Compared to your average apple, the American pawpaw is a fruit to behold.
Asimina Triloba, commonly known as the pawpaw, cannot be found on the shelves of a corner store or supermarket. Instead, lovers of the pawpaw must harvest their own fruit or seek out other pawpaw enthusiasts who may just be right around the corner.
The 27th annual Ohio Pawpaw Festival in Albany welcomed residents from Athens and other cities this weekend to honor the fruity delight. Since its opening in 1999, the Pawpaw Festival has remained a neighborhood staple.
Chris Chmiel, festival founder, said the event is a chance to educate the masses on the delicious pawpaw fruit.
“It is like a seasonal ritual for families,” he said. “We have a little bit of stuff for everybody … educational stuff, beer and music. Good vibes.”
For 27 years, the festival has offered pawpaw-inspired food and drink, as well as live entertainment.
Dave Moore, a horticulturist from West Virginia, has been growing and grafting rare fruit, including pawpaws, for more than 40 years. Moore said the pawpaw is special and the festival celebrations have stood strong for decades.
“In my opinion, it's the most flavorful, delicious and wild fruit on the continent or in North America,” Moore said. “It’s the largest fruit and it's so perishable that you just won't find it in any of the stores. It's starting to come into the farmers' markets, but it has such a short shelf life that it's just not a commodity.
Some local farms, including Five Springs Farm, located at 12691 Dutch Creek Rd. in Athens, sell the fruit for $15 to $30, depending on the size and quantity. However, with the pawpaw not being widely available, the festival offers a chance for connection, allowing enthusiasts of the fruit and those curious to come together and socialize.
“It’s not about the money to me,” Moore said. “I like to talk to people about fruit trees and what I grow … there’s nothing like talking to neighbors and finding out what works, it’s a community.”
Moore is not the only business owner who enjoys the festival weekend. Sarah Tucker and her husband, Trent, who have been operating their beekeeping and dessert business in Chesterhill, Ohio, for 20 years, sell their goods year-round both at the Athens farmer’s market and the Pawpaw Festival.
Sarah, who runs the booth, said she appreciates the opportunities the festival provides for small businesses, as pawpaw weekend delivers good sales prospects and attracts locals and people from other states.
“I've had people from Iowa buy honey and somebody from Michigan buy honey,” Tucker said. “This is a really good weekend … supports the bees, (we) have a chance to outlet and be able to get more honey to the people.”
While local farms and vendors were given a chance to sell to the greater community and grow, they are not the only ones who benefit from the Pawpaw Festival. Adam D'Angelo, Project Pawpaw’s director of research, said festivals are critical in supporting social and environmental causes, including his own.
Project Pawpaw is a crowd-funded plant breeding and research project for pawpaws, aiming to develop a new high-value, low-input crop for small farmers.
“Last year we planted 750 trees in New Jersey,” D’Angelo said. “This year, we planted 1,000 trees in Wisconsin. It's all been funded through the sale of merchandise at pawpaw festivals, (including) the Ohio one and other ones around the country.”
D’Angelo emphasized how pawpaws present an opportunity for farmers to diversify their operations. Project PawPaw strives to develop new varieties of pawpaw that perform better, helping small farmers remain economically viable in a world of consolidation.
“They already taste great,” he said. “They grow really well, and they really present an opportunity for small farmers. It's easier to put in a smaller planting of pawpaws in addition to a farm than it is to do that with apples.”
