No Indian mangoes for Europe

A ban that halts all mango shipments from India to all over the EU has commenced over suspicions of fruit flies infestation. The ban is likely to stay active until December 2016.

The mangoes are first shipped to the UK and, from there, all over Europe. Great Britain imports around £6.3 million worth of mango every year out of a total market valued at £68 million.

Indian mangoes represent about 8.5% of the mango market imported into Europe, measuring at 4,816 tones out of the 56,205 tones of mangoes the UK imports each year.

The ban came after non-European food pests were found in 207 shipments of fruit and vegetables last year.

The Indian Department of Commerce, on the other side, defends itself, claiming that the ban stands on groundless accusations.

‘Since we got to know about the issue in March, we've put in place an elaborate examination and certification procedure that addresses the issue raised by the EU,’ said Ajay Sahai, director general of the Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO), a body affiliated with the Indian Department of Commerce.

‘We ourselves have only imported treated mangoes this year, and we have had zero instances of pests found in our products,’ says UK mango importer Monica Bhandari.

Mangoes are imported into the UK from a number of countries, including Brazil, Peru, Kenya, Uganda, Pakistan, and Bangladesh.