Blueberries (Vaccinium sect. Cyanococcus), cranberries (Vaccinium macrocarpon), and huckleberries (Vaccinium membranaceum Dougl.) are but a few kinds of berries under Vaccinium, a genus characterized by shrubs or dwarf-shrubs under the heath family. They are commonly found and are commercially grown on the North American continent because of the colder climate there.
But did you know that blueberries grow naturally in the Philippines too?
A new species was even discovered here in Cebu back in 2018 by Sir Val Salares under the University of San Carlos’ Department of Biology, alongside his team of researchers from other universities. The team dubbed this new species Vaccinium cebuense, and it is quite an interesting find.
The new species was discovered during the exploration of Sir Salares and his team on the Nug-as forest, located in Alcoy within the southern portion of Central Cebu. This was for Co’s Digital Flora of the Philippines which attempts to catalog and document all flora found throughout the Philippines as deforestation across the country becomes frequent. In their exploration, they encountered a plant by the side of the main road in Barangay Nug-as. It was discovered to be a new species, of which they would later classify in their research paper.
Vaccinium cebuense’s young fruit and flower
(Copyright © 2018 by P.B. Pelser & J.F. Barcelona)
Their research goes into detail, formally describing the plant from the bark of the plant to the tips of its leaves, and everything in between. They also compare it to different known species of Vaccinium, particularly the Melasian species of Vaccinium, elaborating on what makes it a unique species.
With all this being said, it’s important to recognize that there’s barely any research that’s been made on V. cebuense, and there is still a lot to uncover about this plant. For all we know, a discovery might be made about the plant that could be of significance to us, be it industrially, medically, or even commercially, etc.
One interesting aspect of the plant to look into is its potential antioxidant properties. Vaccinium plants are purported to have very high antioxidant content, a class of molecules that slow down or even stop the process of oxidative stress, which leads to certain diseases and even aging. It would be interesting to see if this idea applies to V. cebuense as well. If it does happen to be the case, we would have a locally sourced fruit that is high in antioxidants and generally considered to be healthy when consumed moderately.
Eating a balanced and nutritious diet is an integral to healthy life, and there is no denying that the genus Vaccinium possessing high levels of antioxidants makes them part of that healthy necessity. Because V. cebuense is under the Vaccinium genus, it may also possess the same beneficial antioxidants compared to other fruits. But we would never truly know until tests and experiments are done. Would you be willing to take up that challenge?
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