COMPLEX HISTORY OF MIRACLE FRUIT
WHY THIS FRUIT IS UNIQUE?
Some fruits are sweet; some have acid, bitter taste. But there are fruit that simply changes taste perception from acid to taste. It can sound unbelievable, but it is true. The fruit’s name is miracle fruit or synsepalul dulcificum. However this fruit is growing in West Africa, and in some countries by special growers. So let’s look closer to the phenomenon.
At first try, it looks and tastes like a simple berry. But once the pulp is chewed lemons suddenly taste like sugary lemonade and Irish stout tastes amazingly similar to chocolate milkshake. The miracle supplement that is responsible for this is called miraculin. It is glycoprotein that temporarily masks your mouth's ability to taste sour and bitter notes.
THE HISTORY OF MIRACLE FRUIT
The miracle fruit is known since 1725, after discovery of French travelers in West Africa. They found local tribes picking fruits before meals and then consuming sour and bitter meals.
In European countries first of all it had been detailed in the pharmaceutics journal as a "miraculous" berry by British doctor David Fairchild, a botanist, was the first person to bring miracle fruit from Africa to the U.S. in the early 20th century.
In 1968 miraculin, the substance of miracle fruit, was separated from the fruit by Lloyd Beidler, a biology professor at Florida State University
UNSUCCESSFUL HISTORY OF MIRALIN COMPANY
Given this progress and the emerging focus on diet programs, attempt was made in to commercialize the Miracle Fruit's ability to create sweet flavors without a caloric penalty. In the 1970s the Miralin Company planned to bring Miraculin to market and was founded with investments by Reynolds Metals, Barclays and Prudential. Legal advice as well as contact with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reflected that Miraculin would be approved, especially given that these berries had been eaten for centuries in Africa with no adverse reactions reported. Extensive testing of Miracle Fruit was done on lab animals and humans, and the FDA deemed it to be absolutely safe for consumption.
However, on the eve of the product launch in 1974, the FDA also dealt a major setback to the efforts of Miralin Company. It classified the berry as a nutritional product and not a food additive, stating that years of further testing would be required to before Miraculin might become eligible for food additive status.
The distinction is critical, as food additive status would be needed to use Miraculin as ingredient in commercial food products. Without it, no foods containing Miraculin can be sold on the U.S. market. The designation meant it could only be sold unprocessed or in tablet form.
Primed to launch sales of a food additive, Miralin was devastated. For a short time, Miraculin was sold in pill form to U.S. dieters and the idea of “Miraculin Parties” was first conceived. But the Miralin Company’s business model had depended on larger sales as a food additive, and investment capital could not sustain them through further FDA testing. The firm folded.
Controversy surrounded the FDA's decision. The sugar industry was accused of sabotaging the project, burgling the research and leaning on the FDA in order to prevent competition and maintain the demand for sugar.
MIRACLE FRUIT IN 21'ST CENTURY
Miraculin has never gained certification for use as a food additive or food sweetener in USA and European Union. It has been slowed down in bureaucracy. Though it has not been given legal status, it is currently awaiting approval on the “new foods” list. However, Japan is far ahead of both governments and has granted it full food additive status.
Overnight and international shipping improvements have made it possible for consumers to buy fresh berries, which retain their abilities as long as they are consumed quickly. And tablets continue to be a viable, and more economical, way to experience the berry's sweetening benefits.
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