Mengkudu (Noni)
Morinda citrifolia Linn.

Background...

Morinda citrifolia or Mengkudu, as it is known locally, is a small erect tree found within the forest. Morinda Citrifolia is native to many countries in the Indo-pacific region. It was found in Southeast Asia, tropical Australia, has been extensively spread by man throughout India, Caribbean and into the Pacific islands as far as the islands of French Polynesia, of which Tahiti is the most prominent. It can also be found in parts of the West Indies.

Due to its medicinal properties it is now planted in the villages, mainly for its translucent white fruit. M.citrifolia is found growing wild along the coasts, and is commonly grown in villages. It has been used in Hawaiian traditional medicine for over 2000 years. There was a revival in the mid-1990s, when M.citrofolia was known worldwide as the “Hawaiian magic fruit” and “Hawaiian miracle medicine” .

The benefits and their uses was not widely known in Malaysia. However, some of scientist in Malaysia such as researcher from FRIM, Dr Mohd Ilham Adenan was doing the research for mengkudu. The mengkudu species were distributed all over the world. But their main location is in the tropical forest such as Malaysia. This species have a very recalsitran seed which are resistant and could float for a long term. Many researches scientific of this species was carried out by Dr. R. M. Heineike.

Mengkudu has many local names according to the country. For example, Noni was called by people in Hawaii and island of Polinesia. But, in India it was known as ‘Indian Mulberry’, "Nono" (Tahiti); "Lada" (Guam); "Indian Mulberry" (India); "Painkiller tree" (Kepulauan Caribbean); "Nhau" (Sebahagian di Asia Tenggara); "Cheesefruit" (Australia); "Bumbo" (Afrika), “Nonu” ( Tonga), “ungcoikan” ( Myanmar), “Ach” ( Hindi), and ""Kura" (Fiji). In weastern region, mengkudu was called as queen of morinda or cheese fruit bacause the matured fruits have smell like a cheese. In Malaysia, some people was called it as a queen of fruits due to their uses and benefits in traditional medicines.