Wonder fruit that can help fight food crisis

A tree that has been growing for over 10 years on a farm belonging to an agriculturalist at the Coast is lately generating a lot of interest among researchers.

The breadfruit tree, according to the researchers, has varied uses that only a few people know about, underplaying its economic importance.

Its fruit can be ground into flour and used to make candies, pancakes and crisps.

According to Kikambala farmer Moezali Mohammed, the breadfruit tree has been on his farm for years, but he never gave it any attention until a friend from the Seychelles, who was visiting, saw it.

“The tree has several huge fruits. He told me they were edible. At first I thought it was a joke. I then saw him eat and did the same and found that its taste was similar to that of cassava,” Mohammed recalls.

He does not know how the tree ended up on his farm.

“For all the time, only goats have been eating the fruits and leaves.”

The breadfruit (Artocarpus Altilis) has lumpy green flesh and a potato-like texture. It can be served as part of a main meal or turned into flour.

The fruit, research shows, is a source of carbohydrates and proteins. 

The protein in the fruit has a high proportion of amino acids. Each breadfruit weighs about 3kg and can provide the needed carbohydrate portion of a meal for a family of five.

GREAT POTENTIAL

Mtwapa Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organisation director Michael Njunie says farmers and other agriculturalists should work with research institutions to popularise breadfruit for its great potential.

“Those who have seedlings should give out several trees to different centres and allow them to be propagated if its potential is to be known scientifically and the crop widely adopted.”

The researcher notes that across the world, particularly in the Pacific Islands, the breadfruit has been acclaimed for its huge potential to alleviate food insecurity.

However, little can be said about the fruit locally because some of those who have it do not know what it is.

He asked anyone growing the trees to come forward.

“If we get other farmers, this may help us promote the fruit,” he says.

Roseldya Nanjala, a resident of Budalang’i, Busia County, is among the few people who are now cultivating the breadfruit on small-scale.

Nanjala got her first batch of 10 seedlings this year from a PhD student at the University of Nairobi’s Wangari Maathai Institute, who had imported some 500 seedlings from Germany.

Quincy Burgess sells his four-month seedlings at an average of Sh2,000.

The tree matures in three years, and then begins flowering and producing fruits. Breadfruit seedlings require plenty of water in the initial stages.

Burgess notes that the breadfruit resembles a jack fruit in many aspects.

“My research at the Coast has identified only five trees in Mtwapa. At maturity, a tree can yield between 150 and 300 fruits every year.”

TACKLE FOOD INSECURITY

Burgess says the breadfruit can help tackle the serious national food insecurity problem.

“The tree has a lifespan of 50 to 100 years and can grow well in Garissa, Voi, Athi River and Mtwapa, and parts of western Kenya.”

According to the researcher, a breadfruit has a high carbohydrate content, is low in fat and has more potassium than 10 bananas.

The fruit is also rich in vitamins and is a good source of protein.

The pests and diseases that attack the fruit include white flies, mealy bugs, snails and slugs, botrytis and mildews.