Phalsa: Sweet and sour economics of summer cash fruit

HYDERABAD: When summer starts singeing this part of the world, you need to hydrate, eat right kinds of foods, and stay out of the sun to avoid heat/sun stroke, which can be deadly. You can also boost your body’s ability to fight heat by consuming phalsa, a small berry-like summer fruit of the tree or shrub Grewia asiatica. Its health benefits go beyond just keeping you cool when the mercury is rising like there’s no next summer.   

People either eat handfuls of these small berries or drink their cold sherbet or squash to stay safe from the possible adverse effects of sweltering heat.  During a typical summer, temperatures in rural and urban parts of Sindh usually range between a scorching 42--48 Celsius, adding to the demand of the fruit. 

Dark purple when ripe, phalsa, or Pharwa in Sindhi language, with its peculiar sweet and sour (acidic) taste and medicinal value has gained popularity in the local markets as well as streets, where vendors sell it for Rs300--400 per kg.

The producers believe that the demand of this product has increased by two or even threefold, but the supply chain is improper to address the demand. That’s why people are ready to pay more to buy this seasonal treat.

Phalsa starts coming in the local market at the end of April or early May and continues till the month of June, depending on its production, varieties and orchard maintenance. "It is a sweet (seasonal) gift of nature and lasts for a short time. The hike in its price is demand-driven and not a result of any manipulation from our side,” street vendors said while justifying the sudden rise in prices.

The producers, who usually spare little chunks of their family lands to produce phalsa, say many growers have almost cleared phalsa orchards and replaced these shrubs with other fruit trees, while some are cultivating other crops, mainly because of market's ups and downs.

According to Manzoor Kalhoro, a phalsa producer of Hyderabad district, phalsa is a perishable fruit so it cannot be stored for many days. “Now traders usually buy raw green fruit to supply it to Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) markets for better profits. The reason is that the half-ripe fruit ripens after two-three days.”

"Some time back phalsas were grown in many orchards to meet the demand from Karachi, Hyderabad, and other towns of the province. But due to persistent political instability and uncertainty in urban centers, producers suffered losses,” Kalhoro said recalling the past. 

He said that at many occasions, growers and traders faced difficulties in transporting the product to urban markets. “When they saw their produce getting destroyed in the fields, they decided to rid their gardens of phalsa shrubs and replace them with other fruit crops,” said he.

Phalsa is a delicate plant/fruit. It is traditionally picked by women, while male workers are involved in packing as it needs special care to avoid any damage or loss before it is sent to market. Some producers rent out their orchards at Rs 100,000--150,000 per acre for a year. Each acre has at least 800--1000 plants.

Initially, producers take one or two baskets daily carrying 8-10 kgs of produce to market for sale. It happens during the high time when customers, mostly vendors throng markets to buy phalsa, because of its demand in streets.

Presently, producers put them up for sale on alternate days and earn a good deal of profit. In the peak season they almost pick everyday and go to the market.  People use phalsas in different ways. For example, some prepare varieties of pickles of phalsa and others have set up small plants, where they produce juices for markets. Some families use green phalsas as vegetable. 

The phalsa pickers are in most of the cases women and they are always and for good reason complaining about their wages. Their job is really tough as they have to pick the produce under the blistering sun. They are paid only Rs10--15 per kg for picking. Each woman can pick hardly 8-10-kg daily. But mostly producers and contractors deprive them of what they truly deserve.

Some elderly women claimed that when there were wide phalsa orchards in their area, some of them would pick around 40-kg or more daily. However, today, the size of the orchards has shrunk drastically. Also, these picker women are also risking their lives while working in the blazing heat. 

Many expatriates living abroad still have fond memories of this tiny fruit and its flavour, but they may not find it there.  Some senior growers say that even the leaves of phalsa shrub are valuable and used for making beedis (hand rolled cigarettes) in different towns of the province. Phalsa leaves are considered alternative of tendu tree (Diospyros melanoxylon) leaves, used to make beedi with quality flavor. But the demand for phalsa leaves for this purpose has also gone down. 

The end of the farming year begins in the winter, when growers usually prune branches of phalsa plants in the December as most shrubs are in their dormant stage. Growers believe pruning will stimulate growth and encourage more buds in spring.