Arecanut-cancer link: ICAR-CPCRI says definitive answer in two years

K. Balachandra Hebbar, director of the Central Plantation Crops Research Institute (ICAR-CPCRI), Kasaragod, Kerala, said on Monday that a “definite answer” on whether arecanut consumption causes cancer will be available within the next two years.

Hebbar was speaking at the inauguration of a workshop titled “Self-Reliant Cocoa Sector: A Roadmap for 2047,” organised by ICAR-CPCRI at its Regional Station in Vitla. He said the multi-institutional research project, “Evidence-Based Research on Arecanut and Human Health,” began in 2025 and will be completed within two years. ICAR-CPCRI is coordinating the Union government-sponsored project.

He described the project as comprehensive and the first of its kind on arecanut anywhere in the world. “In one or two years’ time, we will come out with a definite answer on whether arecanut is really responsible for causing cancer in human beings,” he said.

The research team includes representatives from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), the National Botanical Research Institute (NBRI), the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB), the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), the Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER), the Central Food Technological Research Institute (CFTRI), Kasturba Medical College, K.S. Hegde Medical Academy, and SDM College of Medical Sciences and Hospital, among others.

According to the Union government, 16 national and State-level agencies are involved in the research.

Arecanut, also known as betel nut or supari, is widely consumed in India and several Asian countries. Its health effects, particularly a possible link to oral cancer, have been the subject of scientific debate and public health concern. The new project aims to produce India-specific evidence to settle the question.

The workshop, “Self-Reliant Cocoa Sector: A Roadmap for 2047,” is part of efforts to chart a long-term strategy for cocoa production in the country and make the sector more self-reliant. The institute is also promoting cocoa as a way to supplement farmers’ income through intercropping.

On cocoa cultivation, Hebbar said ICAR-CPCRI is studying cocoa production under a project both as a monocrop and as an intercrop in arecanut and coconut-based systems across different agro-ecological regions.

He noted that experts in the cocoa sector estimate India’s demand for cocoa beans at 1.10 lakh tonnes, against a domestic production of 30,000 tonnes. Cocoa can also be cultivated as an intercrop in oil palm plantations, apart from arecanut and coconut plantations. A vast area is available for cocoa cultivation in the country, he said. The gap between estimated demand and domestic production points to a significant shortfall that the roadmap seeks to address.

Meanwhile, 24 tissue-cultured and hardened dwarf arecanut plants were planted on the Regional Station premises for field trials. The plants were developed by ICAR-CPCRI for the first time and are part of 100 such plants developed by the institute for field trials.

The arecanut study is being watched closely because arecanut is a major commercial crop in Karnataka, Kerala, and other parts of the country, supporting the livelihoods of lakhs of farmers and workers. A definitive finding on its health effects could influence public health advisories, agricultural policy, and trade. The multi-institutional nature of the project suggests it will examine epidemiological, clinical, and laboratory evidence.