pumpkin seeds & pumpkin kernels

Pumpkin seeds? How about some pumpkin seeds or pumpkin kernels? Pumpkin seeds are shine skin, snow white, lady nail and may be consumed raw, roasted and salted, toasted, baked, with shell (in-shell) or without shell (shelled / hull-less pumpkin seed kernels, pepitas or pumpkin seed meats). Anyway you prefer pumpkin seeds, just a handful of roasted and salted ones may be a delicious snack food, well-suited to a healthy diet and nutrition like the Mediterranean diet.

Pumpkin seed! Did you ever wonder what the roots of the words pumpkin seeds are? Some even call them squash seeds or pepitas, when shelled. It may probably be not well known, but the word pumpkin is claimed to have originated from the Greek word "pepon", which means melon. The French nasalized the initial Greek word into "pompon", the British to "pumpion" and the American colonists finalized it to "pumpkin" (ref.: L. Owczarzak, 1986). Now, here is a good reason for one looking for pumpkin seeds to search first of all in Greece! Oddly enough, the Greek -apart from their native word "spória"- also use the word of Latin origin "passatempo", which means "passing time" (eating pumpkin seeds...).

Besides their undoubted nutrition value roasted and salted pumpkin seeds are also a great snack food and very popular in many countries such as Greece, Turkey, the rest Balkan countries, Spain, Italy, Mexico, etc. Western Europeans and Americans have relatively recently discovered the appeal of pumpkin seeds as a snack food, which are day-by-day getting more and more popular. Pumpkin seed kernels are also used in bakery products (e.g. bread, pies, etc.), cereals, salads and even in sweets.

The most popular edible varieties of pumpkin seeds are the following:

In-shell raw pumpkin seeds are usually offered in bulk packaging (e.g. 30kg bags) to pumpkin seeds roasters, as well as to food distributors, brokers, importers and wholesalers. Other packaging can also be arranged depending on the requirements of the customer.

Roasted and salted pumpkin seeds (in-shell and pepitas) are offered in the following packaging:

Pumpkin seeds come from the cucurbita family (cucurbita pepo) and are a natural, healthy and exceptionally nutritious food. The oil they contain, ranging 40-50%, is rich in unsaturated fatty acids. Their protein content ranges from 30 to 40%, whereas they present the highest concentration among all other seeds. They are also rich in vitamins E, C and A.

It has been observed that pumpkin seeds produce a soothing effect on prostate problems and also facilitate the normal function of the bladder.

Pumpkin seeds may be regarded as a health food of no or minimal processing (e.g. roasting), well-suited for a properly balanced diet. Dried fruits, nuts and seeds are placed at the middle of the food guide pyramid.

Antonio foods is the biggest pumpkin seed processor, roaster and exporter (B2B, Business to Business) in Greece, offering them both raw, as well as roasted and salted. Its specialization in the processing and roasting of pumpkin seeds is based upon a 40-year-long experience, which is being gathered every day since the foundation of the company.

Modern equipment is employed for cleaning, sizing and refining the raw product, which is then prepared and roasted in special roasters according to a secret traditional recipe, optimized over the years. Undeniably the finished product remains of yet unsurpassed quality, preserving the natural full flavor and the special aroma of freshly roasted pumpkin seeds.

The pumpkin seeds of Antonio foods comply with the strictest international regulations with respect to food safety (e.g. USFDA, German food legislation, etc.)