Mangoes to be costly this year!

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Crop delay spells costlier Alphonso
First Batch Of Konkan Mangoes To Arrive In April 2008 Against March Last Year
Omkar Sapre
PUNE
THOSE who savoured juicy Alphonso mangoes this season at cheaper prices will have to shell out more in the next season as the king of fruits is likely to make a delayed entry. Mango trees in the Konkan belt, one of the largest mango growing regions in the country, have just started to blossom, signalling a delayed crop. The first batch of mangoes are expected to arrive in April against the February-March period every year. This might affect mango growers as exports to large markets such as Japan and the US, which opened last year, may not be served fully, farmers said.

The American and Japanese governments had banned the import of Indian mangoes on concerns that diseases through fruit flies, that infest the fruit, may spread to those countries. Last year Japan lifted the ban on mango imports on condition that the fruits will be subjected to a vapour heat treatment. The US also opened its markets to Indian mangoes with a mandatory irradiation treatment, after special teams from both the countries inspected the treatment facilities in Maharashtra.
India exports only the Alphonso and Kesar varieties of mangoes. Alphonso mangoes are mainly grown in the Konkan region, especially in Ratnagiri and Sindhudurga districts. According to the Maharashtra State Agricultural Marketing Board, which is also involved in the export of mangoes, about 2.93 lakh tonnes mangoes are grown over an area spread over 346,538 acres. Both the districts have been declared as agri export zones. Devgad village in Sindhudurga district produces one of the world’s biggest Alphonso mangoes, about 50,000 tonnes every year.

But ironically, the region does not have treatment plants necessary to export to the US and Japan.The VHT facility is located at Vashi in Navi Mumbai, while the irradiation treatment plant is based at Lasalgaon in Nasik, both of them about 400 to 700 km far from the Alphonso-producing areas. Marathwada leads the production of the Kesar variety with about 133,635 tonnes of mangoes grown on 85,323 acres. Though the region is closer to the irradiation facility, the VHT plant is almost 350 km away.

Despite the lifting of export bans, mango farmers from Konkan are grappling with political and bureaucratic problems that has been slowing their efforts. Their demands for a minimum support price for mangoes used in the processing sector, on the lines of sugarcane, have not been met. “Though exports to Japan and America started last year, the farmers weren’t able to export their produce and we have dim hopes that we will be able to export it this year either,” said Sudhir Joshi, president of the Devgad Mango Growers Association. “In spite that our region is an agri export zone, we do not have the VHT and irradiation facilities. The agriculture marketing board has provided us with cold storage and other packing facilities, but they are not sufficient for exports. We also need a laboratory for testing the quality of soil, fertilisers and pesticides, which is a mandatory requirement for exports.”

Arun Gogate, a mango grower from Devgad, said, “Mediating traders make the most out of the mango trade. If basic facilities are made available near our region, then the farmers can also start exporting mangoes directly to America and Japan. We have also been asking for a minimum support price for mango.”Lack of effective marketing facilities in Ratnagiri and Sindhudurga are also working against the mango farmers. Retail players who claim to buy mangoes directly from farmers are also not offering any help.

Another mango grower, requesting anonymity, said, “Last year, two big retail players had visited farmers in Ratnagiri and Sindhudurga for direct sourcing of mangoes. Instead of setting up collection centres in the region, they bought about 98% of the mangoes from traders in Vashi.”

State Marketing minister Harshawardhan Patil told the ET that MSAMB will also start mango exports this year.

THE BITTER SIDE
• Delayed season might affect mango growers as exports to large markets such as Japan and the US may not be served fully
• Though export bans by the US and Japan are off, mango farmers are grappling with political and bureaucratic problems. Their demand for minimum support price has not been met yet
• Lack of effective marketing facilities in Ratnagiri and Sindhudurga are also working against the mango farmers.
omkar.sapre@timesgroup.com