Across the city, the arrival of mangoes at fruit shops indicates that the season has started, but retailers and horticulturists say that it is too early to call it. They stated that mid-April is when better quality fruits will be available in the market.
As per the former horticulturist, Santhe Narayanaswamy, at the moment the varieties that are on sale are the products of forced ripening. “They are generally not as sweet as compared to the naturally ripened mangoes,” shares Narayanaswamy, who owns an eight-acre mango farm located in Devanahalli taluk in Vijayapur.
However, shops are doing rapid business. Sowbhagya Traders, a store in Koramangala, receives 175 kilograms of seasonal fruit daily. Of this, 125 kgs are sold per day. “Raspuri, Mallika, Chakarakutti, Sendhura, and Badami are available right now. Towards the end of April, after the rains, we can expect more varieties,” said Nisar Shamshad, who runs the fruit stall at the supermarket. Prices range from Rs 100 (Banganapalli) to Rs 260 (Badami) on average.
North Indian varieties:
Varieties like Neelam, Totapuri, Imam Pasand, Mallika, and Amrapali will be seen later in the season. In the late summer, North Indian variants like Chausa, Langra, and Dussehri will also make their way into the city.
According to Nadir Aslam, who has an online mango business, since the beginning of summer sales have been high. He sources Alphonso mangoes from farms in Ratnagiri and Devgad. He says, “I’ve been receiving good feedback from customers,”. 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. “During the peak of Covid when exports were shut, I have seen the best mangoes,” he shares.
Counting on ethylene
S V Hittalmani, retired additional director of horticulture, describes that the government banned carbide 10 to 15 years ago. Most retailers use ethylene now. He says, “It is naturally produced by plants and fruits. When one artificially ripens mangoes with ethylene, one is just speeding up the natural process and thus it is not harmful to the body.”
Due to unexpected rains in December and excessive heat in February this year, the yield is expected to be lesser than normal. “During November and December, the trees must be starved because creating stress results in more fruits. This time, there was constant rain in the mango growing belts, such as Ramanagara."
Narayanaswamy states that the yield is projected to be just 30 per cent to 40 per cent of a regular season.
