Kesar Mango Keri – The real taste of Mango

With a rich haul of Kesar mangoes, the Gujarat Agro Industries Corporation has decided to brand the fruit nationally. Production of the fruit is estimated to cross 10 lakh tonnes this season.

The Junagadh Agriculture University and the GAIC have estimated the production of Kesar at 10 lakh tonnes, which is more than three times the production registered last year.
The Corporation is also planning to certify naturally ripened Kesar mangoes and build Brand Kesar to market the fruit nationally as well as internationally.

As part of the Corporation’s efforts to distribute the fruit nationally, 50,000 boxes of Kesar will be transported to the Delhi Haat for display and sale.

“The sale of Kesar Keri is the highest in Ahmedabad City. People in Delhi are hardly aware of the taste of the mango. An effort will be made to popularize the fruit by encouraging people to taste the fruit. No one can resist the taste. We are confident that they will keep coming back for more,” said D Thara, Managing Director of the GAIC.

The GAIC is also in touch with the National Horticulture Board Gurgaon. The Board has tie-ups with several malls in Delhi. The mangoes will be distributed through these malls.
Once the fruit gains popularity in Delhi, it will be then distributed across six major cities including Mumbai, Bangalore and Kolkata.

Thara said that to get certification, the fruits will have to meet the standards prescribed for organic mangoes.

The managing director said the production of mango has been good due to good weather. “We have decided to export Kesar Mangoes in a big way.

We have invited the opinion of traders regarding possible markets where the fruits can be sold. We have a rich tradition to live up to. Gujarat will turn 50 on May 1 but the Kesar is 75 years old. We will celebrate its diamond jubilee with passion.”

Kesar Mango Talala Gir Junagadh District News Gujarat India

A Major mango feast is in the offing for fruit lovers in the region due to an early arrival of the Kesar Keri variety coupled with a bumper crop this season.

This year’s first auction of the fruit began at the Talala Marketing Yard on Tuesday (April 6), which is generally held in May.

According to experts, the season is likely to last till June and rates may also come down as the yield is reported to be 15 per cent more than the last two years.

On the first day of the auction, 8,400 boxes (each weighing 10 kg) arrived from various villages in the Gir region of Junagadh district.

The minimum rate for 10 kg was Rs 150 — nearly Rs 100 less than the previous year. Sadarsinh Chauhan, a member of the Talala Marketing Yard, said: “The weather was perfect this time, as a result of which the fruit has arrived early and in a large quantity. The first lot has arrived with that of hafoos.”

Last season, the marketing yard had auctioned over six lakh boxes, which is expected to increase significantly this year. “Initial trend indicates there will be 15 per cent more yield this season. On the first day itself there were 300 more boxes,” said yard chairman Chagan Kansagra.

Kesar Mango Keri Junagadh District News Saurashtra Gujarat India

Trees laden with mangoes in November, experts say climate change a factor.

Mangoes usually mean the onset of summer in Gujarat. But this year, the farmers in Saurashtra hinterland, famous for its Kesar variety of mangoes, are a perplexed lot– the mango trees are either laden with fruits or have flowers in full bloom.

Agricultural scientists have undertaken the study in the phenomenon and believe the climate change could be a possible factor.

The phenomenon is seen in mango trees in Talala taluka in Junagadh district and in villages around Godhra. So far, these trees were never known to have flowered or given fruit off season.

The farmers in the region, though happy to take mango crop, are puzzled to see mango trees flowering and bearing fruit in October-November. Many of them have approached the nearby agriculture universities and horticulture institutes to know if the crop will have any negative effect.

Vipul Palani, a farmer in Talala Town(Gam) who has a Kesar mango orchard spread over 10 acres of land, said he has never witnessed such an activity in the past. “So far, we have seen increase or reduction in the yield but trees bearing mango fruit at this time is totally new for us,” said Palani. He approached the Junagadh Agricultural University’s horticulture department and informed them about the development.

Congress leader Jayesh Patel has mango trees in an orchard just five kilometers from Godhra city. Patel said while he has harvested the mangoes in one of the orchards, another orchard belonging to him has also started bearing fruit.

“I come from a family of farmers but I have never seen flowering of the trees and ready mango fruit during this season of the year,’’ said Patel.

“Several mango trees in the premises of Swaminarayan temple and Eagle Pipe Factory in Junagadh City are bearing good fruit,” said Dr A V Barad, the head of the Horticulture Department, Junagadh Agriculture University (JAU).

Barad said the university is yet to study the development in detail, but the most plausible and scientific reason could be climate change.

