Pouteria sapota

This article is about the fruit also known as red mamey. For the yellow mamey, see Mammea americana.

Pouteria sapota, the mamey sapote, is a species of tree native to southern Mexico and Central America. It is now cultivated throughout Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean, as well as Florida and parts of South America. Its fruit is eaten raw in many Latin American countries, and is added to smoothies, milkshakes, ice cream, and other foods.

Mamey sapote
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Asterids
Order:	Ericales
Family:	Sapotaceae
Genus:	Pouteria
Species:	P. sapota
Binomial name
Pouteria sapota (Jacq.) H. E. Moore & Stearn
Synonyms[2]
See text

Sapote, mamey, raw

Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz)
Energy	520 kJ (120 kcal)
Carbohydrates	32.1 g
Sugars	20.14 g
Dietary fiber	5.4 g
Fat	0.46 g
Protein	1.45 g
Vitamins and minerals Vitamins Quantity %DV† Thiamine (B1) 1% 0.013 mg Riboflavin (B2) 9% 0.116 mg Niacin (B3) 9% 1.432 mg Pantothenic acid (B5) 8% 0.397 mg Vitamin B6 42% 0.72 mg Folate (B9) 2% 7 μg Vitamin C 26% 23 mg Vitamin E 14% 2.11 mg Minerals Quantity %DV† Calcium 1% 18 mg Iron 4% 0.78 mg Magnesium 3% 11 mg Manganese 9% 0.204 mg Phosphorus 2% 26 mg Potassium 15% 454 mg Sodium 0% 7 mg Zinc 2% 0.19 mg
Link to USDA Database entry
†Percentages estimated using US recommendations for adults,[3] except for potassium, which is estimated based on expert recommendation from the National Academies.[4]

Some of its names in Latin American countries, such as mamey colorado (Cuba), zapote colorado (Costa Rica) and zapote rojo (South America), refer to the reddish colour of its flesh to distinguish it from the unrelated but similar-looking Mammea americana, whose fruit is usually called "yellow mamey" (Spanish: mamey amarillo).^{[citation needed]}

Description

Mamey sapote is a large and highly ornamental evergreen tree that can reach a height of 15 to 45 m (49 to 148 ft) at maturity.^[5]

The fruit, botanically a berry,^[6] is about 10 to 25 cm (4 to 10 in) long and 8 to 12 cm (3 to 4.5 in) wide and has flesh ranging in color from pink to orange to red. The brown skin has a texture somewhat between sandpaper and the fuzz on a peach.^[7] The fruit's texture is creamy and soft, and the flavor is a mix of sweet potato, pumpkin, honey, prune, peach, apricot, cantaloupe, cherry, and almond.^[8][9][10] A mamey sapote is ripe when the flesh is vibrant salmon in color when a fleck of the skin is removed.^[11] The flesh should give slightly, as with an overripe avocado. The leaves are pointed at both ends, 4 to 12 inches in length, and grow in clusters at the ends of branches.^[12]

The mamey sapote is related to other sapotes such as sapodilla (Manilkara zapota), abiu (P. caimito), and canistel (P. campechiana), but unrelated to the black sapote (Diospyros digyna)^[13] and white sapote (Casimiroa edulis).^[14][15][16]

• 
  Leaves on tree
• 
  Fruit on branch
• 
  Fruit flesh and kernel
• 
  Mamey at a Tepoztlan market
• 
  Tree bark
• 
  Branch with young fruit

Distribution

The native range probably extends from the southern Mexican states of Veracruz, Tabasco, and Chiapas through Nicaragua, Belize, and northern Honduras.^[17] This is uncertain, however, because the tree was already widely cultivated in the tropical Americas prior to European colonization.^[18] Today, it is cultivated in most Mexican states, many Caribbean islands, and tropical continental America from Florida to Brazil. The first record of cultivation in south Florida dates to the 1880s.^[19] It has also been introduced to the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Vietnam.^[20]

Cultivation

It prefers smooth sandy, deep, clay and fertile soils, with pH of 5.5 to 6.5. The species does not tolerate low temperatures, prolonged periods of drought, or soils with bad drainage or where the water table is very high.^[18]

It is mainly propagated by grafting, which ensures the new plant has the same characteristics as the parent, especially its fruit, as it does not grow true to seed. It is also considerably faster than growing trees by seed, producing fruit in 3–5 years; trees grown from seed require 7 years of growth before fruiting.^[21] Seeds lose viability within a month of harvest, so should be sown immediately.^[18]

Pouteria sapota trees are quite productive fruiters. A typical mature tree may produce 200-500 fruits per year, while vigorous established trees may produce more than twice this amount.^[19] The 2017 production average for Mexican growers was 12.4 tons/hectare.^[22]

In Florida, the fruit is harvested from May to July with some cultivars available all year.^[23][24]

Pests and diseases

Pouteria sapota is not often troubled by significant insect damage. The Cuban May beetle (Phyllophaga bruneri) and the sugarcane rootstalk borer (Diaprepes abbreviatus), along with various species of scale and spider mites are known to attack the plant, but rarely is the infestation significant.^[18]

Oviposition by fruit flies onto the fruit can cause damage to the pulp. The most important species in this respect is Anastrepha serpentine, known as the sapote fly, specializing in Sapotaceae plants.

Uses

The fruit is eaten raw or made into milkshakes, smoothies, ice cream, and paletas. It can be used to produce marmalade and jelly.^[25] Some beauty products use oil pressed from the seed,^[26] otherwise known as sapayul oil.^[27]

Nutrition

Mamey agua fresca served in Mérida, Yucatán

The fruit is an excellent source of vitamins B₆ and C, and is a good source of riboflavin, niacin, vitamin E, manganese, potassium, and dietary fiber. Research has identified several new carotenoids from the ripe fruit.^[28][29]

Synonyms

• Achras mammosa Bonpl. ex Miq. nom. illeg.
• Achras zapota var. major Jacq.
• Bassia jussaei Griseb.
• Bassia jussiaei Tussac
• Calocarpum huastecanum Gilly
• Calocarpum mammosum var. bonplandii (Kunth) Pierre
• Calocarpum mammosum var. candollei (Pierre) Pierre
• Calocarpum mammosum var. ovoideum (Pierre) Pierre
• Calocarpum sapota (Jacq.) Merr.
• Calospermum mammosum var. bonplandii (Kunth) Pierre
• Calospermum mammosum var. candollei Pierre
• Calospermum mammosum var. ovoidea Pierre
• Calospermum parvum Pierre
• Lucuma bonplandiiv Kunth
• Sapota mammosa Mill.
• Sideroxylon sapota Jacq.
• Sideroxylum sapota Jacq.^[2]

See also

• Lucuma
• Mammea americana (mamey apple)
• Sapodilla