Source: Sify.com
NEW DELHI, INDIA, April 3, 2003: The Iraq war has greatly reduced India’s mango exports to the Gulf, but has created a bonanza for the domestic market where top brands of the “king of fruits” are now easy picking. India accounts for almost 65 percent of the world’s mango production, but it exports less than one percent of its yield. “Now we are doomed as two-thirds of our mangoes are exported to the Gulf, where our Alphonso reigned as the king of fruits for decades,” said Nasiruddin Jesani, secretary of Fresh Vegetable and Fruit Association (FVFA). The Alphonso is the most expensive variety of mango in India with a dozen priced at around US$18, compared to other popular varieties which sell for just over US$2 for 12. The war in Iraq came just at the beginning of the mango season said FVFA president Babu Ramchandani, “And so between 40 to 50 percent of our mango trade is now affected both in terms of value as well as in volume and we cannot say whether we will regain our market after this war ends there,” he said. India’s mango exports are mostly confined to the Gulf, although some of the produce reaches Britain and Russia. Now many people are returning from Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states where mango is a popular dessert among the regions four-million-strong Indian community said an official. High Airline freight charges also have contributed to the dilemma.