Sapota

Sapota Tree

Botanical Name;  Manilkara zapota (L.) van Royen

Local Names;     Sapodilla; Sinhala        Sapodhilla; Tamil

Recommended Varieties

• Local cultivars (Round and Oval)

Nutritional Value

• Rich in energy, Calcium and Carotene

Medicinal Value/Uses

• Good for invalids and as an invigorating drink

Storage

• The fresh fruit can be kept for 2-3 days at room temperature (25 -30 ⁰C)

Why are they unique?

Sapota fruit varieties have very sweet, thick pulp with a pleasant aroma. The sweet fresh pulp can be eaten fresh as dessert, dried, or canned in syrup. The fruit,

• Shape: Spindle shaped or ovate
• Colour: Rind brown and flesh reddish brown
• Taste: Sweet and crunchy if not too ripe

Sapota is growing in many parts of Sri Lanka. Predominately, it is grown mostly in Wet Zone and scattered in the Intermediate Zones. As a fresh fruit, Sapota has a high demand in local markets. Likewise, a considerable amount of foreign exchange could be earned by exporting both fresh and processed Sapota products.

Sapota Fruit

Potential for Sapota processing industry

Sapota fruit processing industry in Sri Lanka is still not properly developed. Sapota can be used to produce different value added products such as jam, cordials and RTS. These value added products can be produced by either cottage level or large scale level. In addition to that research and development activities should initiate to identify maturity index for different types of Sapota, storage methods, environmental and consumer friendly ripening methods, development of value added products with enhanced shelf life and preserve nutritional quality etc.

Reference

• Tropical fruits of Sri Lanka, Department of Agriculture, Sri Lanka