# Purple Orange? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 21, 2006, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/purple-orange/340958 "2006-01-21T03:49:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![sailor\_titan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecb155/32.png) [@sailor\_titan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor_titan)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2006, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/purple-orange/340958/1 "2006-01-21T03:49:03Z")
Hello. I searched through the site but was unable to find an answer to this question. I also searched throughout the internet, likewise my search proved futile. My dilemma is this: My boyfriend recently bought a navel orange from the grocery store. Upon peeling, he found his orange had turned (or been produced) about 3/4, well, purple. It was a purple orange. Unable to find any answers on the vast internet, I have turned to the straight dope. Can anyone help me? ---
**Author:** ![groman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/73ab20/32.png) [@groman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/groman)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2006, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/purple-orange/340958/2 "2006-01-21T03:52:54Z")
Did it taste alright? Was it by any chance a tiny pumello or pink grapefruit? ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2006, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/purple-orange/340958/3 "2006-01-21T03:56:06Z")
Might be a hybrid of the [Moro orange](http://www.sunkist.com/contact/faqs.asp#15): > [@](#): > > **15. Why is the Moro Orange purple inside?** > The Moro Orange is sometimes called the “blood orange” because of its deep burgundy-colored flesh. It has been a favorite in Europe and North Africa for years. Italian and Spanish immigrants brought the fruit to America in the 1930s, but it is only recently that the fruit has flourished in western U.S. growing regions. The Moro variety is by far the most popular blood orange variety and it colors and thrives best in California’s sunny valleys. Like all Sunkist citrus, you will notice that the variety is indicated just above our name on the fruit sticker so that you know exactly what variety of citrus you are purchasing. ---
**Author:** ![Earthworm\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f07891/32.png) [@Earthworm\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earthworm_Jim)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2006, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/purple-orange/340958/4 "2006-01-21T04:12:02Z")
I was sure this was going to be some kind of “words that don’t rhyme” thread… ---
**Author:** ![Mirror\_Image\_egamI\_rorriM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e56c9b/32.png) [@Mirror\_Image\_egamI\_rorriM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mirror_Image_egamI_rorriM)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2006, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/purple-orange/340958/5 "2006-01-21T04:57:19Z")
It could be some kind of blood orange. Those are sort of a dark red/maroon color inside. ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2006, 7:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/purple-orange/340958/6 "2006-01-21T07:58:58Z")
And the Moro oranges I’ve had were not as tasty as regular Florida navel oranges. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2006, 8:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/purple-orange/340958/7 "2006-01-21T08:38:50Z")
I once tried to eat some red blueberries. They tasted like burning. ---
**Author:** ![medstar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f07891/32.png) [@medstar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/medstar)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2006, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/purple-orange/340958/8 "2006-01-21T21:42:48Z")
What a coincidence! I just finished eating a blood orange I got from Harris Teeter. It tasted like a regular orange with a slight difference that I can’t explain. It was very pretty and very delicious, though. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2006, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/purple-orange/340958/9 "2006-01-21T22:02:17Z")
> [@Walloon](#): > > And the Moro oranges I’ve had were not as tasty as regular Florida navel oranges. Really? Personally I seek them out. They’re not as sweet as many other varieties of orange, but I really like the sherberty zing.