Why Pitaya (Mexican Dragon Fruit) Is So Expensive | So Expensive Food | Business Insider
Covered in spines and hiding a rich, colorful pulp, the pitaya, a type of dragon fruit, can make or break the economy of entire towns in Mexico during the growing season, when a batch of 4,000 pitayas can sell for over $7,400. Getting your hands on some in the US can cost up to $22 for a bucket of five fruits. Pitayas are hard work. They are extremely delicate and go bad quickly. Workers must pick, despine, and transport the pitayas all in a single day to ensure they reach customers without spoiling. So what makes this fruit worth the painstaking task? And why is it so expensive?
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Why Pitaya (Mexican Dragon Fruit) Is So Expensive | So Expensive | Business Insider
Had no idea these were so rare. My grandma had a lot of these cactus on her farm in Mexico and we'd eat these a lot growing up.
U soooo lucky
Sounds like fun, reminds me of going down to canals for blackberries that grew wild alongside it
k taco muncher
They're kinda not rare lol just depends where you are from. It literally grows on the side of the road where my family is from, but not in other parts
We have a lot un my city its like a poors person fruit here in a way, cheap af
This man alone is just inspiring. I went the whole video thinking, "oh this guy started his own business selling these local fruits." Then to find out he also sells tortillas, has a butcher shop, and makes tequila with the agave he makes? Pretty darn impressive if you ask me
bro is playing stardew valley
Ikr!
Most of us Mexicans work hard in our own country too,Not only in the US. This man lives in my home state and the people from my home state are hard working people. We grow Pitaya,Corn,Raspberry,Cactus,Agaves,Avocados and many many other fruits,vegetables and even livestock
Basically just saying he's a farmer that has livestock, fruit and vegetables. And his income is seasonal and cannot survive on a monoculture product.
Coming from a family of Mexican immigrants to the US (incidentally also from the state of Jalisco), it never ceases to amaze me how incredibly hard working they are. But unlike the typically “soulless” work ethic of places like the US or Japan, Mexicans typically have an immense amount of pride in whatever work they do. Whether it’s a young artist painting handmade crafts or a smiling grandmother selling bowls of fruit, you’ll be hard pressed to find anyone who is just “getting through the day”. Not to say they’re living handsomely, far from it. But what I’ve gathered from my family at least is, if you work hard and put your heart into it, anything is possible.
I didn’t know these were rare bcz where I’m from in Mexico pitaya are found in abundance! They are absolutely delicious!!
Me too 😊 they are very delicious 🤤
And..YES. They are PITAYAS." Dragon fruit?? HA! MONKY SEES, MONKY DOES."
@@luzesquivel6010 Hola, entonces en Mexico existen los tres (pitayas, tunas, y pitahayas)?
@@luzesquivel6010 Sí, existen las tres
@@Wonka1776 น้ำแข็งใส้
If you've ever had _tuna,_ prickly pear, imagine that x10 in flavor and sweetness and that's a _pitaya._ And both are super healthy.
ever had saguaro fruit? how is it compared to pipe cactus?
@@billyd7628I've had the opportunity to eat both and they taste identical, or nearly so. My family and I picked pitayas in Sonora way back when. The saguaro fruit I got to eat in Arizona. If I had to choose between the two I would go pitaya as the flavor and smell are more pronounced.
Give it to Japanese , they will make it 1 million USD per basket
It’s not about the money smh. Hopefully you can go to Mexico and taste the land through the fruit .
It would be a hand crafted basket and 4 fruits but still a million 🤣🤣
💀
😂😂 Say a piece of wood is from Japan and people will pay millions. Japan overrated
😂😂😂
Grew up eating these. They’re only available in very specific times and the rain has to be perfect or there is no pitaya season. Reason where we go in Mexico we only eat pitayas every couple of years. We literally walk through the mountains picking them in the hot sun but they are so worth it. A true delicacy. There is nothing like it ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
While spraying fertilizer my dad also sprays the blackberry brier bushes it makes them twice the size and sweeter.
