Sudachi

The sudachi has been cultivated for centuries in parts of Japan, and is perhaps nearly as well known as the yuzu in the country. The fruit is the specialty and symbol of the prefecture of Tokushima, which produces 98% of all the fruit grown in Japan. The top producing communities are the township of Kamiyama-cho and the village of Sanagouchi-son; combined, they accounted for almost half of the prefecture's annual production in 2008. The plant has white flowers which bloom in May and June. The fruits form in bunches and are harvested in the fall. Though sudachi fruits will eventually develop a yellow-orange rind color, they are normally harvested and used while still green. They contain large smooth seeds, containing a green polyembryo. The Sudachi is sour and not consumed whole, but normally squeezed like a lemon or lime to flavor food. , a citrus-based sauce used in Japanese cuisine, often includes sudachi along with other bitter oranges (kabosu or yuzu juices, and daidai) as an ingredient. Sudachi-flavored products (such as ice cream, vodka coolers, ice pops, and soft drinks) can also be found in Japan, particularly in Tokushima Prefecture, where the fruit is sold cheaply. In other parts of Japan, the fruit is considered a delicacy and is often expensive. Sudachi are considered to have a zestier flavor and aroma compared to lemons or limes, and have a higher calcium and ascorbic acid (vitamin C) content than lemons. Compared to the related kabosu, sudachi are much smaller at The fruit is also being cultivated in Piura, Peru. ==Classification==

Its species name was published by Mitsutaro Shirai (1933), but most modern scientists, even while still using this nomenclature by habit or as legacy, do not consider it as a bona fide species, but a cultivar or a hybrid of uncertain parentage. appears to be supported by DNA studies; recent genetic analysis has confirmed its status as a hybrid, with one parent being the yuzu, and the other an unidentified relative of two native-Japanese cultivars, the koji and tachibana orange. ==Phytochemistry==

The flavonoid eriocitrin abundant in lemon and lime juices is present in comparable concentrations in sudachi juice, but is lacking in yuzu or kabosu juices. Also, neoeriocitrin (characteristic in bergamot daidai) is found in sudachi juice and rind. Eriocitrin is an antioxidant reported to combat lipid peroxidation and like neoeriocitrin is said to block the formation of lipoxygenases involved in allergies and atherosclerosis. Also, the flavonoid narirutin is said to be the active chemical in the Wakayama Prefecture specialty citrus jabara juice that is said to diminish the effects of pollen allergies. The jabara advertises that it contains 6 times the narirutin in yuzu, but sudachi juice also contains about 3 times as much as yuzu juice (20.1 mg per 100 ml, vs. 6.6 mg). In 2006, a Tokushima University research team published a report which suggests that the fruit may be effective in lowering glucose levels in diabetic patients. The team gave rats sudachi zest over a one-year period and found that their glucose levels were lowered, with signs of improved health in the rats. ==References==