T he United States of Aam-erica has a new ruler. Kesar, the saffronhued native of Gujarat, has toppled from the throne the long-reign - ing king, the delicate Alphonso, in the US, which has emerged as India’s biggest mango market.
Between April 2024 and January 2025, India exported mangoes worth $24.97 million to US, which overtook the United Arab Emirates (at $20.78 mil - lion) for the first time to become the largest destination for Indian man - goes, according to data from the com - merce ministry. The figure includes fresh, dried and pulp mangoes.
This coincided with another tri - umph. In the category of fresh man - goes—which excludes dried slices and pulp—Kesar exports to the US were worth $4.63 million, beating to a pulp Alphonso, whose exports were worth about $2.85 million, in the first nine months of the last fiscal year.
Banganapalli, a variety from Andhra Pradesh known for its pleas - ant aroma and fibre-free pulp, was third, with exports valued at $1.43 mil - lion. Other mango varieties on India’s export list to the US include the popu - lar Langda, Dasheri, Chausa, Totapuri and Mallika.
It is not just the US that Kesar has conquered. That is only the latest step in its worldwide domination, which is two years old. While Alphonso— grown primarily in the Ratnagiri belt of Maharashtra—has a long and storied past as the champagne of man - goes, Kesar is now lording over global trade volumes.
Kesar overtook Alphonso as India’s most exported mango for the first time in FY2024. That year, Kesar’s exports across the world were valued at $11.25 million as against $8.68 mil - lion worth of Alphonso. Beyond US and UAE, other prominent destina - tions for Indian mangoes include Saudi Arabia, UK, Canada, Germany, Kuwait, Oman and the Netherlands.
MAN-GO ABOUT TOWN
The rapid growth of Kesar exports to the US is no aam story. The variety is favoured by exporters for its longer shelf life and sturdier build. They add one more reason for the growing sales of Kesar—nostalgia of the Gujarati diaspora.
Jayesh Patel, a Louisiana-based ho - telier, owns a Kesar farm at Sisodra in Gujarat’s Navsari district. The 72-year-old, who left his village in the early 1970s, returns each year to spend a couple of months taking care of his 5,000-odd Kesar trees. Patel, who wants the world to relish the mango that was his childhood favourite, ex - ports Kesar to the US and supplies it at major diaspora events, including functions hosted at the Indian consu - late in San Francisco.
“ Many Gujaratis set - tled in the US have sweet, childhood memories of eat - ing Kesar. They form the bulk of our customers,” says Hiren Ahir, founder of Kashi Exports and a leading mango expor ter based in Tapi, Gujarat, adding that several ex - porters have been at work to con - vert America’s Alphonso loyalists into Kesar enthusiasts.
“Alphonsos are too delicate, and we face a lot of issues while exporting them,” says Ahir, noting that Kesar’s resilience and longer shelf life make it more suited for international markets.
Patel, who was earlier chairman of the Best Western International hotel chain and whose family runs several hotels in the US, says while the Indian diaspora remains the core customer base for mango ex - porters, there is a market beyond them. “Since the Covid-19 pandemic, Americans have become increasingly health-conscious—and that’s where I see an opportunity for the mineral-rich Indian mangoes.” He says Kesar triumphs due to its flavour. “Once someone tastes it, they come back for more. Employees in my hotels, mainly Mexicans and Caribbeans, have acquired a taste for Kesar. They now seek out Indian mangoes, even though they cost nearly three times as much a s Mexican varieties.”
While US President Donald Trump has frequently raised concerns over tariffs with India—with both countries currently negotiating a bilateral trade pact—the US has, on record, promoted Indian mangoes and pomegranates. Both fruits were notably mentioned in an India-US joint statement issued in February. The statement said, “India expressed appreciation for US measures taken to enhance exports of Indian mangoes and pomegranates to the United States.”
COST BARRIER
Despite this diplomatic goodwill, Indian mangoes face significant hurdles in the American market, with cost being a huge barrier. Ahir of Kashi Exports says freight ex - penses account for 60-65% of the mango’s retail price in the US, mak - ing affordability a persistent chal - lenge for its growth.
“Our farm-to-fork timeline from Gujarat to American retail shelves is around five days,” he says. The journey begins in the farms and continues to his facility in Kalakva, Tapi, where mangoes undergo hot water-immersion treatment. They are then packed and transported in refrigerated trucks to Navi Mumbai for irradiation. Here fruits are exposed to controlled radiation to eliminate pests and enhance shelf life. It is a mandatory pro - cess for mangoes exported to the US.
