Desk Report :It's big and bumpy with a gooey interior and a powerful smell of decay - but it could help keep millions of people from hunger.

Researchers say jackfruit � a large ungainly fruit grown across south and south-east Asia � could be a replacement for wheat, corn and other staple crops under threat from climate change.

The World Bank and United Nations warned recently that rising temperatures and unpredictable rainfall had already reduced yields of wheat and corn, and could lead to food wars within the decade.

Now researchers say jackfruit could help provide the solution.

Jackfruit is the largest known treeborne fruit. Even a small jackfruit weighs in at 10-15lbs, and farmers have recorded specimens of more than 100lbs.

"It's a miracle. It can provide so many nutrients and calories � everything," said Shyamala Reddy, a biotechnology researcher at the University of Agriculture Sciences in Bangalore, India.

"If you just eat 10 or 12 bulbs of this fruit, you don't need food for another half a day."

Reddy said the Indian government had launched a number of new initiatives to promote the crop by expanding its use as a canned vegetable and as a processed food.

The fruit is rich in potassium, calcium, and iron, said Reddy, making it more nutritious than current starchy staples.

In addition to its high nutritional value, the fruit is very versatile, said Nyree Zyrega, a researcher on plant biology at the Chicago Botanic Garden, who has studied jackfruit in Bangladesh. the daily star

Local Time : 0314 Hours, 24 April 2014

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