Finally someone calling a food a delicacy and the food isnt japanese lobsters eyelides or somthing disgusting they always slap delicacy onto
@@raytheperson Where I'm from we have a special variety of mango that is considered a delicacy.
You just described my childhood!!
@@kickballfever which
My grandmother back home used to make her fencing out of pitaya trees we would eat them all the time. Good times
Growing up in Mexico my grandfather used to pick those for free and we would eat them together ❤
Of course eating some is fine. But harvesting all of them seems sad. Are they needed by the cactus ? Bees certainly do need them.
My local pedestrian Mexican ice cream guy sells pitaya flavored nieve de garrafa (hand churned Mexican gelatto”) and this flavor is soo yummy, and for some reason pairs amazingly with the “leche quemada” (burnt milk) flavor. I love living in east side San Jose, california, I have all the flavors of Mexico available to me in my neck of the woods.
That's a very clever, practical way to preserve pitayas to sell over a longer period of time.
Where at? can you share the location for the pitayas. ?
Yes I want to try the ice cream too
@@DesdeElOeste I live in East San José. Unfortunately I cannot give you an exact location for the pitaya ice cream man because he passes by pushing his ice cream cart. Probably passes on my street every other day.
@@hibikime-we7sx Yes!!! Hand Churned Mexican ice cream “nieve de garrafa” is underrated IMHO. It is similar to Italian Gelatto or Sorbet depending on the flavor. And what puts it over the top is the exotic flavors that are available such as burnt milk, cactus pear (tuna), and the pitaya. Just the other day I tried one made of tejocote fruit (nance). Wasn’t too much to my liking, but the chance to try something different made it worth it.
As one of the few people who grow Pitayas in the US, I can definitely say that it is the fruit of the gods, you'll never find another flavor like it. Some are more tart, some have a floral sweetness to them, some are more intensely fruity, and some can even be as sweet as sugarcane. The different colors have different flavors, and its mind boggling to see the rainbows of different colors once they all ripen. Their best flavor is when theyre fresh off the cactus, and if you dont live in jalisco the only way to get that is to grow them yourself.
they grow in different southern states not just Jalisco. I'm from Oaxaca we even have a variant Checonostle which are more sweet and tasty.
I just ride around Phoenix and forage all kinds of these. Some taste like banana, some like candy, some like berries. Each fruit is picked when it is bright pink, and right before it splits for the sweetest taste. The large ones are the most fibrous. The challenge is picking them before the birds, and dont fall in when harvesting them.
Así es. Rápido y con cuidado. 🤙🏾
I remember eating dozens of these at one time as a kid in San Luis. Good times 😂
what does it taste like
@@leodiscorpion3350 pretty much, nothing. But it’s good, I like it, it comes with a granulose texture and with a very very moderate taste.
@@CommanderAlpharocks just like the typical dragon fruit?
2:47
@@rkevic thanks
May God bless these farmers and keep them safe and prosperous.
God's not doing any good against the thousands brutally murdered by the cartels every year, return to earth.
These farmers say, hey bud, thanks for your KZhead prayer! Now that you've sent this out, it's easy street for these farmers now. God now knows what to do, bless these folks. Yay.
@@Marconi121 I get what you're saying. I hope you get what I'm saying.
@@emotionalfish1181 I get what you're saying. I hope you get what I'm saying.
God won't stop the climate change that will threaten these farmers in the very near future
I was living in Oaxaca for awhile and these fruits are so cheap and so delicious! I miss my Mexico 🇲🇽
I use to get avocado and dragon fruit for so cheap everything was I remember I got a bag full of then for like 4 dollars
Pitaya is native to peru
@@g.g.v5716 Ik but I still found them in the central u gotta go man
@@g.g.v5716 no it's not native to just peru. All types of cacti fruits are spread throughout the americas from the southwest deserts of the USA, mexico, central america etc
if you miss mexico then you shouldn't have jumped over that wall
Ese Trinidad, todo un empresario bravo 🇲🇽💖
i had prickly pear and dragon fruit, and want to try this fruit. even if i never ever have the chance to, i still hope that anyone growing the cactus continues to do so for as long as they can and anyone having one treat it like a gift a well as enjoy it
If you have the chance to come to Cabo San Lucas for Springbreak (just in season) you can find them 150km in the highway to La Paz (just ripped) or in the local markets (a little more expensive but not as tasty)
More rich flavor
That man is what you call a true entrepreneur.
el jale
You guys are one of my favorite channel on youtube for me. Entertaining and informative, always something new to learn that I have never heard of. This is an affirmation for you guys for all your dedication and hard work.
