A file photo of a jackfruit festival.
| Photo Credit: MANJUNATH HS

The eighth edition of the jackfruit festival organised by Savayava Krushika Grahaka Balaga, Mangaluru will be held at Balam Bhat Hall, near Sharavu Mahaganapathi temple, in Mangaluru on May 24-25.

Addressing press persons in Mangaluru on May 22, president of the balaga G. R. Prasad said the festival will be held from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

In addition to sale of jackfruit and its flakes, various value added products of the fruit will be on sale. Various food made from the fruit will be cooked on the spot and served hot. People can purchase saplings of different varieties of jackfruit.

The balaga has organised 10 competitions under nine categories for visitors. All those who will participate in the competitions will get a medal and a certificate. The winners will get prize, memento, certificate and medal.

Conditions for competitions

The competitions include jackfruit eating, lifting the fruit above head, separating flakes from the fruit, guessing the weight of whole fruit (all four competitions will be held on May 24), preparing ‘kotte’ or ‘moode’ from leaves of jackfruit tree, and preparing (cooking) different food items from jackfruit (on May 25). In addition, there will be speech, essay writing and drawing competition on the jackfruit theme on May 25.

The president said that while preparing food items the participants should not use sugar, maida and artificial colour. Food items can be prepared under sweet and spicy categories. A participant will have to select any one of the two categories. Only coconut oil will have to used for cooking. Participants will have to prepare the food items in their homes and bring the same to the venue. They will have to write how the food was prepared.

The essay writing and speech competitions will be only for students between class 7 and 10. The drawing competition will be for those students in classes between 1 and 6.

The Chief Executive Officer of Dakshina Kannada Zilla Panchayat K. Anandh will inaugurate the festival at 9.30 a.m. on May 24.