USA rejects Indian mangoes shipment worth ₹4 crore

Suspected motive is to favour imports of Pakistani mangoes

Washington DC (USA) – Mangoes, known as the ‘King of Fruits’, are in high demand in the US., with every American citizen reportedly buying at least 2 kg of mangoes annually. Among all exporters, India is the largest supplier of mangoes to the US. However, mangoes worth ₹4.28 crore sent from India were destroyed after arriving in the United States. The reason cited by US authorities was ‘discrepancies’ in documentation related to the radiation process—a treatment used to kill insects and extend shelf life of the fruits. According to an English news report, boxes of mangoes were held up at Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Atlanta airports. These mangoes will not be sent back to India, but will be destroyed locally, since returning them would incur further costs and risk spoilage.

1. According to Indian exporters, the issue was not with the insects, but with documentation related to the insect-killing process. The mangoes underwent radiation treatment on 8^th and 9^th May in Mumbai under the supervision of an official from the US Department of Agriculture. They were also issued a ‘PQ 203’ certificate by the US FDA office in India. Still, the mangoes were rejected in the US on the grounds of discrepancies in the certification.

2. There is suspicion that US President Donald Trump, who was reportedly pursuing a cryptocurrency agreement with Pakistan, may have favoured Pakistani mangoes. As a result, the claim of documentation error may have been used as a pretext to reject and destroy Indian mangoes.

Facts and figures about world-famous Indian mangoes

1. On average, India exports 22,000–23,000 metric tonnes of mangoes to the US each season.

2. India produces approximately 52% of the world’s total mangoes—more than any other country in the world.

3. India produces 2.62 crore tonnes of mangoes annually, while Indonesia produces 41 lakh tonnes, China 39 lakh tonnes, Mexico 27 lakh tonnes, and Pakistan only 26 lakh tonnes. This means India produces 10 times more mangoes than Pakistan.

Editorial Perspective

If the suspicions are true, this incident once again reveals the deceitful behaviour of the United States. India imports large quantities of crude oil and diamonds from the US. If India were to cautiously and wisely shift such imports to powerful allied nations like Russia, which are also dominant in these sectors, in the near future—it should not come as a surprise and would be a strategically well-calculated commercial decision.