The spiky cactus fruit giving Indian farmers a cash boost

"It was a do-or-die decision," says Arun Srinivas.

In 2020 he abandoned his career in finance, sold all his shares and gold and invested the money in the family farm, in the southern Indian state of Karnataka.

"I wanted to do something on our land that would benefit me both mentally and financially," he explains.

The family farm had been growing coconuts and mango, but he had another crop in mind - dragon fruit.

A little research convinced Srinivas that it might be a good bet.

"It was not just good financial return crop, it also requires very little water and has lower disease risk compared to crops like other fruits, I felt it was the right crop for my land," he explains.

Srinivas approached his new career like an investment project, collecting data and making detailed plans.

"I visited nearly 80 to 100 farms. Spoke to farmers, understood the challenges, profits and risks, and made my own analysis — almost like analysing stocks," he says.

The work paid off. He now cultivates dragon fruit on 11 acres producing around 220 tonnes a year.

Dragon fruit is a climbing cactus, making it an unusual fruit to cultivate.

Usually it is grown on concrete pillars with a circular ring (sometimes a tyre) at the top for the vines to hang over.

Originally from Central America, Vietnam has become the world's leading producer, but India has plans to catch up.

Compared to traditional crops dragon fruit promises higher returns and relatively stable prices.

In 2020, the industry was given a boost when Prime Minister Modi congratulated the farmers of Kutch in Gujarat for their success in cultivating and exporting the fruit.

"Dragon fruit entered India around 2009. At that time, we knew very little about........

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