{"id":624069,"date":"2026-08-06T19:22:16","date_gmt":"2026-08-06T19:22:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/624069\/"},"modified":"2026-08-06T19:22:16","modified_gmt":"2026-08-06T19:22:16","slug":"a-new-reason-to-use-the-whole-watermelon-usda-adds-official-nutrition-profile-for-watermelon-rind","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/624069\/","title":{"rendered":"A New Reason to Use the Whole Watermelon: USDA Adds Official Nutrition Profile for Watermelon Rind"},"content":{"rendered":"

WINTER SPRINGS, Fla. \u2014 Watermelon\u2019s often-overlooked rind is getting its due. The fruit\u2019s outer layer now has an official nutrition profile in USDA FoodData Central<\/a>, giving registered dietitians, researchers, recipe developers and other food professionals access to standardized nutrition data for a part of the fruit<\/a> that has long been underutilized. The new listing makes it easier to evaluate watermelon rind in recipes, nutrition education and meal planning while encouraging greater use of the whole watermelon.<\/p>\n

According to the new USDA nutrient profile, a 1\/3-cup serving (50 grams) of diced raw watermelon rind contains just 10 calories and provides 1 gram of dietary fiber, along with 140 mg of potassium and 4 mg of vitamin C. While the rind isn\u2019t intended to replace the nutrient-rich flesh, the new data demonstrates how it can complement watermelon\u2019s nutritional value while providing another delicious way to enjoy more of the whole fruit. Whether blended into smoothies and juices, shredded into slaws, quick-pickled or added to stir-fries and relishes, watermelon rind offers a simple way to reduce food waste while making the most of every watermelon.<\/p>\n

Watermelon flesh is an excellent source of vitamin C (25% DV), a good source of vitamin B5 (10% DV), and also provides vitamin A (8% DV), vitamin B6 (8% DV) and potassium (6% DV), along with naturally occurring lycopene. At about 92% water and just 80 calories per two-cup serving, watermelon is a refreshing, nutrient-dense fruit that supports healthy eating patterns.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve long encouraged consumers to use the whole watermelon, from the sweet flesh to the versatile rind,\u201d said Megan McKenna, Sr. Director of Marketing & Foodservice at the National Watermelon Promotion Board. \u201cThe new USDA nutrient profile gives registered dietitians and other health professionals the standardized data they need to confidently incorporate watermelon rind into recipes and nutrition guidance, helping consumers get even more value from every watermelon they bring home.\u201d<\/p>\n

The new USDA listing builds on a growing body of research highlighting watermelon\u2019s role in a healthy diet. An analysis of NHANES data published in\u00a0Nutrients<\/a>\u00a0found that children and adults who consume watermelon have higher overall diet quality and greater intakes of dietary fiber, magnesium, potassium, vitamins A and C, lycopene and other carotenoids than non-consumers, while also consuming less added sugar and saturated fat. Although these results are promising, further research is needed, and the findings cannot be translated across all populations.<\/p>\n

To learn more about watermelon nutrition, recipes and research, visit\u00a0www.watermelon.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The National Watermelon Promotion Board<\/strong> (NWPB), based in Winter Springs, Florida, was\u00a0established\u00a0in 1989 as an agricultural promotion group to promote watermelon in the United States and in various markets abroad. Funded through a self-mandated industry assessment paid by more than 700 watermelon producers,\u00a0handlers\u00a0and importers, NWPB mission is to increase consumer demand for watermelon through promotion,\u00a0research\u00a0and education programs.\u00a0For\u00a0additional\u00a0information, visit\u00a0www.watermelon.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u2014National Watermelon Promotion Board<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"WINTER SPRINGS, Fla. \u2014 Watermelon\u2019s often-overlooked rind is getting its due. The fruit\u2019s outer layer now has an…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":624070,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[277],"tags":[18,9219,135,19,17,508,63982,263618,50659],"class_list":["post-624069","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nutrition","tag-eire","tag-fruit","tag-health","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-nutrition","tag-nutrition-and-health","tag-specialty-crops","tag-usda"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ie\/117050195601975353","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/624069","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=624069"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/624069\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/624070"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=624069"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=624069"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=624069"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}