Vazhakulam pineapple is the term used to refer to the

pineapple The pineapple (''Ananas comosus'') is a tropical plant with an edible fruit; it is the most economically significant plant in the family Bromeliaceae. The pineapple is indigenous to South America, where it has been cultivated for many centuri ...

produced in the

Vazhakulam Vazhakulam is a village in Muvattupuzha Talukis in Ernakulam district in the Indian state of Kerala. This town is known as ''Pineapple City'' due to its large-scale pineapple farms. Another village named Vazhakulam, is located in Aluva. ...

area in

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

. The appellation "Vazhakulam" has been registered as

Geographical Indication A geographical indication (GI) is a name or sign used on products which corresponds to a specific geographical location or origin (e.g., a town, region, or country). The use of a geographical indication, as an indication of the product's source, ...

No. 130 at Chennai on 4 September 2009 under Agricultural-Horticultural Product category. The GI registration was granted based on an application filed by Nadukkara Agro Processing Company Ltd., Kerala Agricultural University and Pineapple Farmers Association, Vazhakulam. The GI registration specifies the specialties of this product thus: "Vazhakulam pineapple locally known as 'Kannarachakka' comes under the species

Ananas comosus ''Ananas'' is a plant genus in the family Bromeliaceae. It is native to South America. The genus contains ''Ananas comosus'', the pineapple. Species The genus ''Ananas'' includes only two species: Gallery File:Pineapple.plantation.jpg, Pinea ...

. The average fruit weight is 1300-1600 g. The fruit has a pleasant aroma, fruit shape is slightly conical, fruit 'eyes' deeply placed, fruit flesh is crisp and golden yellow in color, juice is sweet with 14-16^o

brix Degrees Brix (symbol °Bx) is a measure of the dissolved solids in a liquid, and is commonly used to measure dissolved sugar content of an aqueous solution. One degree Brix is 1 gram of sucrose in 100 grams of solution and represents the strength ...

and its

acidity In computer science, ACID ( atomicity, consistency, isolation, durability) is a set of properties of database transactions intended to guarantee data validity despite errors, power failures, and other mishaps. In the context of databases, a sequ ...

is 0.50 - 0.70%. It is a good source of

carotene The term carotene (also carotin, from the Latin ''carota'', "carrot") is used for many related unsaturated hydrocarbon substances having the formula C40Hx, which are synthesized by plants but in general cannot be made by animals (with the exc ...

vitamin A vitamin is an organic molecule (or a set of molecules closely related chemically, i.e. vitamers) that is an Nutrient#Essential nutrients, essential micronutrient that an organism needs in small quantities for the proper functioning of its ...

mineral In geology and mineralogy, a mineral or mineral species is, broadly speaking, a solid chemical compound with a fairly well-defined chemical composition and a specific crystal structure that occurs naturally in pure form.John P. Rafferty, ed. ( ...

s and

energy In physics, energy (from Ancient Greek: ἐνέργεια, ''enérgeia'', “activity”) is the quantitative property that is transferred to a body or to a physical system, recognizable in the performance of work and in the form of heat a ...

." The Vazhakulam pineapple is cultivated in an area which spreads to about 45 km north, 40 km west, 35 km east and 110 km south from Vazhakulam, the heart land of Vazhakulam pineapple.

References

{{reflist Geographical indications in Kerala Pineapples Culture of Ernakulam district