Vinay Kumar Sorake, Urban Development Minister, said on Saturday that the government will encourage processing and value addition of jackfruit in the State. He was speaking at the inaugural function of a two-day State-level jackfruit festival organised by the Brahmavar-based Krishi Vigyan Kendra and other organizations, here.
Mr. Sorake said that agricultural and horticultural universities should conduct more research on value addition to jackfruit. It was necessary to create more awareness among the farmers about the potential of jackfruit.
The health benefits of consumption of jackfruits were immense as it had vitamins and proteins.
This would also help in the growth of cottage industries based on jackfruit in the coastal districts. It was a tragedy that jackfruit was now being used as wood for making furniture, Mr. Sorake said.
Inaugurating the festival, K.M. Udupa, Managing Trustee of Bharatiya Vikas Trust, said that if proper value addition was done for jackfruit, it had immense potential to be exported to other countries. About five decades ago, jackfruit was an integral part of a farmer’s life in coastal districts.
But with the advent of packaged food, it had been relegated to background. But food items made out of jackfruit still had a lot of demand.
Another negative development was that a lot of fruit bearing trees in the forests had been felled and therefore, peacocks and monkeys were now living close to the fields of farmers than in forests.
Instead of planting shade-giving trees during its afforestation programmes, the Forest Department should plant fruit bearing trees such as jackfruit trees. “If fruit-bearing trees are planted, these wild birds and animals will remain in the forests,” he said.
In her introductory remarks, Jayalaxmi N. Hegde, Programme Coordinator of Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Brahmavar, said that farmers of the coastal districts were not taking as much interest in jackfruit as the farmers in other districts. Kalavati U.S., President of Kundapur Town Municipal Council, inaugurated the stalls. Dugge Gowda, Programme Director of Sri Kshetra Dharmasthala Rural Development Project, released a handbook.
Ganapati Sriyan, zilla panchayat member, B. Appanna Hegde, former MLA, P. Narayan Swami, Research Director of University of Agricultural and Horticultural Sciences, H.T. Gowda, Extension Director, were present.
Vinay Kumar Sorake has urged universities to conduct more research on value addition of jackfruit
