With pineapple consumption continually on the rise due to increased availability from emerging growing locations, the MD2 hybrid was developed to satisfy a market looking for exceptional sweetness as well as uniformity and consistency in size and ripeness. In 1961, the Pineapple Research Institute (PRI) in Hawaii was charged with the responsibility of producing a variety that could be grown and accepted for fresh consumption. However, the mind-set remained on Smooth Cayenne and processing and no new varieties were tested except for small field trials.
