Reviving Farming in Drought-Prone Kolar
Ashoka Shivareddy hails from a family of farmers in the drought-affected district of Kolar in southern India. The region receives only 60 to 70 centimetres of rainfall annually, compelling farmers to dig borewells as deep as 1,300 feet, with much of their income spent on securing water.
"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,"
Due to increasing losses, Shivareddy's family abandoned farming in 2005 and relocated to Bengaluru, where they opened a vegetable shop. Although Shivareddy became an AI software engineer, his passion for farming remained.
In 2018, he resolved to revive the family farm using a scientific approach. He sought a crop resilient to minimal water, capable of growing with rainfall, and requiring little pesticide use.
Choosing Custard Apple for Sustainable Farming
Custard apple emerged as a suitable choice. This knobbly fruit, roughly the size of a large avocado, has creamy, sweet flesh reminiscent of custard, which inspired its name.
Custard apple trees grow wild in Shivareddy's region, with locals harvesting and selling the fruit at markets. This presented a promising opportunity.
To optimize yield, Shivareddy planted trees more densely than typical farms and selected three varieties, each offering distinct benefits. This 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,"
Despite custard apples’ drought tolerance, cultivation challenges persist. The traditional Balangar variety has a very short shelf life—sometimes only three to four days—limiting sales options. It also contains many seeds, reducing consumer appeal.
"Traditional varieties have excellent flavour, but they suffer from low pulp content, high seed count, and a very poor shelf life,"
explains Dr Sakthivel T, principal scientist at the Indian Institute of Horticulture Research (IIHR) in Bangalore.
Hybrid Varieties Improve Shelf Life and Yield
Dr Sakthivel’s team developed a hybrid variety named Arka Sahan, which can last up to a week at room temperature and features fewer seeds and increased pulp content. Over the past two decades, this variety has spread throughout 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,"
Dr Sakthivel’s team is also exploring improved processing methods to extract pulp for wider use in processed foods such as ice cream and milkshakes.
One current challenge is that custard apple pulp browns rapidly after extraction. Researchers at IIHR are testing new equipment and techniques to maintain the pulp’s milky colour for longer durations.
Maharashtra’s Role in Custard Apple Production
The central Indian state of Maharashtra leads custard apple production, contributing nearly one-third of the national output. Navnath Malhari Kaspate has been cultivating the fruit there for decades.
Kaspate traveled extensively across India to collect seeds, which he cross-pollinated on his farm. Noting the lack of research on custard apples, he committed to long-term experimentation.
"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,"
His efforts produced the NMK-01 variety, named after his initials, which is high yielding and was commercialized 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,"
Kaspate continues to develop new varieties focusing on improved appearance and disease resistance.
Exporting Custard Apples: Challenges and Innovations
Manoj Kumar Barai exports the NMK-01 variety to markets including the US, UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Europe.
"For exports we prefer the NMK-01 variety because it has better shelf life, thicker skin, more pulp, and a sweeter taste compared to others,"
Exporting such a delicate fruit requires meticulous planning. Every stage—from harvesting to transport, airport transfer, flights, and customs clearance—must be precisely coordinated.
"Custard apple is highly sensitive to heat, and even short exposure can reduce its shelf life,"
Barai explains that road transport is often conducted overnight to mitigate heat exposure. In Maharashtra, temperatures can reach 40 degrees Celsius, with transit temperatures between 30 and 35 degrees Celsius, conditions unfavorable for the fruit.
The fruit undergoes pre-cooling for five hours before packing and is transported in refrigerated vans, then stored in cold rooms prior to air freight. Special corrugated boxes have been designed to protect the fruit and maintain cool temperatures.
Increasingly, custard apple is exported as pulp or powder, which Barai describes as a "revolution" for the export industry. The pulp is utilized by international ice cream manufacturers, bakeries, and "pulp-shot" cafes.
Although pulp storage and transport require maintaining -18°C, this method is more cost-effective than air freight and enables large volumes to be shipped over weeks without spoilage.
Future Prospects and Technological Adoption
Back in Kolar, Shivareddy aims to expand his business by selling both pulp and whole custard apples. He plans to establish a pulp processing unit to utilize unsold portions of his crop.
However, pulp extraction and chilling to -20°C demand significant investment in equipment, representing a shift in mindset for many farmers.
"Custard apple sits in a strange gap. Demand is rising, but the farming hasn't gone high-tech as the crop is naturally hardy. It grows in poor soil, needs very little water, and survives on rainfall. Farmers don't need expensive irrigation, sensors, or controlled environments so tech adoption stays low,"
Shivareddy observes, highlighting the unique challenges and opportunities in custard apple cultivation.
