Scientists have discovered how blueberries get their colour.
Scientists have discovered why blueberries are blue
The findings have revealed that tiny structures in the wax coating of the fruit contribute to their appearance despite the dark red pigment in the skin.
Dr. Rox Middleton, a research fellow at the University of Bristol, said: "The blue of blueberries can’t be ‘extracted’ by squishing – because it isn’t located in the pigmented juice that can be squeezed from the fruit.
"That was why we knew that there must be something strange about the colour. So, we removed the wax and re-crystallised it on a card and in doing so we were able to create a brand new blue-UV coating."
The experts explained that the wax coatings are found in other fruits - including damsons and juniper berries.
Dr. Middleton said: "It was really interesting to find that there was an unknown colouration mechanism right under our noses, on popular fruits that we grow and eat all the time.
"It was even more exciting to be able to reproduce that colour by harvesting the wax to make a new blue coating that no-one’s seen before.
"Building all that functionality of this natural wax into artificially engineered materials is the dream."