Popular summer fruit has an edible part most people throw away, USDA reveals

When most people are done eating the sweet, juicy flesh of a watermelon, they toss the rind.

But the U.S.

Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently added an official nutrition profile for watermelon rind, providing new information about its nutritional value while highlighting a potential way to reduce food waste.

A one-third-cup serving of raw, seedless watermelon rind contains 10 calories, 1 gram of dietary fiber, 140 milligrams of potassium and 4 milligrams of vitamin C, according to the USDA.

While the rind is edible, it is not necessarily a replacement for the fruit's nutrient-dense flesh.

POPULAR GROCERY STAPLE COULD TAKE HIT AS CALIFORNIA FACES MAJOR SUPPLY VULNERABILITY Watermelon rind nutrition has previously been analyzed by other institutions around the world, but not according to the USDA's standardized requirements, Stephanie Barlow, senior director of communications for the Florida-based National Watermelon Promotion Board (NWPB), told Fox News Digital.

The NWPB funded the watermelon rind analysis and spearheaded the effort to add watermelon rind to the USDA's FoodData Central database, Barlow said.

"Most consumers do not know the rind is edible," she said.

"Plain and simple." A watermelon is, on average, 70% flesh and 30% rind, and 62% of consumers throw out the rind, according to the NWPB's 2023 Watermelon Consumer Usage Study.

SEAWEED-BASED COATING COULD KEEP STRAWBERRIES FRESH FOR DAYS WITHOUT REFRIGERATION, STUDY FINDS Barlow said that amounts to an average of five pounds of rind that could instead be used in a wide range of recipes .

"The watermelon rind is an interesting addition to the nutrition conversation, especially because it is a part of the fruit we typically throw away," Lisa Young, registered dietitian and adjunct professor of nutrition at New York University, told Fox News Digital.

"Eating the rind can be a simple way to get a little more nutrition while reducing food waste." Young added that she wouldn't call watermelon rind a nutritional powerhouse or suggest eating it instead of the juicy flesh.

"The flesh provides important nutrients and antioxidants, including lycopene," she said.

"Rind is tougher and less sweet, so preparation matters. … Just be sure to wash the watermelon well before cutting and eating the rind." CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR OUR LIFESTYLE NEWSLETTER As more consumers look for ways to stretch their food budgets and use food in new ways, interest in watermelon rind recipes and the rind's versatility has increased year after year, Barlow said.