Mangoes arrive early, see brisk sales

The arrival of mangoes at fruit shops across the city suggests that the season has begun, but retailers and horticulturists say that it is too early to call it. Mid-April is when better quality fruits will be available in the market, they state. According to former horticulturist Santhe Narayanaswamy, the varieties that are on sale at the moment are products of forced ripening. “These are generally not as sweet as naturally ripened mangoes,” shares Narayanaswamy, who owns an eight-acre mango farm in Vijayapur, located in Devanahalli taluk.

However, shops are doing brisk business. Sowbhagya Traders, a store in Koramangala, receives 175 kilograms of the seasonal fruit daily. Of this, 125 kgs are sold per day. “Sendhura, Mallika, Chakarakutti, Raspuri and Badami are available right now. After the rains, towards the end of April, we can expect more varieties,” says Nisar Shamshad, who runs the fruit stall at the supermarket. On average, prices range from Rs 100 (Banganapalli) to Rs 260 (Badami). 

North Indian varieties 

Varieties like Mallika, Imam Pasand, Neelam, Totapuri and Amrapali will be seen later in the season. North Indian variants like Langra, Chausa and Dussehri will also make their way into the city in late summer. 

According to Nadir Aslam, who has an online mango business, sales have been high since the beginning of summer. He sources Alphonso mangoes from farms in Ratnagiri and Devgad. “I’ve been getting good feedback from customers,” he says. Aslam sells boxes of 12 Grade A1 Ratnagiri mangoes for Rs 1,750, while Grade A3 Devgad mangoes are priced at Rs 999. 

Azam Shariff, the owner of Fresh Fruits on Brigade Road, shares that though waiting till mid-April is a good idea, what we get in India is nowhere close to export quality. “I have seen the best mangoes during the peak of Covid, when exports were shut,” he shares.

Counting on ethylene

S V Hittalmani, retired additional director of horticulture, explains that the government banned carbide 10 to 15 years ago. Now, most retailers use ethylene. “It is naturally produced by plants and fruits. When one artificially ripens mangoes with ethylene, one is just speeding up the natural process and hence it is not harmful to the body,” he says.

This year, the yield is expected to be lesser than normal due to unexpected rains in December and excessive heat in February. “During November and December, the trees must be starved because creating stress results in more fruits. This time, there was incessant rain in the mango growing belts, such as Ramanagara.

The yield is projected to be just 30 per cent to 40 per cent of a regular season,” states Narayanaswamy.