Fruit production in the country is rising, foreign varieties are spreading, and duties on fruit imports have gone up. For these reasons fruit imports have fallen.

Exports, however, are not growing in line with production and remain well below expectations. Exporters see rising air freight as the main reason. Some say Bangladesh has not yet built enough capacity to export fruit; others say Bangladeshi fruit has not yet established a strong position in the world market. This emerges from the data and from conversations with people in the sector.

Agricultural economist Dr Jahangir Alam Khan told Jagonews24: "The main reason for the fall in fruit imports is the rise in fruit production. Foreign fruits such as dragon fruit and avocado in particular are now produced in the country and have come within reach of ordinary consumers. Production of local fruits including mango, jackfruit and guava has also risen. So it is quite natural for imports to fall as production grows."

On the fall in fruit exports, the economist said: "With the international economic situation poor, people's incomes and spending power have fallen, which has affected demand for fruit. Demand for Bangladeshi fruit in the global market has fallen and exports have declined. Bangladeshi fruit is also still mainly dependent on the ethnic market. Because it cannot get into international chain stores, exports are not growing at the expected rate, and the appeal of Bangladeshi fruit abroad has not been raised as it should be. It is not the case that exports have fallen only because of air freight."

Annual fruit production in the country is now more than 1.5 crore tonnes, and Bangladesh is among the world's top producers of several fruits.

According to the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE), 1 crore 50 lakh 33 thousand 965 tonnes of fruit were produced on 7 lakh 65 thousand 539 hectares in the 2022-23 fiscal year. Both area and output fell in 2023-24, when 1 crore 48 lakh 10 thousand 338 tonnes were produced on 7 lakh 57 thousand 496 hectares. In the latest year, 2024-25, output was 1 crore 51 lakh 52 thousand 242 tonnes on 7 lakh 79 thousand 370 hectares. Production may rise further in the current 2025-26 fiscal year.

Imports of foreign fruit are falling. In 2021-22, 8 lakh 62 thousand 889 tonnes of fruit were imported; in the current 2025-26 fiscal year, 6 lakh 22 thousand 806 tonnes had been imported up to 20 June.

DAE data show imports of 8 lakh 62 thousand 889 tonnes in 2021-22, 6 lakh 64 thousand 901 tonnes in 2022-23, 6 lakh 58 thousand 847 tonnes in 2023-24, 6 lakh 8 thousand 661 tonnes in 2024-25 and 6 lakh 22 thousand 806 tonnes in the current 2025-26 fiscal year.

The country usually imports 32 kinds of fresh fruit, mostly oranges, apples, grapes and malta, along with dragon fruit, strawberries, dates, amla, longan, alu bokhara and custard apple.

According to the DAE, imports in 2025-26 up to 20 June included 1 lakh 38 thousand 282 tonnes of oranges, 1 lakh 54 thousand 674 tonnes of apples, 87,338 tonnes of grapes, 53,000 tonnes of fresh dates, 21,000 tonnes of dates, 708 tonnes of malta, 4 tonnes of dragon fruit, 454 tonnes of custard apple, 25 tonnes of strawberries, 81 tonnes of amla, 4.7 tonnes of longan and 16 tonnes of wood apple.

Taxes on dried and fresh fruit imports were raised last year, and people in the sector believe this has also reduced imports.

Bangladesh currently exports fruit to 38 countries, including mango, jackfruit, lychee, papaya, dragon fruit and strawberry.

According to the DAE, 9,016 tonnes of fruit were exported in 2023-24, 7,093 tonnes in 2024-25 and 8,241 tonnes in the current 2025-26 fiscal year.

DAE data show Bangladesh produced 18 lakh 35 thousand 74 tonnes of jackfruit in 2024-25, yet exports only a little over 1,000 to 2,000 tonnes. Jackfruit exports fell from 2,231 tonnes in 2022-23 to 1,203 tonnes in 2025-26, and in 2024-25 were lower still at just 1,083 tonnes. Against production of 18 lakh 35 thousand tonnes, jackfruit exports of one to two thousand tonnes are far less than one per cent of output.

Mango exports, according to the DAE, rose from just 309 tonnes in 2017 to a peak of 3,100 tonnes in 2023, fell to 1,321 tonnes in 2024 and rose again to 2,194 tonnes in 2025. So far this year (up to 24 June), 765 tonnes of mango have been exported.

Bangladeshi mangoes go to 38 countries, including the United Kingdom, Italy, France, Canada, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Germany and Sweden. Mango was exported to China for the first time last year, and this year Malaysia, Japan and Australia have shown new interest in importing Bangladeshi mango.

Dr Md Mehedi Masud, a fruit expert and former project director of the Nutrition Improvement through Year-round Fruit Production project, believes the country has not yet built adequate capacity to export fruit. "Fruit imports have fallen because production of local fruit has increased. Recently fruit production has risen by about 50 lakh tonnes, so people are eating more local fruit and the need for imports has fallen," he told Jagonews24.

"The main reason exports have fallen is that the capacity to produce and export fruit suited to the international market has still not been built up adequately. Exports have also fallen because transport costs have risen. Although production has increased, the infrastructure and capacity for expanding exports must be increased urgently. If transport costs can be cut, it will have a positive impact on fruit exports," he said.

Mohammad Monsur, general secretary of the Bangladesh Fruits, Vegetables and Allied Products Exporters' Association, told Jagonews24: "The main reason fruit and vegetable exports have fallen is the abnormal increase in transport costs, or air freight. Over the past few years cargo fares to the Middle East and Europe have almost tripled. A transport cost that used to be Tk 100 has now reached Tk 300. At present, shipping one kilogram of goods to Europe costs around Tk 500 to 550 on different airlines."

"Bangladeshi exporters compete mainly with India, Pakistan and other countries, but our air freight is much higher than theirs. Exporters in other countries can get the same fruit or vegetables to market at lower cost, so Bangladeshi products end up relatively expensive in the international market and we are falling behind," he said.

"There is no big new reason behind the fall in exports. Rising transport costs are the biggest problem. If air freight cannot be reduced, there is a risk that Bangladesh's position in fruit and vegetable exports will weaken further," he added.

Abul Hossain, owner of Lee Enterprise, one of the country's leading fruit exporters, told Jagonews24: "One of the main reasons for the fall in fruit and vegetable exports is the abnormal rise in air freight. It used to be about Tk 250 per kilogram, then rose to Tk 320. Recently, especially on the pretext of the Iran-Israel conflict, it has risen further to Tk 547 per kilogram. It has become difficult to compete in the international market with such high transport costs."

"Buyers can now easily find alternatives to Bangladesh's mango, jackfruit, vegetables and other farm products. The same kinds of fruit and vegetables go to European markets from India, Pakistan, Egypt and various countries in Africa and the Middle East. Farm produce is being exported in large volumes from Kolkata in India in particular. So buyers in the UK and elsewhere in Europe compare the prices of Bangladeshi products with those from other countries, and if the same product is available more cheaply elsewhere, they buy it there," he said.

"Bangladesh has some special farm products for which there are few alternatives in other countries, and these are still being exported. But if air freight keeps rising like this, Bangladesh's competitiveness in fruit and vegetable exports will fall further," Abul Hossain said.

People in the sector say that although fruit production is rising steadily, there is no alternative to cutting air fares, building cold-chain infrastructure, packaging to international standards and producing more exportable fruit if the country is to become competitive in the international market.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.