Dr A R Pathak, Director (Research) and Dr N J Vihol, associate professor with the Department of Horticulture, Anand Agriculture University, said the phenomenon is unusual. “We are getting reports from different areas of the state with trees bearing mangoes. This is a subject of study for horticulturists,” said the two scientists.

According to the scientists, environmental changes could have affected the flowering and fruit bearing habits of the seasonal variety of mangoes. “But our scientists have commenced the study to find the exact scientific reason for it,” said Pathak.

Junagadh District Saurastra News - Kesar Mangos Keri

40% decline in Kesar Mangos production at Junagadh District(Talala) this year. Raymal Kamaliya, a mango farmer in Chundadi village of Junagadh district, had earned Rs 1.5 lakh last year from his farm. Shocking as it may sound, Kamaliya is finding it difficult to buy mango for his own family this year.

Climate change has resulted in drastic reduction, as much as 40 per cent, of the famous Jungadhi kesar variety of mango, which sells maximum. "There has been no mango harvest at all on our five-acre farm.

This is all because of the weather change that caused major decline in production'' said Kamaliya. Kamaliya is not alone. There are number of farmers in Junagadh District who could hardly harvest 40 per cent of the mango production as compared to previous year, said officials in government horticulture department of Junagadh.

"Last year, the mango production was 1, 12, 840 tonnes in Junagadh district which is expected to be hardly 45, 500 tones from 16,500 ha land cultivation' said an official.

According Talala Market Yard official, the mango season started on May 5 and till date it has received 5.27 lakh boxes. But, daily inflow of mango boxes is declining with each passing day.

"Last year, we got around 9 lakh boxes in the market whereas this year it would remain around 6 lakh," said sources in Talala Market Yard. Officials said that close to 75 per cent mango harvesting is already over with farmers harvesting an average three tonnes per hectare.

"This year, there was no sign of cold that is required for good mango production.

Also, flowering was late and less in orchards," said farmer Mensibhai. Moreover, reports of an early monsoon had also threatened to stop complete harvest of mangoes.

"Farmers were afraid that rains would spoil the fruits on the trees. But, now that monsoon will arrive at regular time, we will completely harvest the crop," said Gafar Kureshi, a farmer in Junagadh.

Junagadh District(Saurastra) News – Kesar Mango(Keri) Production

Farmer exports jumbo-sized Kesar Mango(keri) over Internet, earns Rs 10 lakh every year.

Nagjibhai Boghra, a farmer from Ratang village in Junagadh District could perhaps give a tip or two to the state agriculture minister who is leading a delegation to the UK to explore the market for mangoes from Gujarat.

Boghra has a four acre land and nets a profit of 10 lakh rupees each year, selling mangoes overseas over the Internet. He now sells mango saplings as far as Egypt.

Incidentally, Boghra (48) has only studied up to the primary level, but has successfully mastered the craft of growing jumbo-sized Kesar Mangoes. Kesar is the famous brand of mango from Saurashtra and mangoes produced in his farm weigh 300 grams to 1 kg apiece, much more than the usual specimen of the same variety.

He says: “I sell my jumbo-sized mango at the price tag of Rs 800 per 20 kg. I receive the sale order on my computer. I have also developed my web site www.kesarmango.in. Several of my customers are from the UK.”

Junagadh District News – Kesar Mango Keri Talala

“Kesar Mango may be out of bound for ‘aam’ aadmi”.

Global warming has claimed its latest victim-mangoes in Junagadh district as well as the whole of Saurashtra region, taking the king of fruit out of reach of the general populace.

On Tuesday, as the auction of Junagadh's famous Kesar mangoes began in the Talala Agriculture Produce Market Committee (APMC) yard, it was declared that the mango crop produce had dropped by a major 40 percent. However, the price of mangoes saw no such fall as they rose inversely proportional to the mango yield this year.

Talala APMC yard chairman Harsukh Jarsaniya said the auction of mangoes officially began from today and the price of a 10 kg box of mango now ranges from Rs 300 to Rs 600.

"Last year, a total of nine lakh mango boxes had been sold in the Talala yard. However, this year the astronomical prices might ensure that they do not even touch the three-lakh mark," he said.

Kesar Mangoes Keris Types Varities Junagadh Saurashtra Gujarat India

Kesar Mango Keri - Junagadh City District

Types of Mangoes :-

Types of Mangoes found in India

1. Alphonso
2. Ratnagiri
3. Devgadh
4. Kesar
5. Batli
6. Langdo
7. Payri
8. Rajapuri
9. Tota

Types of Mangoes found in the US :-

1. Irwin
2. Kent
3. Lippens
4. Haden
5. Alice
6. Valencia Pride
7. Alice