Pitayas are so delicious & refreshing out here in Juchipila Zacatecas we love our yearly dose of Pitayas.🤤
It’s really nice to watch a video of Business Insider of something I thought I was very familiar with. I was born and raised in Guadalajara and have had this fruit for my whole life when it’s available between April-June, I used to think they were a little expensive because I didn’t know the effort the local harvesters put into bringing them to our city. I’ll appreciate more their work after this!
Same! I just bought some outside my home, like an hour ago, and I was kinda bummed out cause I felt it was really expensive, and I wanted more of them, but couldn't really afford more this week... But then I started wondering why they were expensive, so I Googled it, and this video came up... Now I feel better about the price I paid for them and will be more appreciative of their value now.
No wonder nobody knew what these were when I would talk about them. I’m from Jalisco and my parents brought me to the us as a kid. I miss these so much! They’re delicious. Guamuchiles too. Also grown in Jalisco
Yeah, I'd always be confused because I'd think these pink dragon fruits in the US aren't real pitayas. Guamuchiles are good, too. I always knew them as pinzanes in Michoacán. Nanches or changungas are great also.
Soy de Guadalajara y en mi familia esperamos con ansia la temporada de pitaya, es deliciosa! Es bonito ver que se valoran estas frutas a nivel mundial.
Pitaya es oriundo de Peru.Agradece
@@JoaquinElf es un sabor dulce , refrescante ... Único , las.venden aproximadamente a 10 pesos por pieza , nomás se dan en temporada y solo como dos meses ...
@@g.g.v5716 no es la misma ustedes tienen la pitahaya; que es desabrida y no tan buena de sabor. Esta es pitaya, muy dulce y poco conocida
@@g.g.v5716 yo no entiendo la gente del sur que quiere a fuerzas desacreditar a Mexico en todo. La pitaya no es de Perú, y si fuera así no tendría nada que agradecer.
@Veronica Elis NORTEAMERICANA. F en geografía y F en conocimientos, la tuna es otro tipo de fruta muy diferente en sabor y apariencia a la pitaya.
My guy has multiple business and he said he started selling the fruit from the ground up. This man is hustling! Respect 👊
Our ancient ancestors are smiling every time we eat and harvest pitaya season. Love from Califas 🇲🇽🇺🇲
I can say by experience these are so good and addicting like he said at 6:45 youre always left wanting another one
I'm from Trinidad and to hear a person have such a name is quite interesting💞
How does the name translate in Trinidad?
Tri-Ni-Dad
Mexico has a large Catholic population. The name Trinidad was likely given to this man by his parents in honor of the Holy Trinity, and not the country. The country, may actually also have been named as such due to religious reasons.
I have a cousin named Trinidad and it refers to the holy trinity since most Mexicans are catholic
I love Manuel's voice, it's so soft
I find the title misleading Mexican Dragon Fruit, dragon fruit is a native species to Mexico and Central America too.
I am fortunate enough to live in a part of California where fresh pitaya can be found fairly easily while in season. I'm not sure if there are farmers here producing them since the organ pipe cactus can grow here, or if they're being quickly driven up from Mexico, but they are absolutely worth buying and eating. A little expensive, but a delicious treat that's tasty enough for me to want to plant one of the cactuses to grow my own once I buy a house.
I've seen the cactus locally, and hate them. Maybe I should pay attention if they fruit. I grow the other kind. My mother is better at it. I got a record three this year. Several years ago, someone robbed my mother enough to be a major crime. Wiped out most of our fruit.
I have a pitaya tree, the variaty i have does not have spines but is a smoth skin variaty, I also have tunas.
@@slewone4905 why do you hate cacti ?
