Jackfruit not so sweet for vendors

Supply and demand

Jackfruits piled up on important junctions of the city spreading aroma, is a common scene during the season. But with less yield this year, there is a great demand for this fleshy fruit, and the Kerala traders are targeting the Chamarajanagar market.

The fruits are being sold at Doddarayapete gate on NH-209 where the roadside vendors make good money, as these fruits has turned out to be a profitable business for them during the season. But the yield is said to be less this year due to drought, pest attack and other reasons.

There are a number of farms where tasty jackfruits are grown near Suvarnavathi River in the taluk.

 There is also great demand for fruits grown in Alur, Hebbasur, Koodlur, Homme, Kotamballi, Arkalwadi, Bisalawadi and the traders buy the fruit directly from the farmers, for selling it on the roadsides.

The district is also famous for Chandra halasu (red colour); white and yellow coloured varieties. With less yield this year, fruits are being brought from Wayanad, Kerala. The fruits from this region are said to be fibrous and less tasty. Hence, the traders from Kerala are also making a beeline to the district to buy jackfruits.

Demand for seeds

The seeds of the fruits are also used for cooking. Each kilo of the seeds are sold at Rs 20 and the forest department too shows interest in buying quality seeds. About 1,000 seeds are sold at Rs 250.

While the medium sized fruits are sold at Rs 50 to 80, the larger fruits are priced Rs 100 to 150. Each piece of fruit is sold at Rs one.

But the vendors are facing problem with the district experiencing rain as the fruits that are piled up on the roads rot soon.