“What I’m trying to do is create a crop that farmers can actually make some money on,” Mr. Quinn said as he strode along his rows of black currant bushes.

He has helped other farms start black currant crops. And he imports black currants for his nationally distributed juice, CurrantC — a way to “prime the pump,” he said, by introducing Americans to the charms of black currants.

For 100 years, black currants were nationally banned from commercial cultivation in the United States, since the fruit, as a vector of white pine blister rust, was considered a threat to the American logging industry. Working with field experts, Greg Quinn, CEO of The Currant Co. in Staatsburg, N.Y., was instrumental in having the ban lifted, and one result

BLACKCURRANTS may hold the key to help slow the progression of Alzheimer’s Disease, scientists claimed yesterday.

"The Currant Co....has a line of black currant-based beverages that could be the "next big thing".  According to President Greg Quinn, a recent study....found black currants to be the "no 1 fruit for the complete range of nutraceuticals as compared to the 20 most popular fruits - including pomegranate."

"The take-home message from this research, according to its co-author Ronald Eccles, director of the Common Cold Centre at Cardiff University, which sponsored the study, is that "hot fruit cordial drinks provide immediate and sustained relief from most cold and flu symptoms, especially cough and sore throat." "In Finland, there is a common belief that hot black currant juice is an effective remedy against a cold..." "Purple black in color and an excellent source of vitamin C, black currants were used in the United
Kingdom as a food source of vitamin C during World War II, when oranges were hard to come by.

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/ColdandFluNews/story?id=6451493&page=1

"Blackcurrant is not just hyperbole: it exudes substance. It is packed with nutrients and taste. And, medical scientists are currently researching its benefits toward inflammation, eye, brain and cardiovascular health...Blackcurrants have been used to affect human health since at least the Middle Ages in Europe and long history in Russia and North America as well." "Blackcurrant is back. And it is easy to see why. Sporting three to four times the vitamin C as oranges, providing a rich source of beneficial anthocyanins and containing twice the antioxidant power of blueberries, this berry already looks good. Factor in it being a great source of potassium, iron, magnesium, zinc, B2, B6 and fiber with a sweet and tangy flavor profile and it's starting to look great. Then when one takes into account burgeoning medical research surrounding its health benefits, blackcurrant looks downright super."

Scientists at SCRI are working on a project that is trying to identify bioactive compounds in blackcurrants thought to be capable of reducing the risk of progression of Alzheimer's disease.

http://ukpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5i2BYwKUxTi8eezqB9W6oR1pvodmw

Scottish scientists are working on ways of using blackcurrant waste to help reduce the risk of Alzheimer's disease. The Scottish Crop Research Institute (SCRI), near Dundee, aims to develop food ingredients from protective compounds found in the fruit.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/tayside_and_central/7725354.stm

Scottish scientists are seeking to create super blackcurrants and spin-off snacks which could help prevent dementia.

http://www.theherald.co.uk/search/display.var.
2467626.0.blackcurrant_snacks_may_help_to_treat_alzheimers.php

Compounds in blackcurrants could reduce the risk of Alzheimer's disease, research shows.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/3448487/Blackcurrants-could-reduce-the-risk-of-
Alzheimers.html