Description: Ananás dos Açores / São Miguel PDO is a pineapple of the species Ananas comosus (L.) Merr., ‘Cayenne’ variety, produced in a traditional way and presenting specific sensorial, chemical and organoleptic characteristics.
Production method: Ananás dos Açores / São Miguel PDO is cultivated in classical greenhouses, traditional of the island of São Miguel, mainly located in the hotter and sunnier south coast. All stages of cultivation must occur in ‘hot beds’, prepared using ‘leiva’ (small pieces of soil biomantle attached to a thin layer of soil), firewood, previously used ‘old soil’, sawdust and wood chips. The plantation density is between 33 000 and 45 000 plants per hectare. Ananás dos Açores / São Miguel PDO pineapples are harvested two years after plantation.
Special features: Ananas dos Açores / São Miguel PDO is cylindrical, slightly spindle-shaped, its crown representing 1/3 to 1/4 of the fruit length. At full maturation, the epidermis is golden to straw yellow with carmine pigmentation and the pulp is translucent yellow. It has a bitter-sweet flavor and a pleasant aroma.
Production area: São Miguel island.
History: Brought from Brazil by the Portuguese navigators, pineapple was introduced in São Miguel in the 17-18th centuries. Initially regarded as a botanical curiosity, its production gained prominence from the 19th century onwards, mainly through the efforts of generations of farmers who, persistently, perfected the cultivation techniques that convey unique characteristics to the pineapples thus produced. The production of Ananás of the Azores / São Miguel PDO is nowadays of considerable importance to the agricultural income of the region.
Product specification (pdf)
Producer group
APROAN - Associação dos Produtores de Ananases dos Açores
Control and certification body
IAMA, IPRA. – Instituto de Aimentação e Mercados Agrícolas
Publication in EU official journal
Regulamento (CE) n.º 1107/96 da Comissão – L148 21.06.1996
Publication in the Portuguese official journal
Despacho D/SRAP/94/2 – 01.02.1994