By nature, a year of high mango yields is followed by a year of somewhat lower ones, known in farming terms as the "on year" and "off year". This is an on year. With plenty of blossom on the trees, those in the sector expect mango output to rise significantly over last year, increasing market supply and bringing relief to farmers.

Amid this positive outlook, however, there are fears over exports. Traders worry they will not be able to send the expected quantity abroad because higher fuel prices have pushed up air fares. There is also a risk that exports to some destinations will be disrupted by the effects of the war between Iran and the United States and Israel.

Global Trade Link is one of the country's leading exporters of mangoes and farm produce and has exported mangoes to Europe and other destinations for several years. In 2025 it exported 35 tonnes of mangoes to three European countries, down from 55 tonnes in 2024 and 75 tonnes in 2023.

Its chief executive, Kawsar Ahmed Rubel, said the company had aimed to export on a large scale last year too, but air fares prevented it. "This year things are getting worse. We are very frustrated," he said.

He said the company had begun exporting to Switzerland, Germany and the United Kingdom a few days earlier, but air fares had broken every record from the start. Private airlines were charging Tk 505 a kg to carry mangoes to the UK, and, a bigger problem, the state carrier Biman Bangladesh Airlines was charging Tk 580 for the same distance.

With the higher fares, he said, exporting mangoes did not cover costs, certainly not on Biman, and even private carriers' fares had risen by about Tk 100 to Tk 150 over last year.

Other exporters said that collecting exportable mangoes from orchards cost Tk 120 to Tk 130 a kg this year. Sorting, cleaning, packing, domestic transport and other costs took the total to more than Tk 150 a kg. On top of that, air freight to international markets was more than Tk 500 a kg. With production and export costs up, Bangladeshi mangoes cost more abroad than those of competitors India and Pakistan, one of the main reasons exports are losing ground.

Exporters said the total cost was within Tk 500 last year, and about Tk 300 to Tk 350 three years ago.

Kawsar Ahmed Rubel said that if the situation continued, exports would fall by 100 per cent this year. "Our competitors such as India and Pakistan sell mangoes much cheaper, and the taste and aroma of their mangoes are almost the same. We will not be able to compete with them," he said. Because of freight, he said, Bangladeshi mangoes cost at least $1 to $1.5 a kg more than those of rival countries, whose governments run separate cargo flights during the fruit export season, something Bangladesh does not have.

Arifur Rahman, director of the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) project for producing exportable mangoes, told Jagonews that they were also worried about exporters' problems. As mango was now one of the main export products, they wanted to take the matter to the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism and would make a proposal at a meeting on 21 May.

He said mango production was good this year and that if exports were disrupted, growers would not get a fair price. Mango exports had not gone well in the past two years either because of various complications, and a major initiative was needed this year to remove the barriers.

According to the department, Bangladesh exported 2,194 tonnes of mangoes last year (2025) and 1,321 tonnes the year before. In 2023 it exported 3,100 tonnes, the highest on record so far, compared with only 309 tonnes in 2017.

Bangladesh currently exports mangoes to 38 countries, including the UK, Italy, France, Canada, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Germany and Sweden. Last year mangoes were exported to China for the first time, and this year Malaysia, Japan and Australia have shown fresh interest in importing Bangladeshi mangoes.

Arifur Rahman said production this year would be higher than last year, and a new production record was expected this season.

According to the DAE, the target this year is 27.95 lakh tonnes of mangoes from 2.07 lakh hectares. Last year 26.62 lakh tonnes were produced on 2.05 lakh hectares.

Mangoes are now grown commercially on a large scale in 14 districts. Varieties including Gopalbhog, Himsagar-Khirsapat, Langra, Amrapali, Fazli, Haribhanga and Gourmoti are coming to market in stages from 5 May to 15 August.

With no major natural disaster so far, production is normal and growers do not expect losses. They say that even if exports fall, they will make a profit if local prices stay good.

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