In Vietnam, jackfruit is not only grown in home gardens but also is a commercial crop, or grown in orchards in many localities. There are dozens of different types of jackfruit such as Thai jackfruit, turmeric jackfruit, marang, honey jackfruit, chewy jackfruit. Some growers in the southwest plant a strange jackfruit variety with red flesh that regularly sells out though it is costly. One grower said that he sells this jackfruit wholesale for 90,000 VND/kg, but still does not have enough to supply.
The breed is not commonly grown. In the southwest, the first and also the most famous jackfruit garden is owned by farmer Hai Trang (Nguyen Minh Trang), in Vi Dong commune, who discovered this type of jackfruit by chance during his visit to a fair in Can Tho in 2003. At that time, he was advised that it was a super-fast fruiting jackfruit which turns ‘burnt brick’ red with thick flesh, is pleasantly sweet, has fragrant taste and is quite crispy once it is ripe.
Hai Trang decided to buy 50 jackfruit roots for pilot planting around the house. There was only one tree that was pest-resistant, grew swiftly and produced more than a dozen red-fleshed fruits weighing 15-17kg each was kept for propagation.
In Hanoi, whole red fleshed jackfruit is sold for up to 250,000 VND/kg. Although its price is four times more expensive than the price of Thai raw jackfruit, the red fleshed jackfruit is still highly sought. Ms. Doan Hai Yen, owner of a fruit store in Thanh Xuan (Hanoi), said that most jackfruits that arrive are just enough to pay back for pre-orders, and there are rarely enough red fleshed jackfruits available for sale at her store.
[ VND 100 = €0.0035 ]
Source: vietnamnet.vn