Dates

Date fruit was highly esteemed by ancient civilizations more than 5,000 years ago. Ancient Egyptians considered dates as a symbol of fertility, while the Romans and the Greeks used it to ornament their stately triumph pageants. Today, there are 600 varieties of dates grown in the Arabian Peninsula, Iran, Egypt, Iraq, Spain, Italy and the United States.

A good quality date fruit is a delicious fruit with a sweet taste and a fleshy texture. Dates have a high natural sugar content as well as providing dietary fibre, B vitamins, calcium and zinc.

Grapes

Grapes have a long and abundant history. While they've grown wild since prehistoric times, evidence suggests they were cultivated in Asia as early as 5000 BC. Grapes were also pictured in hieroglyphics in ancient Egyptian burial tombs.

Grapes are rich sources of vitamins A, C, B6 and folate in addition to essential minerals like potassium, calcium, iron, phosphorus, magnesium and selenium. Grapes contain flavonoids that are very powerful antioxidants, which can reduce the damage caused by free radicals and ageing!