Do you know there is a family in Kerala who made crores of rupees just by farming this one fruit?
The fruit is called the Mangosteen, the Queen of Fruits. It's mostly grown in Southeast Asian countries like Thailand, Indonesia, and Malaysia. And because it's rare, it went viral on TikTok in the US for how absurdly juicy and refreshing it is. Add in the other benefits of eating Mangosteen and you get a crazy frenzy of people lining up to buy this fruit.
But there is a catch?
Mangosteen is something that doesn't grow every single year. In fact, mangosteen trees take nearly 8-10 years to bear fruit. That's why most Indian farmers avoided them, as the cost and time required to harvest Mangosteen was steep. But now, the demand for Mangosteen is growing fast, and the good news is, it's a tropical fruit that thrives in acidic soil and warm, humid air, which is the perfect conditions found across Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and the majority of South India.
So, farmers are now cashing in. One family in Trissur earns 5 crores annually from around 1,000 trees. Because wellness brands, juice companies, 5-star hotels, and everyone's chasing it for its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant-rich properties. A single mangosteen in the US can cost up to 7-15 dollars.
So, it's no surprise that the global mangosteen market was worth $326 million in 2022 and is expected to grow to $658 million by 2030.
So, will mangosteen be the next avocado?
That is something only time can tell.
