Kiwi | Description, Fruit, Nutrition, Species, & Facts | Britannica

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• Introduction
• Physical description
• Other species

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External Websites

• Royal Horticultural Society - How to grow kiwi fruit
• North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox - Chinese Gooseberry
• Frontiers - Vascular anatomy of kiwi fruit and its implications for the origin of carpels
• University of Wisconsin-Madison - Division of Extension - Kiwifruit, Actinidia spp.
• Healthline - 4 Health Benefits of Kiwi
• Cleveland Clinic - 6 Health Benefits of Kiwifruit
• National Center for Biotechnology Information - PubMed Central - The nutritional and health attributes of kiwifruit: a review
• Verywell Fit - Kiwi Nutrition Facts and Health Benefits

Britannica Websites Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students.

• kiwifruit - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up)

Ask the Chatbot a Question Also known as: Actinidia deliciosa, Chinese gooseberry, kiwifruit(Show More) Written by Melissa Petruzzello Melissa Petruzzello is Assistant Managing Editor and covers a range of content including plants, algae, and fungi; insects and spiders; and renewable energy and environmental engineering. She also handles... Melissa Petruzzello Fact-checked by Britannica Editors Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree.... Britannica Editors Last updated Nov. 26, 2025 •History Table of Contents Table of Contents Ask the Chatbot

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Bloomberg Australia: Weaker Kiwi a Winner for Aussies • Nov. 19, 2025, 10:18 PM ET (Bloomberg.com) Show less

kiwi, (Actinidia deliciosa), woody vine and edible fruit of the family Actinidiaceae. The plant is native to mainland China and Taiwan and is also grown commercially in New Zealand and California. The fruit has a slightly acid taste and can be eaten raw or cooked. The juice is sometimes used as a meat tenderizer. Raw kiwis are high in vitamins C and K.

Physical description

Kiwi vines are dioecious, meaning that male and female flowers are borne on separate individuals. Generally, one male plant can facilitate the pollination of three to eight female plants. The ellipsoidal kiwi fruit is a true berry and has furry brownish green skin. The firm translucent green flesh has numerous edible purple-black seeds embedded around a white centre. The deciduous leaves are borne alternately on long petioles (leaf stems), and young leaves are covered with reddish hairs.

Also called: kiwifruit or Chinese gooseberry (Show more) Related Topics: fruit Actinidia (Show more) On the Web: Healthline - 4 Health Benefits of Kiwi (Nov. 27, 2025) (Show more) See all related content

Other species

A number of other species are also grown for their fruits. Golden kiwi (Actinidia chinensis) has fewer hairs and yellower, sweeter flesh than A. deliciosa and is grown commercially in some places. Other kiwis include two cold-hardy species (A. arguta and A. kolomikta), Chinese egg gooseberry (A. coriacea), red kiwi (A. melanandra), silver vine (A. polygama), and purple kiwi (A. purpurea).

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