I hope you are able to buy a house in California. Things are crazy in this state
@@1972landcruiser it’s not pitaya if it doesn’t have thorns. Same family but different name
I’ve been blessed by having parents who send me every year to Puebla and eat as much fruit as I can , I got to say pitaya are my favorite
I remember going with my grandma to pick these and eat them right off of the pitayo’s. Man I would go through several of these one of my favorite snack
One of my absolute favorite fruits! They taste so magical and balance out your digestive system and hydrate you!
That guy holding spikeful fruit and cleaning these 4000 a day with bare hand gives me slap of reality, of how fuckingly good, comfortable position I am.
It grown all over the hills on waimanalo and Hawaii Kai in Oahu Hawaii because Hawaii is close to Mexico seasonal birds transported the seeds to the cliff Sides in Hawaii we have all the Mexican cactus types growing here they love the hot humid temperatures and thrive here when we have dry seasons the pitayas taste best in Hawaiian language we call the cactus fruits panini .
Reallyyy?? That sounds so interesting I want to visit Hawaii
No lo creo, ni siquiera en Centroamérica existen todas las especies de cactaceas mexicanas, y eso que hay corredores biologicos donde facilmente se podrian extender especies de cactaceas como estas.
@@noxtlicomitl2944 si Tienes Razon pero no Tenemos todo como ustedes ..pero hay mucho de este tipos como en este video aqui en hawaii
@@grvcie Mee too! What month of the year that would be? Same as Mexico in May?
I thought the Spanish brought it to Hawaii.
My grandma use to sell them and would always save some for me and my brother for when we went to visit her. I wish I could have this fruit so that I could share with the rest of my siblings the joy we had with her during those times
I live in Colorado and I came a cross this during a delivery to a small Mexican restaurant the owner said that he payed $200 for a small basket. Let me have a couple and it was amazing.
Where the springs???
I live near a town that dedicates almost exclusively to harvest them. So we see people with the baskets at the town center archways when in season. And sometimes I think $3 for 12 was expensive... I think thanks to this video I'll be more appreciative of the effort put into bringing them to my city.
0
The various colors of these fruits is amazing.
I remember eating this fruit when I was growing up in Guadalajara. They were so colorful and so good 👍!
Makes me homesick for Mexico to hear these great Mexican accents. Even though I only lived in Guadalajara for one year 😊 that's how great México is, it stays in your heart forever.
For some reason, here in Brazil Dragon fruit is called "Pitaya".... we write and pronounce the same
No viste con atencion el video 😂
Same in Spain...
Wn mexico tambien se llama pitaya
Pitaya is the general term for the fruits of several related cacti species. Dragon fruit is probably just the more common name for it in the US
@@shads2369 the beginning of the video, did you watch it? They explain pitaya and pitayha are two different fruits 💜
I grew up eating this. We had tones of these every year in our backyard. They’re delicious!
Same here
That is a hardworking man. Love this story
My family owns a ranch in Puebla and when I was a kid we used to go, it was hard to get there usually we walked over 2 hours to get there but it was worth it, we used to eat tons of this for free and sweet tunas too.
Man I remember these in Zacatecas when I would go visit my family with my father every year, these things were delicious.
They’re everywhere where my family is from in Mexico, we would go in my grandpa’s land and get 4-5 bucketfuls with the carrizo whenever me and my cousins felt like it or when we were told to, awesome childhood memories!!
I would eat these all the time when I was a child living in Mexico they are really good. I remember having them all the time. Crazy seeing a KZhead video on the fruit that was part of my humble upbringing in Mexico.
Bring us more more more. We love ❤ it. PITAYA. GOOD JOB YOULL
Y'all*
It’s been over 25 years since the last time I ate a pitaya 😢. They also grow in Michoacán which is where I’m from.
Great memories, I enjoyed this fruit as a little girl in the outskirts of Guadalajara. Pitayas a great fruit as well. Thank you for posting this video.
This is the BEST Pitaya video I’ve seen. Thank you for the amazing clarification on the difference between pitaya and dragon fruit. People confuse them all the time!
