In Kerala's rubber-growing belt, here's why the rambutan fruit is raising hopes for new farming future

Every June as the monsoon clouds gather over central Kerala patches of the states rubbergrowing landscape turn bright redNot because of flowers but because thousands of rambutan trees burst into fruit their hairy crimson shells hanging in thick clusters from branches that until a few years ago would have yielded latex insteadFor decades rubber shaped the economy of Keralas midland districts and other regions where the crop flourishedBut falling prices labour shortages and changing weather have left many small farmers searching for another source of income Increasingly they believe they have found oneOnce considered an exotic fruit seen only in home gardens rambutan has quietly grown into one of Keralas fastestexpanding commercial fruit cropsThe change is most visible in the rubbergrowing districts of Pathanamthitta Kottayam Ernakulam Thrissur Wayanad and Idukki where young farmers are leasing land and planting rambutan orchardsAccording to the Rambutan Mangosteen Farmers Organisation the crop now covers nearly 25000 acres across Kerala producing around one lakh tonne this season and generating an estimated Rs 1000 crore in revenueBut farmers say the industrys future depends on much more than cultivationThey want the government to help them build mEarkets beyond south India strengthen coldchain logistics promote Kerala rambutan across the country and abroad encourage valueadded products support Farmer Producer Organisations and counter misinformation that surfaces on social media during every harvest seasonFor M C Saju president of the Rambutan Mangosteen Farmers Organisation at Thirumarady near Koothattukulam rambutan represents an opportunity that Keralas farmers cannot afford to ignoreAs for cultivation I have grown rambutan in two different ways One is on one hectare of land with a spacing of 20 by 20 That is intensive farming Then on another hectare I have planted it with a spacing of 40 by 40 They are two different methods It can be cultivated in both ways he saidAccording to Saju the crop starts yielding from the third year and continues producing for decadesProduction starts in the third year If a tree produces about 30 kg in the third year it will produce about 50 kg in the fourth year and about 70 kg in the fifth year That is how its production increases As the years go by the yield keeps increasing and can reach up to 300 kg per treeThe economics he says are attractive for small farmersIf the price is even Rs 100 per kg a yield of 300 kg means an annual income of Rs 30000 from a single tree That is the special feature of this cropSaju believes rambutan has advantages that many traditional crops no longer enjoyOne thing I have noticed is that rambutan has the potential to become a new cash crop for Kerala Whatever crop we cultivate on one hectare the maximum earning capacity is usually around Rs 25 lakh to Rs 3 lakh Rubber does not reach that level even if the price goes up to Rs 300Another farmer from Ernakulam district said rambutan had transformed the economics of his farmThis season I got Rs 14 lakh from one hectare of rambutan My total expenditure was only about Rs 60000 This is the fourth year since I started getting yield he saidFarmers say the fruit requires comparatively less labour than rubberWhile rubber cultivation has become difficult because of an acute shortage of tappers and fewer tapping days caused by changing weather rambutan demands much less labour once the orchard is established However they say the biggest challenge comes after harvestRambutan is a nonclimacteric fruit meaning it ripens only on the tree and has a short shelf life after harvest Without refrigerated transport cold storage and modern packing facilities sending the fruit to distant markets becomes difficultSaju believes the market potential is far greater than what Kerala is currently tappingThe market for this is outside Kerala Right now if you take the Kuttalam market around five tonne can be sold there in a single day If you take the wholesale market around 15 tonne can be sold in a day So it has that kind of huge potentialHe said the fruit is currently sold mainly in cities such as Chennai and Bengaluru while major markets further north remain largely untappedAt present it is being traded mainly in places like Chennai and Bengaluru If we can expand it further to markets like Hyderabad and other North Indian markets and also to the APMC market in Navi Mumbai and the markets in Delhi it will create tremendous opportunitiesIf we can take rambutan to such markets and develop the required refrigerated logistics system then even if the whole of Kerala cultivates rambutan the price of Rs100 per kg and price stability can still be maintained Saju saidFarmers also see strong export opportunities particularly in Gulf countries where Keralas harvest season coincides with the regions peak summerFarmers are however worried about misleading campaigns on social media during every harvest season including posts linking rambutan with diseasesTo discuss these concerns and chart the future of the crop farmers traders startups and agricultural experts will meet at the Rambutan Conclave 2026 to be held at Koothattukulam on August 8This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever