Bergamot orange pear" or "prince of pears"). "Citrus bergamia" is a small tree that blossoms during the winter. The juice tastes less sour than lemon, but more bitter than grapefruit. The active ingredients in bergamot juice are neoeriocitrin, naringin, neohesperidin, ponceritin, melitidin, and mitrocin and 0.69% miriflin with 0% moisture brutieridin. Melitidin and brutieridin, only recently discovered, exist only in citrus bergamot and exhibit statin-like properties. Synephrine is not present in citrus bergamot. The bergamot orange is unrelated to the herbs known as bergamot or wild bergamot, "Monarda didyma" and "Monarda fistulosa", which are in the mint family, and are named for
Bergamot orange it has its roots. Citrus bergamot is commercially grown in southern Calabria (province of Reggio), southern Italy. It is also grown in southern France and in Côte d'Ivoire for the essential oil and in Antalya in southern Turkey for its marmalade. The fruit is not generally grown for juice consumption. However, in Mauritius where it is grown on a small-scale basis, it is largely consumed as juice by the locals. One hundred bergamot oranges yield about three ounces (85g) of bergamot oil. Adulteration with cheaper products such as oil of rosewood and bergamot mint has been a problem for consumers.