In the state of Michoacán Mexico, there is another variety that's called Pitire and is usually bigger and even more sweet and colorful
I remember as a child when my parents would go back to Mexico to visit family we would buy these already peeled from stands on the side of the road, very tasty!
Beautiful fruits! Great information.
Pitaya = Mexican Dragon Fruit!!! But the Dragon Fruit was originated from Mexico. Two decades+ ago, I read a small book in Vietnam and learnt that the French, during the colonial days, had imported the Dragon Fruit from Mexico to Vietnam. Something happened in Vietnam, whether it was the weather (humidity) or the soil, and it became a big hit and different from its counterparts in Mexico. The name Dragon Fruit came from the Vietnamese name "Thanh Long" or "Green Dragon", probably based on the shape of the leaves. When I told my sister about the French import, she was like "Oh, the Vietnamese propaganda makes it like Vietnam gave birth to this fruit!". Anyway, the fruit is so popular that it spreads to neighboring countries and then America. And now Mexico bases, at least in this video, its pitaya on the Dragon Fruit standard. Happy Green Dragon!
Pitayas can be found in many places in Latinamerica, however the taste is different. Once I was traveling trough San Luis Potosí state (MX) and I found some stalls selling pitayas, then I was excited to try them. Well, they looked the same but the flavor has not comparison to the ones from Jalisco state (and the ones from some part of Zacatecas state that borders with Jalisco). Later, I had the opportunity to talk to a scientist whom knew about the subject and he did mention that Soil was the difference and that soil gives those pitayas its specific flavor.
Indeed, I have tried Pitaya in Mexico and they are all blant and not sweet. Ive tried Pitaya from Peru where its from and its super sweet and more colorful
@@g.g.v5716 I have tried Pitayas in Perú (around Cañón de Colca) and they were sour, which I like it as well. By your comment I get that you have not tried Pitayas from the Jalisco-Zacatecas area (MX) those Pitayas are so delicious and sweet (not overly sweet).
No solo son las condiciones del suelo, también depende de la especie de cactus. En México hay una gran variedad de especies de cactaceas columnares a las que genericamente se les dice pitayao pitayo, y todas tienen un sabor diferente en su fruto.
There's a big difference between being a native plant and being planted somewhere else....(the Spanish and the French took our flowers and fruits everywhere)
Yes! They are also native to the southwest (USA) Pitaya is a very important fruit for native Americans too. Like corn. 😊
Variations of colour is fascinating!
Wow love this video. 👍
They are the best. I love them they taste delicious. For me it's way tastier than dragon fruit
9:17 this guy kinda looks like a millenial pablo escobar
My favorite fruit, so so delicious I wish it was more known
Las pitayas son simplemente una delicia 😋👍🏼🇲🇽
So yummy and healthy! Thanks for sharing! Have a great day
I’ve never heard of it but I’d love to try it.
You shoud man. Its delicious, Go to my home state some day and enjoy our fruits and food. Just be careful with the evil people out there.
They're so worth it. They're in my top 3 alongside mangoes and watermelon.
This fruit is not only in jalisco it is in southern mexico as well and they're are delicious!!!
My grandpa has them in his backyard (he lives in SoCal)
Tried these once in El rancho en tiempo de Pitayas. Absolutely top 3 Fruits I've ever ingested.
My grandparents have one of these trees in their backyard in Mexico , pitayas were my fave when I was little 😍
This is very similar to the horrisia fruit found in the horrisia cactus here in Australia. I live in rural QLD, if you drive along the roads or go to a farm you c an find hundreds of horrisia cacti that grow fluorescent pink skin and inside it looks identical to the pataya, with the same shape and size. It has what I assume is the same texture, very sandy, but is fairly flavourless with a sweet tang.
Most dragon fruit doesn't really have a strong flavor
So damn blessed to have my family originate from where these are grown. Anytime we go it’s during pitaya season. My mom would mash some up and serve it with vanilla ice cream sometimes. So amazing.
This is awesome. I consider myself a rare fruit expert but didn’t know about this one
Excellent!!!
