Carica papaya
CARICA PAPAYA (Papaya)
Caricaceae | Culinary
Caricaceae
The Caricaceae are a family of flowering plants in the order Brassicales, found primarily in tropical regions of Central & South America & Africa.
Native To:
Central & South America
Plant Status:
Secure
Plant Habit:
Shrub or tree, 5 to 10 m
Plant Habitat:
Tropical climate
Cultural Uses
Papaya is a popular food for locals in Hawaii, as well as in some Asian countries. Usually, once the fruit is ripe, it’s cut in half, its seeds are removed, then the fruit is scooped out from the skin like a bowl. Green, or unripe, papaya is shredded and used in green papaya salad. The leaves also contain a protein that can tenderize meat.
Interesting Fact
After a virus called papaya ringspot completely devastated Hawaiʻi’s papaya crops in the 1990s, scientists worked to engineer a genetically modified (GMO) papaya that would be resistant to disease. Nowadays, most papayas grown in Hawaiʻi are genetically modified.