The present article analyzes the post-harvest management of mangoes in India for exports, and export performance of mango and mango based products.
Post-Harvest Management of Mangoes for Exports:
Mangoes are generally harvested at physiological mature stage and ripened for optimum quality. Fruits are handpicked and plucked with a harvester. The best way to observe maturity in mango is color of the pulp, which turns cream to light yellow on maturity. The harvesting needs to be done in the morning hours and fruits should be collected in plastic trays and kept in shades.
The fruits harvested with 8-10 mm long stalks appear better on ripening as undesired sports on skin caused by sap burn are prevented. Such fruits are less prone to stem-end rot and other storage diseases. A simple, low cost and portable mango harvesting device has been propagated by AEZ, Krishna costing Rs 2,000, which is subsidized by 50 per cent.
The post-harvest losses in mangoes have been estimated in the range of 20-30 percent from harvesting to consumption stage shown in Table 10.1:
Grading:
In order to reduce value loss and to remove the field heat, the produce should be harvested during coolest part of the day, i.e. in the morning. A preliminary grading is done immediately after harvesting at the field level. The mangoes are graded according to size and maturity.
Desapping:
Matured mangoes exude large amount of sap from the cut stem. As the sap contain lots of resorcinol (oil), which burns the mango skin if contracted by the sap, the mangoes are desapped by placing them in framework in an inverted position for two hours to completely remove the sap from the fruit.
Processing:
After the desapping process, the mango is processed in a post-harvest treatment line having following operations in a common facility center (pack house).
Post-Harvest Operation of Mangoes:
Pack House/Grading and Packing Center:
A pack house is a place where products are brought after harvesting to prepare them as per the market requirements, in terms of washing, brushing, waxing, grading, packing, cooling etc. It also carries out value addition without modifying the appearance of the product. The shelf life of the product is enhanced by providing the congenial conditions. Keeping in view the variety of crops, two to three grading and sorting lines may be installed. After sorting, the produce is packed in various desired packs and pre-cooled.
The operational steps in the pack house would be as under:
a. Sorting, Cleaning and Washing:
A preliminary storing of produce is carried out to remove unmarketable prices and foreign matter such as plant debris, soil, stone etc. before the produce is passed on for further Operations. Cleaning and washing are carried out with flush of cold water to clear produce which has acquired latex stains from injuries caused during harvesting.
b. Fungicide Treatment:
As decay caused by molds/ bacteria is a major cause of loss of fresh produce during the distance transportation and marketing, the fungicides are applied after the produce is washed and dried. The fruits are taken to a trough containing detergent and 0.5 per cent fungicidal solution.
After treating the fruit with the detergent and diluted fungicidal solution (Binomial powder), the fruit is wiped off with muslin cloth till dirt and latex stains are completely removed. After treatment with the fungicidal solutions, the fruit is dried with dry muslin cloth and spread on the grading table and air- dried.
c. Size, Grading and Waxing:
The fruits so treated are finally graded according to the size, maturity and quality without any blemish. Selection and grading in a small packing house are best done by human eye and by hand and assisted by sizing rings. For long distance destination the fruit is treated with wax .The wax emulsion is kept in a vessel and a muslin cloth is soaked in it and applied on individual fruit. This is carried out to enhance appearance and limit water loss from produce.
d. Packaging:
The fruit is packed in corrugated fiber boxes (CFBS) with necessary bursting and puncture resistance and compression strength. The specification details of CFB boxes are recommended by APEDA.
e. Pre-Cooling:
After packaging the mango in CFB boxes, the packed cartoons are placed in the pre-cooling rooms where the temperature is set at 12.5° C with 90- 95 percent relative humidity. Once produce is placed in pre-cool, it will radiate heat to the room by virtue of field heat and heat of respiration. As soon as the produce is brought to its optimum storage temperature, the respiration will be brought under control and the maximum storage life of the produce be realized. It is observed that the fruit pulp temperature comes down from 35°C to 12.5°C in about six hours.
After pre-cooling, the produce is brought to cold storage to extend its shelf life. The harvest fruits are pre cooled to 10-12° C and then stored in an appropriate temperature. The fruits of Dashehari, Mallika and Amrapalli are pre- cooled at 12° C and then stored 8°C with 85-90 per cent relative humidity. The fruits can be stored for 3-4 weeks in good conditions and at low temperature.
The development of cold storages, including cold chain, for transport has an important role to play in reducing post- harvest losses. The bio chemical and microbial changes are slow at low temperatures. As such, refrigerated cold storages used to prolong the shelf life of perishable produce. The fruits can be stored for 3-4 weeks in good condition at low temperature. The problem of chilling injury at low temperature can be overcome by keeping the fruits in 0.5 per cent ventilated polythene bags.
Transportation of Mangoes:
The truck has been adopted as the most convenient mode of transport due to its easy approach from the orchard to the market. However, these trucks are not found suitable for transporting these live materials as they exert lot of pressure on the fruits and do not boss temperature control devices. Therefore, it is imperative to design and develop suitable transport system. Refer containers (Refrigerated vans) may be found useful for long distance transport and export purposes, as they would help in reducing the post-harvest losses.
The processes in post-harvest management of mangoes are depicted in the Chart below:
Export Performance of Mango:
Fresh Mango:
The quantum of fresh mango exported from India in 1987-89 was 20.30 thousand metric ton which enhanced to 83.70 thousand metric ton in 2008-09. In terms of value realization it was Rs. 23.24 crore in 1987-89 and Rs. 120.5 crore in 2008-09. Share of export to production was about 1.5 per cent.
Mango Pulp:
As regards mango pulp, on an average, India export about 105 thousand metric ton worth Rs. 390 crore.
Other Mango Based Products:
India’s export of mango and mango-based products during 2004-05 registered a marginal growth of 6.62 per cent over the previous year (Table 10.2).
Saudi Arabia continues to be largest market for Indian Mango and mango based products. Export of this market in 2004-05 registered a steep growth of 18.77 per cent over the previous year when the same reached a level of Rs 103.12 crore as against Rs 86.82 crore. The other markets showing a sharp growth during the period comprised – France (108.94 %), Yemen Rep (86.89 %), Netherland (21.38%), and Lebanon (17.53%). On the other, the countries representing decreasing trend during the period included – UAE (20.80%), Bangladesh (17.42 %), and Kuwait (16.55 %).
Export Prices of Mango and Mango Pulp:
APEDA, since its inception in 1986 has been playing a major role in the export effort of Mango and Mango based products. They provide various services to the trade and industry. These include identification of new markets, regular participation both national and international trade fairs and also vigorously launching of promotional campaigns for mango and mango based products like mango pulp, juices, chutney and pickles.
The computation of the ratio of FOB price at Chennai as collected from exporters in both the study districts to the international border prices shows that both mango pulp and fresh mango are highly price competitive in the international market.
Table below shows the details: 