| SWFREC Range Sci. | Rangelands | Tropical Soda Apple | Saw-palmetto | Water Quality | Range Grasses |



Saw palmetto berries are picked by people either working independently or employed under contractual agreements between landowners and saw palmetto berry buyers. The pickers or landowners sell fresh berries to buyers, who process the berries for sale in European or U.S. markets. Processing of saw palmetto berries is described below.
Freshly picked green, orange or black saw palmetto berries are loaded into crates.
The berries are transported to a processing location by truck, and are weighed.
Workers transfer the fresh berries into drying bins.
The drying bins are equipped with blowers and/or heaters. The berries are dried either at anbient temperature or an elevated temperature (approximately 140 F).
The saw palmetto berries are dried after several days, but still contain pieces of stems, metal and other trash.
Workers load the dried saw palmetto berries into a large blower that removes most of the non-berry material.
The "cleaned" berries are either loaded into bags...
...or stored before shipment to European or United States companies. These companies prepare chemical extracts from ground saw palmetto berries, for use in pharmaceutical or herbal remedy products.

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