Mangoes to flood the markets all monsoon

For those of you who have not had your fill of mangoes yet this season, here's good news. Traders at Vashi's Agricultural Produce and Marketing Committee (APMC) claim that various varieties of the fruit will continue to flood the markets till at least the middle of August.

Ram Morde, a trader at Crawford Market, says Dusheri and Langda mangoes are ruling the market at present. Pic/Sayed Sameer Abedi

At present, Dusheri and Langda varieties from North India are predominant in the market. At least 50 trucks full of these varieties are entering Vashi's APMC market daily, most of which comes from Malihabad, a town in Lucknow district, which produces mangoes of international acclaim.

Sanjay Pansare, director of Vashi's fruit market, said that these varieties of mango come in during the monsoons alone and have many takers. "The Dusheri variety of the fruit is grown in Malihabad. Other varieties like Chausa and Safeda are also grown there.

In APMC, these mangoes are being sold by the kilo, unlike the alphonsos from Devgad and Junnar hapus, which are sold by the dozen. A lot of our customers hail from the north and prefer this variety of the fruit. We are expecting Chausa mangoes to enter the market by July this year," said Pansare.

The Vashi market is also selling the last of the Junnar mangoes for this season, which come from Pune. The variety enjoyed a good demand in the retail market this year. Ram Morde, mango trader at Crawford Market, said, "Dusheri and Langda are undoubtedly ruling the market at present but we still have with us Junnar mangoes which is popular among mango lovers for its saffron colour and taste.

Dusheri and Langda mangoes are being sold anywhere between Rs 50-80 per kg in the retail market. The rate is known to fall further around the first week of July, and that's when we are expecting a lot of people to buy the fruit. This is a trend which we observe every year."

Fascinating history
Dusehri was apparently named after a village, Amman Dusehri in UP, while the famous Langda variety of mango was a result of a chance seeding near Benaras

Rs 50
The price for a kilo of mangoes at the retail market in the city