The fox tapeworm and other risks
Basically, only wild blueberries are affected by the danger of the fox tapeworm, as their fruits are usually harvested in the wild and at a height of less than 40 centimeters. Even if the risk of infection with the fox tapeworm pathogen through the consumption of wild fruits is negligible, the disease, which can sometimes result in death, justifies conscientious handling of the wild blueberries. Washing the fruit not only rinses off the invisible small eggs of the fox tapeworm, but also any spray or fertilizers that may be present from purchased or self-picked cultivated blueberries.
also read
- Collect blueberries for consumption
- Blueberries - season and harvest
- Freeze blueberries properly
Washing as an alternative to heating
The pathogen causing the fox tapeworm could also be killed by heating the blueberries to a temperature of over 60 degrees Celsius. In this regard, it would not actually be necessary to wash off blueberries with water before boiling them. However, washing the fresh berries does not do any harm if the following products are made from the collected and heated blueberries:
- jam
- jelly
- juice
Wash and dry the blueberries gently
For particularly gentle washing, the relatively delicate blueberries are placed in a sieve and then dipped into a second bowl full of water. Sometimes the berries get wet when they are used for freezing or drying. In this case, after the water bath, the blueberries are spread over a layer of kitchen paper and gently dabbed from above with a second layer of kitchen paper. This will also prevent the frozen fruit from combining into an inseparable lump.
Tips & Tricks
If you do not want to forego enjoying fresh blueberries while collecting in the forest, you can take a bottle of water with you into the forest and use it to briefly wash the fruit on site.
WK
