Mango exports touch 40,000T, fall short of annual target
LAHORE: The country managed to export 40,000 tons of mangoes so far during this season starting from May, short over half of the annual target set by the government.
Chairman Waheed Ahmed of All Pakistan Fruit and Vegetable Exporters Association said good crop has been recorded in the Punjab province.
“On the basis of that, we expect that we can meet the target,” Ahmed said.
The government set 100,000 tons of mango export target for the ongoing season.
The mangoes export season exactly starts from May 20 and continues till mid of September. The export reaches its peak in July and August when almost 70 percent of exports are complete.
Exporters are targeting $800/ton of mango price, which crossed $750/ton for export orders after mid July.
“We target $75 million export revenue this year,” said the business leader.
Last year, 72,000 tons of mangoes were exported on an average price of $650/ton, earning the government $45 million of revenue. Till May last, the country exported 30,000 tons of mangoes.
Against the country’s mangoes output of 1.8 million, its exports are very negligible.
“We need to focus on better quality by adopting the modern techniques and technologies to fetch good prices,” said a government official.
Almost 25 percent of exports are via land route to Iran and Afghanistan and 60 percent through sea routes mainly to UAE where it is re-exported to European countries and other international destinations.
Ahmed said last year only 6,400 tons of mangoes were exported to Europe. This year’s target is 8,000 tons, he said.
“Cost of exporting mangoes to European countries is very high,” the exporter said. “They are the premium markets and demand very high quality mangoes.”
He said the association, in collaboration with the Ministry of National Food Security and Research, is working on research and development. “The support from provincial governments is required to meet the international production standards,” he added.
Adoption of cardboard carton packaging, as per the international standards, has brought revolution in perishable items’ exports of Pakistan. A couple of years ago, mangoes were exported to UAE in wooden crates at around $250/metric ton. UAE banned import in wooden crates. Exporters had to adopt the carton packaging, which increased international mango value to $700/ton.
Ahmed said exporters planned to bring local mangoes among the top three in terms of tag price in the world within the next three years. The exporters invested nearly one billion rupees in establishment of modern facilities of storages, hot water treatment plants and other infrastructures. “In just last two years, the number of hot water treatment plants increased to 26 from only two,” he added.
He sought the support from the provincial governments for the research and development in order to adopt the best agricultural practice for yield enhancement. He said this will reduce the production cost and enable exporters to fetch good price in Europe, UK, Australia, Japan, Korea, US and China. Both the government and growers need to make investment, he added.
Mango exports touch 40,000T, fall short of annual target
