Watermelon rind and seeds could earn extra income for southern Bangladesh farmers

Southern Bangladesh grows huge amounts of watermelon every year, but once the red flesh is eaten the rind and seeds are usually thrown away. In late June 2026, agriculture and food technology researchers told Jagonews24 that with planning and the right technology the rind and seeds could yield food products, oil, animal feed and the amino acid citrulline, opening the way for a new industry and extra income for farmers.

According to a Prothom Alo report of 2 April 2026, watermelon was grown on 70,362 hectares in the division that year, including 35,057 hectares in Patuakhali, 19,753 in Bhola and 12,324 in Barguna. Agriculture officials then expected the division to produce 3,821,729 tonnes in all.

Jagonews24 reported that about one-third of the watermelon grown in Barishal, Patuakhali, Bhola, Barguna and other southern districts is rind. Dr. Md. Alimur Rahman, chief scientific officer at the Regional Horticulture Research Station in Dumki, Patuakhali, told the paper that rind and seeds make up a large part of each fruit. Thrown away, they rot quickly, produce methane and smell, yet they have commercial uses in the food industry, and with proper processing the rind can be turned into value-added products.

Researchers and specialists told Jagonews24 of several uses for the rind:

• Pickles: watermelon rind pickle is made in many countries. In the recipe of the US National Center for Home Food Preservation, the outer green skin and the pink flesh are trimmed off and only the white part is pickled.
• Jam and morabba: the fibrous white part can be made into morabba, jam and sweets.
• Vegetable dishes: the inner white rind can go into curries, fries and soups.
• Animal feed and compost: rind that is not eaten can feed livestock or serve as raw material for organic fertiliser, agriculture specialists say.

The best-known compound in the rind is citrulline. The US Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Service (ARS) explains that the human body uses citrulline to make another amino acid, arginine. A 2005 study by ARS scientists Agnes Rimando and Penelope Perkins-Veazie in the Journal of Chromatography A found that, by dry weight, the rind holds more citrulline than the flesh (24.7 against 16.7 milligrams per gram), though a little less by fresh weight. The authors wrote that the rind, an underused agricultural waste, offers a source of natural citrulline.

The rind also yields pectin, used in food as a gelling and thickening agent. Researchers at Addis Ababa Science and Technology University in Ethiopia reported in Heliyon in 2023 that extraction with acetic acid gave a pectin yield of up to 18.2 percent, and that watermelon peel can be an alternative source of pectin.

Nutritionists and food technology researchers told Jagonews24 that the seeds can be used too:

• Roasted seeds: dried and roasted, they can be eaten as a snack.
• Seed flour: ground seeds can go into bakery products and biscuits.
• Oil: the seeds can be pressed for oil. According to Wikipedia, sun-dried seeds are pressed to make watermelon seed oil, which is particularly common in West Africa, where it is also called ootanga oil.
• A protein-rich ingredient: researchers say the seeds' protein, fat and minerals make them a candidate for value-added food products.

Farmers in the south said prices fall when the season's output is high, and much fruit spoils for lack of storage. Nanna Gazi, a farmer in Rangabali upazila of Patuakhali, said many watermelons go unsold for lack of storage, and commercial products from the rind would give farmers extra income. Delwar Hossain, a farmer in Galachipa upazila, said industrial use of the fruit's different parts could bring much larger economic benefits.

Food technology researchers said small and medium industries based on the rind could cut food waste, raise farm incomes and create rural jobs. Md. Shahidul Islam, chairman of the Faculty of Nutrition and Food Science at Patuakhali Science and Technology University (PSTU), told Jagonews24 that there had been no research on watermelon rind so far, but the literature shows that food ingredients can be made from it and that citrulline, used in the pharmaceutical industry, can be extracted.

Photo: Raysonho @ Open Grid Scheduler / Grid Engine / Wikimedia Commons (CC0)

Sources: Jagonews24, Prothom Alo, USDA Agricultural Research Service, Journal of Chromatography A (Rimando and Perkins-Veazie, 2005), Heliyon (Mamiru and Gonfa, 2023), National Center for Home Food Preservation, Wikipedia