More than 50,000 tonnes of mangoes have been exported during the first five weeks (May 25 to June 30) of the season as Pakistan hopes to meet the mango export target in the next two months.
According to the report, Pakistan has exported over 50,000 tonnes of mango during the first five weeks of the current season, the country seems hopeful to achieve mango export target of 150,000 despite mounting challenges presented by a pandemic-hit world.
Though exporters hope that the target may be met, the value (targeted $160 million) may not be achieved as buying power in the world has declined substantially due to Covid-19 and expensive fruits like Pakistani mango may lose some share in the high-end markets.
‘Mango export target set at 150000 tonnes for 2021’
Counting the challenges, Waheed Ahmed, patron-in-chief of the All Pakistan Fruits and Vegetable Exporters and Merchants Association PFVA, says that air space has become a huge hurdle. “The airlines around the world are mostly grounded, hardly operating at their 30 to 35pc capacity. Under these circumstances, it is next to impossible to get space for mango for markets like Canada, UK and USA or even relatively closer Europe. What made the mango travel doubly difficult is the recent increase in freight charges. In order to make up for their losses, the airlines have increased freight charges by Rs8 to Rs10 per kg on July 1, adding massive cost to export expenditures.”
“The shipping lines contribute their own share in making exports expensive,” Waheed continues.
“With trade reduction and low mobility of ships, availability of containers has become a huge hassle. Finding a propitious place (mango needs open top for quality issues) at the ship because of space pressure is yet another issue. All these challenges have slowed the pace of export heavily. Pakistan has been able to send mango to 35 countries, out of traditional 40 export destinations, but volumes have dropped and pace slowed down.” he added.
