''Canarium odontophyllum'', also referred to as the Borneo olive, is a fruit-bearing tree of the genus '' Canarium'' in the family

Burseraceae The Burseraceae are a moderate-sized family of 17-19 genera and about 540 species of woody flowering plants. The actual numbers given in taxonomic sources differ according to taxonomic revision at the time of writing. The Burseraceae are also ...

. Native to

Borneo Borneo () is the List of islands by area, third-largest island in the world, with an area of , and population of 23,053,723 (2020 national censuses). Situated at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, it is one of the Greater Sunda ...

, where it is locally known as dabai in

Sarawak Sarawak ( , ) is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia. It is the largest among the 13 states, with an area almost equal to that of Peninsular Malaysia. Sarawak is located in East Malaysia in northwest Borneo, and is ...

and

Kalimantan Kalimantan (; ) is the Indonesian portion of the island of Borneo. It constitutes 73% of the island's area, and consists of the provinces of Central Kalimantan, East Kalimantan, North Kalimantan, South Kalimantan, and West Kalimantan. The non-Ind ...

, and kembayau in

Sabah Sabah () is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah has land borders with the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and Indonesia's North Kalima ...

and

Brunei Brunei, officially Brunei Darussalam, is a country in Southeast Asia, situated on the northern coast of the island of Borneo. Apart from its coastline on the South China Sea, it is completely surrounded by the Malaysian state of Sarawak, with ...

. Its fruit is a prized seasonal delicacy in Sarawak, which earned the fruit a dedicated festival - ''Pesta Dabai'' - which is held annually since 2018 in Song, Sarawak.

Description

The tree grows up to a height of 40 to 50 meters. The fruit outer skin is glossy black colour while the flesh is yellow with an elongated seed. Being in the same genus as the Pili nut (''

Canarium ovatum ''Canarium'' is a genus of about 120 species of tropical and subtropical trees, in the family Burseraceae. They grow naturally across tropical Africa, south and southeast Asia, Indochina, Malesia, Australia and western Pacific Islands; in ...

'') the seeds are also edible, and similar to almonds or pistachios.Lim T. K., ''Edible Medicinal and Non-Medicinal Plants: Volume 1, Fruits,'' Springer Science & Business, p. 629; Hoe, V.B. and Siong, K.H., "The Nutritional Value of Indigenous Fruits and Vegetables in Sarawak,"Asia-Pacific Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 8, no. 1, 1998, pp 24-31

Cultivation

The tree is

dioecious Dioecy ( ; ; adj. dioecious, ) is a characteristic of certain species that have distinct unisexual individuals, each producing either male or female gametes, either directly (in animals) or indirectly (in seed plants). Dioecious reproduction is ...

– the seedlings can be male, or hermaphrodite. Successful cultivation can be achieved through

budding Budding or blastogenesis is a type of asexual reproduction in which a new organism develops from an outgrowth or bud due to cell division at one particular site. For example, the small bulb-like projection coming out from the yeast cell is kno ...

grafting Grafting or graftage is a horticulture, horticultural technique whereby tissues of plants are joined so as to continue their growth together. The upper part of the combined plant is called the scion () while the lower part is called the roots ...

. Mr Harry Munjan, a former senior assistant Agriculture Department officer was the first to have been successful in cultivating the tree through budding back in the 2000s. He also introduced the new clones, ‘Laja’ and ‘Lulong’, in his own farm in Sri Aman, Sarawak.

Uses

Culinary

''Canarium odontophyllum'' fruit is colloquially known as "Sarawak olive" and can be eaten raw or blanched, eaten with sugar, salt or soy sauce upon serving. In Sarawak, the fruit has become an added ingredient in sauces and fried rice recipes. Besides eaten in its original form, the fruit can be made into a paste, and can also be dried and milled into powder form for use in foods and drinks. Under commercialization, the fruit can be incorporated in pizzas, desserts, juices, and even mayonnaise.

References

odontophyllum Trees of Malesia Taxa named by Friedrich Anton Wilhelm Miquel Fruits originating in Asia {{Sapindales-stub