Bro, this fruit exsist in Eritrea. Do you know how I know. I used to eat them all the time there. They were so cheap there. In matter of fact you could even pluck them by yourself. This fruit is the best tasteting fruit ever, it’s so sweet but not in a bad way. Which makes them so addicting.
They originate from central and south america like tomatoes, corn, and peppers, they were spread around the world when the Spanish started trading them around the world.
Personally, I've always preferred Tuna (the fruit that grows in the cactus named nopal) to Pitaya so I used to throw them out just because I don't like them, I didn't know it was so expensive, there are plenty of them where I live.
Just has some that my grandma carefully brought over from Guadalajara..truly a wonderful fruit !
I love dragonfruit and cactus pears. I’ll have to try these one day, if I ever go to Mexico!
I literally googled this like two weeks ago because I got a craving for it
Y es una fruta súper deliciosa
I Like how she said only found in Mexico and some parts of the USA u remember going down there once and my parent's brought back some and planted em here in texas and they given off some food fruits all these years I was surprised they survived so many freezes over the years
Pitayas grow in my grandparents back yard ❤️❤️❤️
We get these every time we go to Mexico our family give it to us for free but we know they cost money and always give them cash. They are very sweet
En Jalpa Zacatecas tambien hay ese tipo de pitaya 🏜 muy dulce y deliciosa 😋🌵
Las de jalpa son mejores
Si! Puro Jalpita la Bella!
I am so blessed that in my childhood. I had lots and lots of pitayas to eat thanks to my grandpa Jose and to my relatives who own pitayas fields. 😊
Everyone they feature is interviewed in their native language. Diversity is so beautiful!!
I found some in a Mexican market in Chicago for $10 a pound. They were perfectly ripe ! I was wondering about the logistics. The man who sold them to me said he had to get rid of them by the end of the day if not he had to make juice or marmalade out of the ones he didn't sell.
Guy has connections lol.
BCS Mèxico se venden en los pueblos ,en las fruterias ,en aguas frescas , en nieves ,en la carretera te puedes bajar y buscar tus propias pitayas,son deliciosas mas si se comen frias son un manjar.
Amazing!
These are so good I like the flavor and the seeds the most
I love fruits , but pitayas are something else, i love to see when people eat one for the first time. is just adicted eat pitayas.
if i were to visit mexico, i would def love to try some
Usually you can find them around april/may here in Guadalajara, you can buy around three big ones for a dollar and the sellers also sell pitaya punch, pitaya bread and pitaya ice cream
The distributor saying the fruit is delicate in one take and dropping the fruit into the bag in the next take 😂
My family is from Puebla, the desert area and we have pitayas. We have them both in May and September. LOVE THEM SO MUCH.
It’s expensive because they usually give one big crop a year. We eat them every June in Northwestern Mexico (but it’s from a different cactus than the one in the video.)
I bet its not the same flavor as the ones from Jalisco
So delicious had them as a kid
Back in my hometown Guanajuato Mexico my neighbors had pitallas and they were free and so yummy. The best type of dragon fruit.
So I watched this yesterday and now I found it at the local corner shop. I live in London. 7-8/10. Got this watermelon sweet, hint of Pineapple, sandy texture with lots of seeds. Nice
Unfortunately, unless your local corner shop in London got the variety grown in Jalisco, Mexico imported, received and sold you the fruit within 24 hours of it being picked, you are not having the 10/10 experience.
@@edxmon yes that’s what I noticed 😅 they were a bit smaller than the video, one day I’ll find fresher pitaya. But it was a good fruit I recommend
i love dragon fruits! but never knew pitaya. Hope to be able to taste one someday coz I am halfway around the world.
In southeast asian yea its called pitaya..fruit doesnt have spike only on tree.
Similar taste but a little bit sweeter than dragon fruits.
Yum. Will add to the list of things to eat before I die.
I absolutely love these. I would eat buckets of them when i would go to Mexico to visit my grandparents. I recently found some today at a mexican farmer's market and paid $20 for 3 pounds. So worth every single cent.
This fruit is legendary I want a whole box
My grandma got like 30 of those trees they just grow on the side of the road over there lol in Acapulco