Pakistan is the world’s fifth-largest mango producer, after India, China, Thailand and Indonesia, according to Pakistan’s Chambers of Commerce and Industry.

However Punjab, which produces about 70 per cent per cent of Pakistan’s mangoes, has seen production fall more than 35 per cent this year, mango growers and traders estimate, while Sindh province’s harvest is down 15 per cent.

Ahmad Jawad, chair of the agriculture standing committee for the chamber of commerce, said Pakistan’s mango exports, which last year stood at 130,000 tonnes, may drop by 30,000 tonnes this year.

Abdul Waheed, a top mango grower and exporter and head of the All Pakistan Fruit and Vegetable Exporters, Importers and Merchants Association, said erratic weather linked to climate change was taking a toll on mangoes and a wide range of other crops in Pakistan.

Yields are falling and harvest seasons are shifting, he said, noting that “this change in weather conditions has weakened the resistance of mangoes to fight diseases”.

“It ultimately damages mangoes at large scale,” he said.

 Finding markets for the mangoes that are harvested is another problem. Suspended flights and high freight charges this year related to coronavirus lockdown restrictions are likely to reduce the country’s mango exports substantially, officials said.

In the south London neighbourhood of Tooting, where mango stands run by vendors of Pakistani descent are a seasonal highlight, prices for most varieties have doubled this year - and profits are down. “You cannot sell it,” said Asif Khaliq, standing over a big display of the golden fruit. “We can’t convince the customers to understand” why prices are so much higher than last year, he told the Reuters.

Agencies