Te tumu me’i: a breadfruit tree in the village of Hakahau, Ua Pou, 2011. Breadfruit has been a traditional staple in the Marquesas for hundreds of years, and still appears on the table accompanied by meat and fish, or as a pounded paste known as ka’aku. Historically, Marquesans planted a breadfruit tree when a child was born; the fruit from this tree was meant to feed the child throughout his lifetime.