Pakistan started mango exports from May 20 this season, aiming to export 100,000 tons which is expected to fetch over $75 million, Pakistan Fruit and Vegetable Exporters, Importers and Merchants Association (PFVA) said.
PFVA Chairman Waheed Ahmed said the country had not met the previous export target because of a drastic fall of about 40% in mango production.
The exporters are trying to tap new markets in China, Russia, Iran, Belarus and Middle Eastern countries. However, in the absence of much-needed vapour heat treatment (VHT) plant, the Japanese market will remain untapped for the third consecutive year.
The exporters only shipped about 72,000 tons of mangoes last year, the lowest for the last five years. However, production is expected to be higher this season than the previous year and it may touch 1.6 million tons.
Pakistan has been exporting mangoes to the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Canada and European countries for many years and recently markets of South Korea, China, the USA and Australia have been opened for the fruit.