The Surge in Popularity of the Custard-Tasting Fruit

Ashoka Shivareddy hails from a farming lineage, yet eking out a livelihood in his family’s drought-susceptible region of Kolar, southern India, proved difficult. "The area receives rainfall of only 60 to 70 centimetres, and farmers dig borewells of up to 1,300 feet - most of their money goes into chasing water," he notes. Facing mounting financial losses, the family abandoned agriculture in 2005, relocating to Bengaluru to open a vegetable shop. Although Shivareddy eventually became an AI software engineer, his passion for agriculture persisted. In 2018, he sought to restore the family farm, adopting a more scientific methodology. "I was looking for a crop that could survive with very little water, grow with rainfall, and not depend heavily on pesticides," he explains. Custard apple appeared to be an ideal candidate. Resembling a large avocado with a knobbly exterior, the fruit features creamy, sweet flesh that resembles custard, giving it its name. Wild custard apple trees are common in Shivareddy’s region, where locals traditionally harvest and sell the produce. Recognizing the potential, Shivareddy optimized his yield by planting trees at higher densities than is standard. He also strategically selected three distinct varieties, each offering unique advantages. The strategy has yielded positive results. "Last year I produced around 20 tonnes. This year, it's about 25 tonnes. There is huge demand for custard apple in India and abroad," he reports.

Despite their resilience in arid conditions, cultivating custard apples presents significant hurdles. The traditional Balangar variety possesses a very short shelf life—sometimes merely three or four days—restricting sales opportunities. Additionally, it contains numerous seeds, which deters consumers; these seeds are also toxic, especially when crushed, and should not be ingested. Furthermore, the European Food Safety Authority has raised concerns regarding the safety of food supplements derived from custard apple. "Traditional varieties have excellent flavour, but they suffer from low pulp content, high seed count, and a very poor shelf life," states Dr. Sakthivel T, principal scientist at the Indian Institute of Horticulture Research (IIHR) in Bangalore. To address these issues, his team engineered a hybrid known as Arka Sahan, which boasts a one-week room-temperature shelf life, higher pulp content, and fewer seeds. Over the last two decades, this variety has gained traction across southern India. "The shift from 30% pulp recovery in wild varieties to 70% recovery in hybrids like Arka Sahan has effectively doubled the usable harvest for farmers without needing more land," Sakthivel explains. His team is currently focusing on improving processing techniques to extract pulp more efficiently for use in products such as milkshakes and ice cream. A key challenge they are tackling is the rapid browning of the pulp post-extraction. IIHR researchers are testing new equipment and methods to preserve the pulp’s milky hue for extended periods.

Maharashtra, a central Indian state, leads national custard apple production, contributing nearly one-third of the country’s total output. It is also the base for Navnath Malhari Kaspate, who has cultivated the fruit for decades. Kaspate traveled across India gathering seeds, returning to his farm to cross-pollinate them. "No one had really paid attention to custard apple or done research, so I decided to keep working on it. It takes 12 to 15 years to develop a new variety. This is not quick work - it's decades of experimentation," he says. His efforts culminated in the NMK-01 variety (named after his initials), renowned for its high productivity, which entered the market in 2014. "We now grow custard apple on nearly 50 acres, with yields of about 10 tonnes per acre. This improved variety which does not get spoiled has created opportunity for exports. We started exporting to Gulf countries, and even sent it to Europe, something that hadn't been done before at this scale," he says.

Source: BBC News Generated at: 2026-05-27 10:58:45 UTC