the ocean. This is related to the development of human transportation and international trade since the discovery of geography in the 15th to 17th centuries: Tomato was spread to the world after the discovery of the new continent. Lemon helped humans overcome scurvy in the big voyage. With the continuous development of human economy and society, the spread of new species is accelerating. It took Apple more than 200 years to “conquer” the world, it took 100 years for kiwi to become the “world fruit”, and durian only took 20 years to spread in my country.
In fact, we still have many species resources yet to be developed, and our fruits have strong development potential. Among the many wild fruit tree resources in China, there are many outstanding ones. The temperate fruits include peach, plum, apricot and plum, and members of the pear family. In the emerging round of small berry development, foreign raspberries and blueberries have emerged as emerging fruit products, but they are very Few people know that the dunes lingonberries and red bean lingonberries that live in the Greater Khingan Mountains are the "cousins" of blueberries, and the members of the raspberry family, which are widely distributed in southern China, have a wonderful taste that is comparable to raspberries. In the long-term cultivation process, my country is screening out high-quality fruit varieties. For example, kiwifruit has grown in recent years, such as Chongyanyan, Jintao, Hongyang, etc., and it has overshadowed the "kiwifruit" abroad in terms of sweetness and appearance.
Thirty years ago, our family asked friends to bring back rare bananas from the north. Twenty years ago, we were also looking for large baskets of oranges in the fruit wholesale market. Ten years ago, we were still amazed by the high value of durian in the supermarket. I don't know when, everyone is used to receiving packages from thousands of mountains and rivers. The fruit market has long been free of geographical restrictions. More and more foreign fruits, even foreign fruits, have entered our lives. Behind this habitual scene is high-speed rail and highways extending in all directions. It is the rapid improvement of planting technology, e-commerce platforms, and cold chain transportation. It is the gradual establishment of a new credit system and the vigorous development of the economy and society. "Fruit History" tells the process of introduction, domestication, excavation and utilization of fruits by Chinese people for more than 2000 years, outlines the history and cultural origin of fruits in my country, and also considers the development of my country's modern fruit industry. I strive to achieve the combination of historical data and interesting stories, and professional judgment is compatible with popular science. I hope to help readers understand the origin of fruits and better understand our humanity through fruits.
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