he Pineberry is a strawberry cultivar owned by breeder Hans de Jongh and commercialized by VitalBerry BV in Made, The Netherlands, and publicized in Germany in April, 2009, as Ananaserdbeere, or pineapple strawberry. It is a hybrid of Fragaria chiloensis, originating in South America and Fragaria virginiana, originating in North America. The fruit flesh can range from soft white to orange and is very fragrant with a slight pineapple flavor. The plant is disease resistant, but is not very profitable. Due to small-scale farming, small berry size and low yield crop, the Pineberry has been marketed to European restaurants, bakeries and wholesale markets. It is also grown in Belize.
The berry has been dubbed the Pineberry for the UK market where it will soon be available. White strawberries are not rare; garden supply stores in the UK have other white varieties of strawberry called White Soul and White Delight.
Pineberries were bred from a wild strawberry originating in South America, but was nearly extinct until 2003, when a group of Dutch farmers banded together to save the plant. The Pineberry is said to have the same genetic makeup as the common strawberry. When ripe, it is almost completely white, but with red seeds. A pineberry is smaller than a common strawberry, measuring between 15 to 23 mm. They are grown in greenhouses, growing on coir like other strawberries. Pineberries begin life as green berries, then become slightly white. By the time their deeply set seeds turn deep red, the white fruit is deemed ripe.
