Thousands of tonnes of jackfruit rot and go to waste in Gazipur every year due to inadequate storage, preservation and marketing facilities. Now, an entrepreneur in Sreepur has come up with an innovative solution by turning jackfruits into biscuits, offering a new avenue for reducing food waste and creating economic opportunities for farmers.
Abdus Sattar Bhuiyan, an entrepreneur from Bairagirchala village in Sreepur Municipality, has started producing and marketing jackfruit biscuits, aiming to promote jackfruit’s diverse uses and prevent seasonal wastage. His factory employs workers experienced in food production.
Gazipur is one of the country’s major jackfruit-producing regions, with more than 9,100 hectares of land devoted to the fruit each year. More than 3,500 hectares are located in Sreepur upazila, which is known for producing sweet and high-quality jackfruits due to its elevated red soil.
During the peak season, from Baishakh to Bhadra, jackfruit trees across the region become heavily laden with fruit. However, farmers often struggle to sell their produce at profitable prices, while large quantities remain unsold and eventually rot in orchards and local markets.
Bhuiyan’s jackfruit biscuits are made from ripe jackfruit pulp without artificial flavor. According to Manik Mia, the factory’s chief baker, the ripe fruit is separated into bulbs and blended before being mixed with ghee, butter, milk, flour and other ingredients. The dough is cut into biscuit shapes and arranged on trays, with each tray holding 36 pieces. The biscuits are then baked for about 25 minutes before being cooled and packed. Each box contains 850 grams of biscuits.
The product has already attracted growing demand through online sales. Rakib, an employee of Stad Fast Courier, said he has been delivering orders from Mehman Food, a brand of Momtahina Food and Oil Mills, for around two months.
“Orders are increasing day by day. Many customers are returning to buy the product again, while new customers are also placing orders,” he said.
Local farmer Nazrul Islam welcomed the initiative, saying that large quantities of jackfruit are wasted every season because of a lack of preservation and processing facilities. “If the fruit can be processed and marketed properly, farmers like us will benefit financially,” he said.
Bhuiyan said his idea was inspired by visits to China, India, Indonesia and Japan, where he saw various processed jackfruit products being commercially produced and marketed. He plans to introduce jackfruit chips and other products in the future.
Dr Golam Ferdous Chowdhury, chief scientific officer of the Postharvest Technology Division at the Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (BARI), said processing jackfruit into different food products could significantly reduce wastage.
He said BARI has developed more than 20 technologies related to jackfruit processing and has provided training to entrepreneurs. Jackfruit seeds, green fruit and ripe fruit can be processed into nutrient-rich powders containing protein, minerals, antioxidants and fibre.
According to Dr Chowdhury, these powders and ripe jackfruit pulp can be used to make biscuits, cakes, cookies, candy, ice cream and other products. Such initiatives, he said, could reduce food waste, create employment, increase household incomes and contribute to Bangladesh’s food and nutritional security.
