[🇵🇰] Pakistani Fruits & Vegetables

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Jamun is one of the less known tropical fruits, but due to its high nutrient content and unique health benefits, it is a fruit that more people should be seeking out to boost their overall health.

What is Jamun?

Jamun is an evergreen fruiting tree bearing the scientific name Syzygium cumini. It is more commonly known as a black plum, but may also be called jambul, java plum or jamblang, depending on where you are in the world. This tree is native to the Indian subcontinent but has spread to other Asian nations and islands, in addition to being naturalized in the United States and some parts of South America. This tree is primarily cultivated for its fruit, which bears the same name and looks similar to a small plum or a large berry. The color changes from light green to pink to dark purple when it is fully mature.

The jamun fruit has a sweet and sour flavor and is known to be quite astringent, although this taste can vary depending on when you pick the fruit from. While it has been a part of cultural, religious, and culinary traditions in certain parts of the world for centuries, it is only recently becoming popular in the rest of the world.

Black Plum Nutrition Facts

Black plums contain a significant amount of vitamin C, iron, magnesium, B-family vitamins, and dietary fiber, as well as potassium, vitamin A and small amounts of protein. There is a moderate amount of calories, roughly 75 per cup, but there is a minimal amount of fat and no cholesterol to speak of.


Nutrition Facts
Java-plum, (jambolan), raw

Nutrient Value

Water [g] 83.13
Energy [kcal] 60
Protein [g] 0.72
Total lipid (fat) [g] 0.23
Carbohydrate, by difference [g] 15.56
Calcium, Ca [mg] 19
Iron, Fe [mg] 0.19
Magnesium, Mg [mg] 15
Phosphorus, P [mg] 17
Potassium, K [mg] 79
Sodium, Na [mg] 14
Vitamin C, total ascorbic acid [mg] 14.3
Thiamin [mg] 0.01
Riboflavin [mg] 0.01
Niacin [mg] 0.26
Vitamin B-6 [mg] 0.04
Vitamin B-12 [µg] 0
Vitamin A, RAE [µg] 0
Vitamin A, IU [IU] 3
Fatty acids, total trans [g] 0
Cholesterol [mg] 0

Black Plum Health Benefits

Jamun is a black plum that aids in skin care and weight loss, relieves stomach pain, and boosts immunity. It can be used in salads, desserts, juices, and smoothies.

Skin Care

The Food Chemistry journal suggests that antioxidant-rich foods help treat many skin diseases. With plenty of vitamin A, vitamin E, and other antioxidants, jamun can improve the appearance of the skin by reducing oxidative stress and lowering inflammation levels.

Protects Heart

Regular consumption of jamun fruit or juice will help with high blood pressure, as the fruit contains notable levels of potassium, which is a vasodilator and reduces your risk of atherosclerosis and heart attacks.

Boosts Immune System

There is a good amount of vitamin C and other antioxidants in this fruit, which can help to stimulate the production of white blood cells and increase the strength of the immune system. Also, according to the Food Research International journal, black plums have antibacterial, antifungal, and anti-viral properties that help keep you protected from many diseases.

Improves Circulation

The antioxidant enzymes in jamun extracts are critical for the production of hemoglobin, which the body needs to maintain healthy circulation and the delivery of oxygen and nutrients.

Weight Loss

Being low in calories, jamun is a cherished addition to all weight loss diets. Plus it is also a source of dietary fiber so it helps to optimize digestion as well!

Prevents Cancer

Black plum has been known to have abundant antioxidants that inhibit the free radical activity in the body. This is confirmed by a study conducted in 2005. Another research published in 2011 has also confirmed that black plums have anticancer and chemopreventive properties. So it is not only good at preventing cancer but is also an aid when it comes to treating cancer!

 

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Khanpur, KPK..

 

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Mixed

 

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Singhara | Water Nut | Winter Food​

 

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Five reasons why falsas are a great guilt-free snack

Falsas will cure your stomach ache, fight cancer and keep you looking young!

With the sweltering heat, summer also brings with it some truly delicious fruits — and we have to say, falsas are one of our favourites!

Juice them, sprinkle them on your salad or eat them raw, this seasonal fruit can be enjoyed in so many ways.

What's best is that falsas are actually a really nutritious snack. And we don't just mean how it's refreshing in the summer and perfect for getting rid of a heatstroke. We mean it's pretty much a super-food.

Here's why you should obsess over falsas this summer.

1) It's great for your tummy

Falsa juice works as a digestive... with added benefits! According to the Encyclopedia of World Medicinal Plants, it will not only help regulate digestion, but also serves as a great coolant and restores hydration to the body during a stomach flu. That's a double win!

According to botanical experts, stomach pain can be treated by drinking falsa juice (but we recommend you consult a doctor to avoid allergic reactions or similar):

Add 3g roasted carom seeds (ajwain) to 25-30ml falsa juice and stir and warm a bit. Drink to relieve pain.

2) It strengthens your heart

Falsas are said to relieve inflammation, which makes it a good heart tonic.
Here's a recipe, but again this is not a substitute for doctor's advice or medicine!

