Soil to platter: Where do the fruits we eat in Chennai come from?

Kiwi and Lichi for Chennaiites? Hear from the sellers at the famous Koyambedu fruit market to discover the journey of your favourite fruits.

Thick Avocado milkshake, Red wine from paneer grapes, different varieties of mango and Kiwi — exotic fruits are never in short supply in our cities these days. But have you ever wondered where these fruits are grown? Has it ever occurred to you that the Lichi you eat may have come all the way from China to our very own Koyambedu market? That there are three varieties of grapes grown in different parts of Tamil Nadu itself?

The era of globalisation has seen an explosion of various foods available in urban markets, but most consumers are unaware of the origin of these foods. Curious to know about the fruits we find in Chennai, we visited the Koyambedu Wholesale Fruit market, a hub for local and international fruits. “These fruits get costlier by at least 30 per cent once they hit the local fruit stores,” said Veerasamy, a fruit merchant.

Here’s a video that will share facts that you may never have guessed!

[Laasya Shekhar, Senior Reporter at Citizen Matters Chennai, also contributed to the report.]

Comments:

  1. Krishna says:

    All are poisoned with chemicals so its too dangerous we have to be very choosy nowadays man has lost all ethics values he is prepared to poison everything for the sake of his profits I feel there should be chemical examination in every market

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