Papaya is a tropical fruit rich in antioxidant nutrients
Carica papaya
Papītā (Hindi), Pappāḷippaḻam (Tamil), Lechosa (Spanish)
Papaya was called as “The Fruit of the Angels” by Christopher Columbus, is a highly loved tropical fruit. It grows as a giant plant but not woody. It has a hollow stem and could reach a height of 20 to 30 ft. Both leaves and stems contain large amounts of white, milky latex.
Papaya is a rich source of antioxidant nutrients and is used as an ingredient in pharmaceuticals, beauty products, and cosmetics.
It has two main variants Hawaiian papayas weighing between 1.1 and 2.2 pounds per unit, and Mexican papayas, weighing up to 10.0 pounds per unit.
India is the leading papaya producer followed by Brazil and Indonesia. It contributed to a 38.61% share of the world’s production during the year 2008–2010.