The persimmon is a fruit belonging to the Ebenaceae family. The fruit can be astringent if the ripening process occurs in the tree (caqui) , or not astringent if they ripen after harvest (persimmon). Due to this early harvest, the fruit undergoes a treatment to remove its astringency. The fruit is a deep orange and shaped like a tomato, without any seeds. The persimmon is often confused with the caqui persimmon, which are actually the same fruit, however; the persimmon is picked before fully ripened.