At this year’s National Fruit Fair in Dhaka, visitors are greeted not only by baskets of fresh, seasonal produce but also by something far more unexpected – jackfruit burgers.
Held at the Bangladesh Agricultural Research Council (BARC) auditorium grounds, the three-day fair brings together a vibrant mix of rare fruits, indigenous varieties, innovative food products, and stories of agricultural research and commercial potential.
At a stall of the Department of Agricultural Marketing, jackfruit takes center stage – not just as fruit, but as food innovation. Alongside it are jackfruit-based biryani, kebabs, chips, pastries, pudding, pitha, and cutlets. Across other stalls, visitors find pithas, candies, puddings, and dried food products made from seasonal fruits like palmyra, mango, coconut, watermelon, and amloki.
Experts say such fruit-based processing could significantly reduce post-harvest waste while opening new income streams for farmers. It also strengthens the case for year-round fruit availability through preservation and value-added production.
“So many fruits in our country?”
For many visitors, the fair itself becomes an education. Accompanying her daughter, a Class II student, Jinia Kabir wandered from stall to stall, introducing fruits she had never seen before.
But midway through, she found herself surprised too.
“I didn’t even know there were so many varieties of fruits in our country,” she said. “Some I had never heard of, and some I only saw in my childhood but rarely find anymore.”
Her reaction mirrors the larger experience of the National Fruit Fair 2026, a space of discovery for both children and adults alike.
The fair was inaugurated by the Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries and Livestock, Mohammad Amin ur Rashid. A total of 76 government and private organizations are participating, and the exhibition will continue until Saturday.
A showcase of 143 fruit varieties
One of the most popular sections belongs to the Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation (BADC). Deputy Director (Urban Sales) Bashir Ahmed said the organisation is displaying 143 fruit varieties collected from horticultural and agro-service centers across the country.
Among them are 30 varieties of mango alone.
“These fruits have been collected from hilly regions, northern districts, Dhaka, and coastal areas,” he said. “Our goal is to showcase the country’s fruit diversity in one place.”
Familiar fruits such as mango, jackfruit, lychee, pineapple, and malta sit alongside less common varieties like wood apple, makal fruit, koromcha, rambutan, Thai longan, avocado, and persimmon.
Some names are still unfamiliar to many visitors – lukluki, chapalish, bilimbi, pushur dhoetal, kakra, and khudi jam – fruits that many may never have encountered outside this exhibition.
Bashir Ahmed added that many of these fruits also carry nutritional and medicinal value. For example, wood apple is rich in vitamin C and antioxidants, while makal fruit, though not widely eaten raw, is used in traditional medicine for digestive ailments.
Research behind the diversity
Behind this display lies years of agricultural research and innovation.
Scientists from the Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (BARI), including Tarikul Islam and Faisal Ahmed, said Bangladesh currently has 101 released varieties of 39 fruit types.
Several new fruit lines are also under research and evaluation.
Among the more intriguing developments is a fruit line collected from the Rakhali area of Rangamati, locally eaten like palm sap but not yet commercially cultivated.
Researchers are also working on rare tropical fruits such as breadfruit, widely known in the West Indies. Rich in nutrients and often described as a potential cancer-preventive food, breadfruit can be eaten like bread when boiled and prepared. A large tree of this species already exists in Gazipur, while trials are underway in Rangamati.
Another experimental variety is the “variegated malta,” currently under observation in the Chattogram Hill Tracts, with potential for nationwide cultivation.
Bringing foreign fruits home
The fair also highlights the growing success of foreign fruit cultivation in Bangladesh.
According to officials, dragon fruit and rambutan farming is expanding rapidly across the country. Even Middle Eastern date varieties such as Ajwa and Chokhri are now being successfully cultivated locally.
“These have been grown successfully in Gabtoli and Kashimpur mother orchards,” said Bashir Ahmed. “Through tissue culture techniques, saplings are being produced and distributed among farmers.”
Towards year-round fruit availability
This year’s theme “Let us grow fruits, let us preserve them year-round” reflects a broader national push toward reducing seasonal gaps in fruit supply.
In Bangladesh, fruit availability often drops between February and April, creating nutritional and market shortages. Preservation and storage technologies are therefore becoming increasingly important.
Researchers at BARI say they are working on jam, jelly, and pickle processing techniques for fruits like jackfruit, mango, dragon fruit, and plum, which could preserve nutritional value for up to a year. Similar efforts are underway to extend the shelf life of palm pulp.
Export potential and storage innovation
Experts also point to the export potential of fruits such as mango, guava, jackfruit, and dragon fruit.
To support export readiness, the Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation is using vapor heat treatment (VHT) technology for mango processing. Cold storage facilities at Gabtoli and the airport also support post-harvest handling and export logistics and are available for private sector use.