Add a pinch of rock salt and black pepper to 50ml falsa juice and mix well. You can also add sugar for taste.

3) It can scare away cancer

The fruit is full of antioxidants and is used to reduce cancer risk.

This makes it a great antidote for all the potentially harmful foods we consume.

4) It'll satisfy diabetics' sweet (and sour) tooth

That's right, falsa is no guilty pleasure! It is pure joy for everyone!

According to an article published by the Pakistan Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences, falsa is a low glycemic index food, which means it can be enjoyed by diabetics and patients with cardiovascular diseases.


5) It'll keep you young

Wanna know a secret? If a food is naturally purple it's an antioxidant loaded with anthocyanins.

This chemical helps protect collagen and restores youthful skin. It's also known for purifying the blood which means falsas help in clearing out your skin, so munch away for that healthy glow!

 

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FIGS: NOT FRUIT, Did You Know?

A fig is not just an ordinary fruit, in fact, it's not even a fruit.

Strictly speaking, figs are inverted flowers.

Figs don’t bloom in the same way as other fruit trees like almonds or cherries.

Figs have a very curious history.

First of all, they're technically not a fruit, but an infruity (a set of fruits).

And secondly, they need a slaughtered wasp to breed, an insect that dies inside the fig.

In a nutshell, figs are a kind of inverted flowers that bloom inside this large, dark, red-hued bud we know as figs.

Each flower produces a single nut and a single seed called an "aquarium".

The fig is made up of several branches, which give it this characteristic crunchy texture.

Therefore, when we eat one fig, we are eating hundreds of fruits.

But the most amazing thing, it’s the special pollination process that fig flowers need to reproduce.

They can’t depend on whether, the wind or the bees bring pollen as other fruits, so they need a species known as the fig wasps.

These insects transport their genetic material and allow it to reproduce.

For their part, wasps couldn’t live without figs, as they deposit their larvae inside the fruit.
This relationship is known as symbiosis or mutualism.

Currently, the vast majority of producers of this fruit no longer need the work of wasps.

Most fig varieties for human consumption are part non-genetic.

This means they always bear fruit in the absence of a pollinator.

 

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Lokart

 

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Should export these agricultural goods to Middle East and China. There is a huge market for agricultural goods.

 

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THE LUSCIOUS LYCHEE​

Muhammad Sadaqat
October 13, 2024

A lychee tree in an orchard in Khanpur | Photo by the writer

Malik Fiaz, now 70, has been involved in lychee farming in the Panjkatha area of Khanpur in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Haripur district for decades. It started with his father, and now his children and grandchildren are also working as pre-harvest fruit contractors.

Khanpur’s Panjkatha [Five Watercourses] is a conglomeration of over a dozen small and large countryside localities. The majority of its dwellers resettled there following displacement by the Khanpur Dam project in the 1970s. With fertile soil and abundant water, the area is known as the fruit basket of the district, with lychee among its most sought-after produce.

A recent survey, conducted by Dr Waseem Ahmed, an adjunct professor in the horticulture department at the University of Haripur (UoH), found that around 5,000 farmers across Haripur were growing lychee over roughly 1,500 hectares of land. The fruit is harvested between June and July, with an estimated yield of 15,000-20,000 metric tonnes, and an appraised yearly worth of Rs1.5-2 billion (USD 10-15 million), says Dr Ahmed.

Until a few years ago, lychee farmers in KP’s Haripur district were earning Pakistan hefty foreign exchange from export of their much sought-after fruit. But climate change and environmental deterioration have meant they are now scrambling to meet even domestic demand

It also provides employment opportunities to hundreds of unskilled and skilled workers, with Dr Ahmed telling Eos that the flowering to ripening duration of the fruit lasts between 120-150 days, with processes such as pruning, fertilisation, pest/disease management and irrigation involving 150-200 people per hectare.

 

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ORIGINS OF LYCHEE

The lychee is a native to Southeast Asia and has been a favourite fruit of the Cantonese since ancient times, according to the Encyclopaedia Britannica. China is the main producer of lychees, followed by India, with production also occurring in other countries in Southeast Asia.

According to the records of the provincial agriculture department, the Nursery Fruit Farm, locally known as Sarkari Bagh and spread over 128 kanals (one kanal is approximately 500 sq metres), was established during British rule in 1913. It included a lychee farm of around 180 trees, spread over 22 kanals.

Octogenarian Haider Khan, a retired teacher, relying on oral history, says his grandfather told him that lychee was first cultivated in Haripur during the early days of Sikh rule. “The Sarkari Bagh was established by General Hari Singh Nalwa in 1822, and its original name is Hari ka Bagh or Garden of Hari Singh Nalwa,” Khan tells Eos.

A 2008 paper, published in Acta Horticulturae, contends that lychee was first introduced in Pakistan in the 1930s by Sardar Faqir Singh from Dheradun in India, and remained an exotic plant until the 1960s, when commercial production started from few orchards located near Lahore. Owing to its good fruit quality and profitability, large scale plantations expanded to Haripur, Hazara and, later, to parts of Sindh.


The writer is a freelance journalist and human rights defender based in KP. X: @MSadqat