“US officers stationed at the irradiation facility inspect each consignment, draw samples and clear the lot—typically 400 packets at a time—for air shipment,” says Ahir. The irradiation process costs Rs 150 for a pack of three mangoes. “In US retail stores, that same pack of three mangoes is sold for around $35-40,” he adds.
A Mumbai-based exporter, requesting anonymity, says shipping man - goes to the US may be financially re - warding, but it is a “logistical challenge”. “Once mango packets are loaded in a refrigerated truck en route to an irradiation facility, that vehicle can’t be used for any other destination. It must be sealed and certified as per standard protocols.”
In contrast, he says, exporting to the UAE is far simpler. “There are no such conditions. The process is faster, less problematic.” The exporter, who deals in Alphonso, Kesar, Badami and Rajapuri varieties, says mangoes bound for the Gulf countries are shipped by sea, with a transit time of about a week.
There’s a new competitor in the mango battle—Yemen. “Yemeni man - goes have started gaining traction in Dubai and elsewhere. They are cheap - er than Indian mangoes,” says the Mumbai exporter. One of the widely popular Yemeni mango varieties in the UAE is Taimoor.
The rise of Indian mango exports in the US comes after a bumpy ride re - cently. In 2020 and 2021, shipments of fresh mangoes were suspended after inspectors from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) were unable to visit India during the pandemic to certify the fruit as free from pests and diseases. A similar hurdle emerged earlier in Europe, when the European Union banned imports of Alphonso mangoes from May 2014 to December 2015, citing the detection of fruit flies in several shipments.
In US, exports of fresh mangoes resumed in 2022 after a two-year hiatus. India secured USDA approval for mango shipments in time for the new sea - son, with Alphonso topping the priority list. “As part of the mutual agreement, India will be able to export mangoes to the USA in the mango season commencing with the Alphonso variety of mangoes by March onwards,” the Ministry of Commerce and Industry said in a statement dated January 11, 2022.
The meteoric rise of Kesar is as recent as it is surprising. In the pandemic year of 2020-21, Kesar exports amounted to less than half the value of Alphonso ($2.92 million vs $6.08 mil - lion). But over the next three years, Kesar’s global exports in dollar terms surged by 285%, toppling Alphonso.
Early data from FY25 suggests the gulf is set to widen: for every $100 earned through Kesar exports during the first nine months of the financial year, Alphonso fetched just $66. In the US market alone, the ratio stood at 100:61 in Kesar’s favour during the same period.
Buoyed by strong demand and support from exporters, Kesar has reshaped the pecking and plucking order of India’s mango exports—both glob - ally and in the US. With its golden hue and rich aroma, it has established itself as the new royalty of the Indian mango trade.
Between April 2024 and January 2025, India exported mangoes worth $24.97 million to US, which overtook the United Arab Emirates (at $20.78 mil - lion) for the first time to become the largest destination for Indian man - goes, according to data from the com - merce ministry. The figure includes fresh, dried and pulp mangoes.
This coincided with another tri - umph. In the category of fresh man - goes—which excludes dried slices and pulp—Kesar exports to the US were worth $4.63 million, beating to a pulp Alphonso, whose exports were worth about $2.85 million, in the first nine months of the last fiscal year.
Banganapalli, a variety from Andhra Pradesh known for its pleas - ant aroma and fibre-free pulp, was third, with exports valued at $1.43 mil - lion. Other mango varieties on India’s export list to the US include the popu - lar Langda, Dasheri, Chausa, Totapuri and Mallika.
It is not just the US that Kesar has conquered. That is only the latest step in its worldwide domination, which is two years old. While Alphonso— grown primarily in the Ratnagiri belt of Maharashtra—has a long and storied past as the champagne of man - goes, Kesar is now lording over global trade volumes.
Kesar overtook Alphonso as India’s most exported mango for the first time in FY2024. That year, Kesar’s exports across the world were valued at $11.25 million as against $8.68 mil - lion worth of Alphonso. Beyond US and UAE, other prominent destina - tions for Indian mangoes include Saudi Arabia, UK, Canada, Germany, Kuwait, Oman and the Netherlands.
MAN-GO ABOUT TOWN
The rapid growth of Kesar exports to the US is no aam story. The variety is favoured by exporters for its longer shelf life and sturdier build. They add one more reason for the growing sales of Kesar—nostalgia of the Gujarati diaspora.
Jayesh Patel, a Louisiana-based ho - telier, owns a Kesar farm at Sisodra in Gujarat’s Navsari district. The 72-year-old, who left his village in the early 1970s, returns each year to spend a couple of months taking care of his 5,000-odd Kesar trees. Patel, who wants the world to relish the mango that was his childhood favourite, ex - ports Kesar to the US and supplies it at major diaspora events, including functions hosted at the Indian consu - late in San Francisco.
