Native fruits of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil: richness and potential as food

Abstract

Brazil is the country with the major biodiversity known in the world, but its edible flora is still little studied. In this work, we present a checklist of the native edible fruits of the Rio Grande do Sul state based on bibliographic consultant and field taste proof. Additional data for each species are also presented with vernacular name, biological form, geographical distribution, habitat, phenology, size of fruits and forms of use. We reported 213 native edible fruits species belonging to 48 botanical family and 102 genera, being Myrtaceae the family with the largest number of species. The majority of the species are tree from forest habitats and occur along all territory of the state. More than 90% of the fruits are for in natura consumption or derivatives, while a small part is used after processing or as condiment. About 20% of the species are presented for the first time as having edible fruit. We highlighted the elevated richness of the native edible fruits found and the importance of appreciation of the local edible flora as potential resource for sustainable economic use, increasing local fruit production and adding value to agricultural production

Key words:
agrobiodiversity; economic botany; native fruits; PANC; edible plants