Pomegranate powder boasts high levels of phytonutrients including: vitamin CantioxidantspotassiumfolateWhen something becomes popular, it doesn’t take long for a big brand to jump on for the ride. With the rise in popularity of the pomegranate in American markets, Starbucks introduced a pomegranate frappuccino juice blend in the summer of 2006. The pomegranate, via Starbucks, had arrived in the national consciousness. But pomegranate (Punica granatum) has been used as a natural remedy for thousands of years. It is believed that pomegranate trees were planted as far back as 6,000 years ago – one of the earliest crops grown by man, along with olives, figs and grapes. Native to the Middle East, pomegranate trees grow naturally from Afghanistan to Iran to the Himalayan Mountains. Pomegranate moved with the migration of man and is now grown around the Mediterranean and across the US, especially in California and Arizona. The bright red fruit, the size of an orange or apple, contains a sack of seeds and a juicy pulp. The name comes from the Latin for “seeded apple”; in fact many historians believe that it was a pomegranate tree and not an apple tree that tempted Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. Throughout history, healers have held pomegranate in high esteem as a symbol of health and fertility; it was believed to have many medicinal uses. Today the pomegranate is held in high esteem for its antioxidant properties, due to a high concentration of polyphenols.