Oranges are a beloved fruit in many households. Whether we peel and enjoy them as a quick snack or simply press them into a fresh morning juice, their sweet-tart flavor is utterly delicious. That’s probably why they’re the US’ third-favorite fruit and one of the first things we grab at the supermarket as we try to figure out how many oranges we need for one cup of juice. If you’re not sure how to choose the best ones, just follow Carla Hall’s best tip for picking out the freshest oranges, and then head to the counter.
Native to the Himalayan foothills of Southeast Asia, the ancestors of oranges first started to emerge around 8 million years ago. But you might be surprised to learn that those varieties looked nothing like the 400 cultivars grown around the world today. Not only were they smaller and bitter, but they were actually green or yellow (it appears whoever named the color after the fruit had skipped a few history lessons at school).
Modern oranges, especially the sweet orange, which makes up more than two-thirds of the world’s production, are actually cultivated hybrids of ancient pomelos (Citrus maxima) and mandarins (Citrus reticulata). But these also didn’t resemble their modern relatives. Pomelos were huge and boasted thick rinds, while mandarins were only a tad bigger than cherries. It took thousands of years before oranges evolved and took on the shape we recognize today. But how did that transformation happen? Well, selective breeding created the oranges we love today.
Selective breeding shaped the appearance of oranges
While sweet oranges (citrus × sinensis) led to hybrids like the grapefruit, it took generations of breeding to develop them. Breeders had to invest a lot of time and patience for the new hybrid to grow and develop its unique characteristics. Once they found desirable traits like seedlessness, sweetness, and size, they repeated the breeding process all over again in hopes of creating the perfect fruit. Can you even imagine how frustrating that must have been?
Data suggests that the earliest oranges were much smaller and, besides being extremely bitter, had rougher, more wrinkled skin. Then, somewhere around 314 BC, sweet oranges, or their first version, appeared in ancient Chinese texts, and the rest became history. Soon enough, oranges started conquering the world and eventually reached the U.S. after Columbus brought some seeds along with him on one of his voyages to the Americas in the 15th century.
Today, the world produces more than 47 million metric tons of oranges. We add them to tangy cakes, use them to make copycat Costco mimosas, use their peels as garnishes, and even use them to clean the kitchen. Oh, and a fun fact: many sweet oranges stay green when ripe in warmer regions even now. This is because the color change happens only when they’re exposed to cold temperatures at night. And while the flavor is the same, green oranges are still treated with ethylene gas to turn orange.
