500kg of Indian alphonso mangoes shipped to Japan
The Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC) sent off 500 kg of Alphonso mangoes — its first consignment — to Japan on Thursday. Mangoes from APMC are exported all around the world including to the USA, UK, Saudi Arabia and Japan. However, the development is significant, as for almost a decade, Japan had stopped importing Indian mangoes due to quality issues.
“Since Japan resumed importing mangoes from India back in 2014, the demand has been around 50-100 tonnes per year. We expect it to be the same this year too. The first lot of 0.5 tonnes has already reached there, we have been told,” said Sanjay Pansare, director, fruits market, APMC.
Japan is one of the toughest markets and India has now managed to crack it, Kishore Toshniwal, MD, MSAMB, told FE. As a result, mango exports to Japan have now become a regular feature, he said. Vapour heat treatment is mandatory for export to Japan since this country is not in favour of irradation, he said, adding that Japan also has very high standards as far as residue levels are concerned.
Last year, India exported around 50 tonnes of mangoes to Japan and this season, the figure is expected to rise to 150 tonnes, he said, adding that Japan has now become a steady market for the country.
source: asianage.com, financialexpress.com
