Goa’s mango output up nearly 50% this season

Panaji: The Goa agriculture department has reported a nearly 50% rise in mango productivity compared to the last year and harvests are expected to continue till the first week of June.Agriculture director Sandeep Fol Desai said the bumper crop was largely due to favourable weather conditions, especially the absence of significant pre-monsoon showers. “This helped improve flowering and reduced fruit drop during the crucial growing period. We therefore saw numbers increase by nearly half,” he told TOI.The state recorded mango production of 10,044 tonnes in 2024-25, and agriculture officers estimate this year’s output could rise to nearly 15,000 tonnes if the current trend continues through the remaining harvesting season.The mango season this year followed an unusual pattern. Early flowering in several parts of Goa was partially damaged, but a second flush of flowering later in the season turned out to be highly successful, resulting in the sudden surge of mangoes now visible in local markets. “The abundance is being felt now because fruit that would normally arrive steadily from February onwards has entered the market together by end of March,” Fol Desai said.Popular varieties such as Mankurad and Goan Alphonso have performed particularly well this season. While Mankurad arrivals began in March and continued through April and May, varieties such as Maang-Hilario and Xavier are currently dominating market supply. Late-season varieties including Malgese, Fernandino and Mussarad are expected to arrive in larger quantities from the second half of May and continue till June.The delayed arrival of mangoes also impacted pricing patterns this year. Farmers usually secure premium rates during Feb and March when supply remains limited. TOI reported on Feb 23 that the prized Mankurad mangoes made their seasonal debut by commanding Rs 5,000 per dozen. These prices later dropped to Rs 1500 per dozen and as weeks passed, the prices softened in several places dropping further to Rs 1000 per dozen for bigger-sized mankurads and Rs 400 per dozen for smaller sized ones.With harvesting still continuing and late-season varieties yet to fully enter the market, agriculture officials are optimistic that the production figures could improve further over the next week.In order to ensure that farmers do not face a loss due to the fall in prices, the zonal agriculture office (ZAO) will be starting value addition product training in the Sattari taluka for mango farmers to prepare jams, juices, mango leather and other products. “Plenty of mangoes are rotting due to the abundance. We have therefore decided to help the farmers add value to the produce and get additional income from them,” said Sattari zonal agriculture officer Vishwanath Gawas.