OznAsia

Fruits are one of the delights in my life. I like so many fruits it is hard to decide which one is my actual favourite but I'd put both mango and lichee on the shortlist.

A few weeks ago sweet yellow-skinned mangoes started to appear on the market stalls. I was happy to get them at 50 baht a kilo. That's about A$2. Since then I got some lichees at 30 baht a kilo. They weren't the best I'd ever tasted but at that price I wasn't complaining. Since then the price has come down to 20 baht and the quality has gone up—such beautiful texture. Mmmm mmmm. Mangoes have also come down. They put little bundles on the stall—probably around a kilo each bundle—and sell them for 10 baht. I'm in ecstasy.

I've been watching the price of durian. I look for it to be sold in a single serve because you're not supposed to eat too much at one time. It's been selling for quite a bit more than I was paying in Bangkok last year but last night I got a serve for 30 baht. I'm happy with that. It made a nice dessert after the BBQ fish I had for dinner. I saved the lichees for breakfast.

Labels: Asia, fruit, Mahasarakham, market, thailand

On one of my visits to Australia I stopped off in Kyabram on the Murray River to visit my niece. She took me to the local market—very quiet compared to the ones here in Asia. Someone was selling mangosteen juice and from memory I think they were asking about $A70 a bottle.

Perhaps you are asking: what's a mangosteen and why are they so special?

The picture shows fresh mangosteens that I bought here in Bangkok recently for about 50 cents Australian per kilo. Doesn't that seem a bit different from the price being charged in Kyabram?

The vendor at Kyabram told that mangosteens have amazing antioxidant qualities and said research suggests they can cure many illnesses. I usually find claims like these are a little extravagant. You can find a balanced report on the goodness of mangosteens here. If you do a search for 'mangosteen juice' you'll find many other pages promoting the healing qualities of this fruit. Make up your own mind.

Whatever you decide about the value of mangosteen I have to ask how the price can be justified. The juice being sold in Kyabram included (from memory) raspberry juice. The ones I found being promoted online include other juices. They usually sell for a little less than the Kyabram vendor was asking—say $US35 for the most popular brand but this brand includes many other ingredients in the bottle, such as: apple juice, pear juice, grape juice, pear purée, blueberry juice, raspberry juice, strawberry juice, cranberry juice, cherry juice, citric acid, natural flavor, pectin, xanthan gum, sodium benzoate. I'm sure most of these are healthy too but I have to ask, just what proportion of the drink is actually mangosteen juice? Most of those other juices can be bought for a much lower price. And considering the price I'm paying for mangosteens here in Thailand the word that comes into my mind to describe these products is 'ripoff'.

Labels: Asia, Australia, fruit, health, mangosteen, ripoff, thailand