Elephant apple fails to entice people’s attention despite health benefits

Darjeeling: The elephant apple doesn’t get popularity like other fruits; the taste of the fruit is tangy and packed with several hidden commercial and health benefits. It is valuable, but most of the time goes unnoticed. It is named as elephant apple because of a knobby, oval shape that looks like an elephant’s toe. Wild elephants like to eat with interest. In India it is known by several names, like Chalta (Hindi/Bengali), O-tenga (Assamese), and Ramphal (Nepali).

This fruit is native to Southeast Asia and parts of tropical Australia; the elephant apple grows naturally in moist, evergreen forests. It is found in the forests of Assam, West Bengal, Odisha, and Madhya Pradesh. The fruit is replete with health benefits like moisture, fiber, carbohydrates, calcium, and phosphorus, and its outer parts are full of vitamin C and antioxidants. Its regular consumption protects us from several diseases.

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June and July are the flowering months of the elephant apple, and a mature tree starts bearing fruit within 8 to 10 years. In ideal conditions, a tree produces about 1000 fruits annually, and the average weight of a fruit is around 300 grams. However, proper care and organic farming can boost the quantity as well as the quality.

The elephant apple needs to be stored at 4.5°C, and the fruits can remain fresh for up to one month. In states like Assam and West Bengal, this fruit is widely used in the preparation of pickles, juice, jams, chutney, and cooking paste.