Galle Fort Akersloot Bastion breadfruit tree: 18th-century VOC botanical introduction?

The historic breadfruit tree (Artocarpus altilis / Rata Del) standing near Akersloot Bastion inside Galle Fort was introduced by Dutch colonial merchants in the mid-1700s from the East Indies. The VOC planted breadfruit trees within fortified garrisons as a strategic famine crop capable of producing high-starch yields year-round without cultivating vast paddy fields. Dutch military cooks baked mature breadfruit halves in wood-fired earthen ovens, scooping out the dense roasted flesh to serve as a substitute for European bread or sun-drying slices into durable shipboard travel rations.