The first consignment of mangoes has been sent to England from Rajshahi this season. On Friday night (May 28), 3,000 kg of mangoes were sent from Bagha in Rajshahi. Himsagar mango in Rajshahi has started plucking from Friday. On the same day, mangoes were sent abroad.
A 20-member association of mango growers in Bagha has been producing mangoes under contract with exporters for the past three years. These mangoes grown under good care are exported abroad. Officials from the Department of Agricultural Extension assisted them. This time Bagha Upazila Agriculture Officer Shafiullah Sultan is supervising it.
According to the agriculture official, mangoes have to be plucked from the trees one by one for export. A certain amount of stems is also left with the mango and cut with scissors. Mango has to be sorted and graded. Himsagar mango in size is to be 200 grams each. There is no stain on the mango. For this you have to do fruit bagging. All these have to be certified by the Department of Agriculture. Only then can the mango be sent abroad.
He added that after taking the mangoes from Rajshahi, the mangoes underwent 'hot water treatment' at the Central Packaging House in Dhaka. Then there is ‘quarantine paste’. At that time, if any redfish eggs or larvae were found in any of the mangoes, then the entire consignment of mangoes was canceled.
Shafiqul Islam, president of the farmers' association, said they have been sending mangoes to Europe for three years. But due to Corona, the mango could not be sent even after signing the contract last year. It is evening to load mangoes in the truck. After that the truck left for Dhaka.
He added that they gave mangoes to exporters at Tk. 80 per kg. This is the first foreign trip of Rajshahi Mango from Rajshahi this year. Mangoes will be sent to other European countries by other farmers in phases.
Meanwhile, Himsagar mangoes have been seen in mango shops in Baneshwar Hat and Shiroil areas of Puthia upazila of Rajshahi since Friday. Himsagar is a very popular mango variety in West Bengal. This mango is found in Rajshahi, Chapainawabganj and Satkhira of Bangladesh. Mango is popular for its sweet aroma and taste. Each Himsagar mango weighs about 250 grams. The amount of fiber in this mango is very low.
To ensure the maturity of the mango in the tree, the Rajshahi district administration fixes the date of plucking the mango every year. This time the date for lowering the juicy fruit was fixed on May 28. According to the farmers, the Himsagar was found ripening a few days ago. So the farmers have started lowering the fruit since Friday. This improved mango has also appeared in the market.
Visiting Baneshwar Hat in Puthia Upazila of Rajshahi on Friday morning, it was seen that besides various Guti, Lakshanbhog, Ranipaschanda and Gopalbhog, Himsagar has also arrived. Farmer Sarikul Islam brought a van Himsagar to this market from Sarada of Charghat. He said it was time for the Himsagar to appear. But due to the effect of Yaas, the farmers are plucking less mango. If the weather is good, more mangoes will grow.
It has been seen that the storekeepers are buying Himsagar from the farmers at a wholesale price of Tk. 1,500 to Tk. 1,600 per maund. And retailers are selling Himsagar at the market at Tk. 45 to Tk.50 per kg. Traders said mango prices would rise further.
Himsagar has been seen in mango warehouses and shops in Shiroil area of Rajshahi metropolis. Here the price of per kg Himsagar was asked to be Tk.55 to Tk.60. Traders said that the demand for Himsagar is always good in the market. Those who like to eat mango, they are waiting to taste the sea after eating Gopalbhog. This time the demand for Himsagar has been seen from the first day. Buyers are taking home, sending to relatives.
The mango season has started on May 15 in Rajshahi. From that day onwards, various varieties of mangoes began to be plucked. Then Gopalbhog on 20th May and Lakshanbhog or Lakhna and Ranipachand from 25th May. Himsagar descent started from Friday. Langra will be launched from June 8, Fazli and Amrapali from June 15 and Ashwina and Bari from July 10.
The district has mango orchards on 17,943 hectares of land this year. The target for mango production has been set at 11.9 metric tons per hectare. If this target is achieved, the district will produce a total of 219,000 metric tons of mango this year. Of this, about 500 tons of mangoes will be produced by fruit bagging method. Bagged 200 metric tons of mango will go to Europe.