Alphonso Mangoes of Konkan
Yields of Alphonso mangoes in Ratnagiri have been exceptionally low this year. For us it is only 10% of the average of the last few years. The mango based economy in the region is in its worst time as the farmers and traders are facing difficulty in marketing that meager production in the face of current lockdown situation. Not just farmers but uncertainty looms over the lives of labourers, pesticide dealers and transporters. With very little income received in hand, it is not sure whether there will be any money left with the farmers to meet the costs for the next year.
Alphonso or Hapus mangoes from Konkan coast have enjoyed a privilege at the level of consumers for some last 60 plus years due to its unique flavor, smell and the taste. It is just different from all the other mangoes grown in India. This uniqueness can largely be attributed to its location. The red lateritic soils, even temperatures, heavy monsoonal rainfall and most importantly the humid salty air makes what is known as Konkan Hapus. This is not just a mango fruit but an experience in itself for its relishers. However the farmers have been struggling recently.
I remember during my childhood in Mumbai, my grandfather was very much active and he used to get mangoes from our joint extended family holding back in village. He used to sell them to the nearby customers. People used to wait till our parcels arrived. We also had to work with our grandfather carrying those parcels up and down in the buildings and making deliveries. He had advantage of doing the direct sale of mangoes while majority of the farmers back in village were selling them to the traders in the market. Over the years we found that this way of marketing had become the trend with many farmers across the city doing it through their brothers and relatives. Hapus was more of a niche product after all.
In last thirty years or so, a large number of villagers started developing their orchards. There was also momentum in the cities as everybody who had migrated wanted to have his own Alphonso mango orchard. Many non natives of the region also started to buy the lands and plant Alphonso mangoes. Mostly non agricultural incomes from fair businesses as well as corrupt practices were being invested in agricultural development without doing any proper business analysis. With all the costs of clearing the jungle lands, putting compound wall, planting, irrigating and hiring labour, more than fruits there was immediate return of satisfaction of having one’s own orchards in a beautiful looking green hilly region.
The Alphonso mangoes have always had very low natural productivity compared to other varieties of mango. The unique taste of the mangoes used to arrive from the natural stress the plant used to get and also the carefully harvested fruits at the right stage. When the large mass of people in Konkan shifted to this less productive option, they created stressful conditions for the plants by clearing grasses and destroying natural vegetation on the hill slopes. With every patch of land put under Alphonso Mangoes, its monoculture is playing havoc with high incidence of pests and diseases and attack of wild monkeys. To counter that farmers have started to use very high amounts of pesticides and hire special people to drive away monkeys. To take advantage of high prices offered for the early harvests, farmers have started using plant growth regulators which have started damaging the trees in the long run.
The stressed out lands, weakened plants and desperate economy has now started crumbling in the face of climate change. My grandfather had an acute sense of business. He used to stress on maintaining a proper cash flow and investing the returns in productive systems which could generate revenues on their own. The wisdom has gone missing.
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Alphonso or Hapus mangoes from Konkan coast have enjoyed a privilege at the level of consumers for some last 60 plus years due to its unique flavor, smell and the taste. It is just different from all the other mangoes grown in India. This uniqueness can largely be attributed to its location. The red lateritic soils, even temperatures, heavy monsoonal rainfall and most importantly the humid salty air makes what is known as Konkan Hapus. This is not just a mango fruit but an experience in itself for its relishers. However the farmers have been struggling recently.
I remember during my childhood in Mumbai, my grandfather was very much active and he used to get mangoes from our joint extended family holding back in village. He used to sell them to the nearby customers. People used to wait till our parcels arrived. We also had to work with our grandfather carrying those parcels up and down in the buildings and making deliveries. He had advantage of doing the direct sale of mangoes while majority of the farmers back in village were selling them to the traders in the market. Over the years we found that this way of marketing had become the trend with many farmers across the city doing it through their brothers and relatives. Hapus was more of a niche product after all.
In last thirty years or so, a large number of villagers started developing their orchards. There was also momentum in the cities as everybody who had migrated wanted to have his own Alphonso mango orchard. Many non natives of the region also started to buy the lands and plant Alphonso mangoes. Mostly non agricultural incomes from fair businesses as well as corrupt practices were being invested in agricultural development without doing any proper business analysis. With all the costs of clearing the jungle lands, putting compound wall, planting, irrigating and hiring labour, more than fruits there was immediate return of satisfaction of having one’s own orchards in a beautiful looking green hilly region.
The Alphonso mangoes have always had very low natural productivity compared to other varieties of mango. The unique taste of the mangoes used to arrive from the natural stress the plant used to get and also the carefully harvested fruits at the right stage. When the large mass of people in Konkan shifted to this less productive option, they created stressful conditions for the plants by clearing grasses and destroying natural vegetation on the hill slopes. With every patch of land put under Alphonso Mangoes, its monoculture is playing havoc with high incidence of pests and diseases and attack of wild monkeys. To counter that farmers have started to use very high amounts of pesticides and hire special people to drive away monkeys. To take advantage of high prices offered for the early harvests, farmers have started using plant growth regulators which have started damaging the trees in the long run.
The stressed out lands, weakened plants and desperate economy has now started crumbling in the face of climate change. My grandfather had an acute sense of business. He used to stress on maintaining a proper cash flow and investing the returns in productive systems which could generate revenues on their own. The wisdom has gone missing.
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