AP to Export 10,000 mt Baneshan Mangoes at High Price
Paper covers attached to fruits help farmers get quality yield
Vijayawada: Andhra Pradesh would soon export nearly 10,000 metric tonnes of Baneshan mangoes mainly to the Gulf and South Asian countries.
This is thanks to the paper covers attached to the fruits, which helped farmers get good quality fruits that fetch a high price of Rs 70,000-80,000 per tonne against the average price of Rs 25,000.
The horticulture authorities are supplying paper covers to the mango farmers, which cost Rs 2 per cover on a 50 per cent subsidy so that the farmers attach the covers to the mangoes while they are growing on trees. This helps them to keep them infection-free and pests-free. This helps the fruits to not get exposed to the hot sun, thereby avoiding discolouration; and this also protects the fruit from external influences like moderate rainfall and gales.
This protection is also helping the fruit to grow up to 600-700gm against average size of 300-400gm.
This season, the authorities have supplied paper covers for 40,000 metric tonnes of mangoes. These fruits are mainly coming from the Krishna, West Godavari, Anantapur and Chittoor districts.
AP is raising several varieties of mangoes, namely the Baneshan, Suvarnarekha, Chinna Rasalu, Pedda Rasalu, Kothapalli Kobbari etc in about three lakh hectares mainly in districts like Chittoor, Annamayya, Vizianagaram, Anakapalli, Krishna and Eluru with an average yield of 40 lakh metric tonnes a year against the last years’ 30 lakh metric tonnes.
The Baneshan mangoes are being raised all over the state while the Rasalu mangoes are being raised in districts like Krishna, East and West Godavari.
AP’s export potential of mainly Baneshan variety of mangoes is pegged at 0.1 per cent due to its lesser shelf life of 10 days and cold storage span of only 10 days to keep the fruit fresh.
There is high demand for Baneshan mangoes in 40 countries including the Gulf, Singapore and Malaysia. Though there is demand from European countries, stringent quality norms for fruits – “no deposits of chemicals; maintenance of proper size and colour -- are major constraints. High air freight charges are also denting the exports.
The Baneshan variety takes 105 -110 days for harvest. Some 100 crop days are a must for export quality. On an average, a tonne will fetch Rs 25,000.
Recently rainfall and gales caused damage to mango crops in about 1,000 hectares mainly in Tiruvuru, Mylavaram and Reddyguem in Krishna district.
Horticulture joint director (fruits) Deva Muni Reddy said, “The paper covers helped to get quality Baneshan mangoes with big size. We target an export of 10,000mt, with an expectation to get more than 50 per cent higher price.”