“ Many Gujaratis set - tled in the US have sweet, childhood memories of eat - ing Kesar. They form the bulk of our customers,” says Hiren Ahir, founder of Kashi Exports and a leading mango expor ter based in Tapi, Gujarat, adding that several ex - porters have been at work to con - vert America’s Alphonso loyalists into Kesar enthusiasts.
“Alphonsos are too delicate, and we face a lot of issues while exporting them,” says Ahir, noting that Kesar’s resilience and longer shelf life make it more suited for international markets.
Patel, who was earlier chairman of the Best Western International hotel chain and whose family runs several hotels in the US, says while the Indian diaspora remains the core customer base for mango ex - porters, there is a market beyond them. “Since the Covid-19 pandemic, Americans have become increasingly health-conscious—and that’s where I see an opportunity for the mineral-rich Indian mangoes.” He says Kesar triumphs due to its flavour. “Once someone tastes it, they come back for more. Employees in my hotels, mainly Mexicans and Caribbeans, have acquired a taste for Kesar. They now seek out Indian mangoes, even though they cost nearly three times as much a s Mexican varieties.”
While US President Donald Trump has frequently raised concerns over tariffs with India—with both countries currently negotiating a bilateral trade pact—the US has, on record, promoted Indian mangoes and pomegranates. Both fruits were notably mentioned in an India-US joint statement issued in February. The statement said, “India expressed appreciation for US measures taken to enhance exports of Indian mangoes and pomegranates to the United States.”
COST BARRIER
Despite this diplomatic goodwill, Indian mangoes face significant hurdles in the American market, with cost being a huge barrier. Ahir of Kashi Exports says freight ex - penses account for 60-65% of the mango’s retail price in the US, mak - ing affordability a persistent chal - lenge for its growth.
“Our farm-to-fork timeline from Gujarat to American retail shelves is around five days,” he says. The journey begins in the farms and continues to his facility in Kalakva, Tapi, where mangoes undergo hot water-immersion treatment. They are then packed and transported in refrigerated trucks to Navi Mumbai for irradiation. Here fruits are exposed to controlled radiation to eliminate pests and enhance shelf life. It is a mandatory pro - cess for mangoes exported to the US.
“US officers stationed at the irradiation facility inspect each consignment, draw samples and clear the lot—typically 400 packets at a time—for air shipment,” says Ahir. The irradiation process costs Rs 150 for a pack of three mangoes. “In US retail stores, that same pack of three mangoes is sold for around $35-40,” he adds.
A Mumbai-based exporter, requesting anonymity, says shipping man - goes to the US may be financially re - warding, but it is a “logistical challenge”. “Once mango packets are loaded in a refrigerated truck en route to an irradiation facility, that vehicle can’t be used for any other destination. It must be sealed and certified as per standard protocols.”
In contrast, he says, exporting to the UAE is far simpler. “There are no such conditions. The process is faster, less problematic.” The exporter, who deals in Alphonso, Kesar, Badami and Rajapuri varieties, says mangoes bound for the Gulf countries are shipped by sea, with a transit time of about a week.
There’s a new competitor in the mango battle—Yemen. “Yemeni man - goes have started gaining traction in Dubai and elsewhere. They are cheap - er than Indian mangoes,” says the Mumbai exporter. One of the widely popular Yemeni mango varieties in the UAE is Taimoor.
The rise of Indian mango exports in the US comes after a bumpy ride re - cently. In 2020 and 2021, shipments of fresh mangoes were suspended after inspectors from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) were unable to visit India during the pandemic to certify the fruit as free from pests and diseases. A similar hurdle emerged earlier in Europe, when the European Union banned imports of Alphonso mangoes from May 2014 to December 2015, citing the detection of fruit flies in several shipments.
In US, exports of fresh mangoes resumed in 2022 after a two-year hiatus. India secured USDA approval for mango shipments in time for the new sea - son, with Alphonso topping the priority list. “As part of the mutual agreement, India will be able to export mangoes to the USA in the mango season commencing with the Alphonso variety of mangoes by March onwards,” the Ministry of Commerce and Industry said in a statement dated January 11, 2022.
The meteoric rise of Kesar is as recent as it is surprising. In the pandemic year of 2020-21, Kesar exports amounted to less than half the value of Alphonso ($2.92 million vs $6.08 mil - lion). But over the next three years, Kesar’s global exports in dollar terms surged by 285%, toppling Alphonso.
Early data from FY25 suggests the gulf is set to widen: for every $100 earned through Kesar exports during the first nine months of the financial year, Alphonso fetched just $66. In the US market alone, the ratio stood at 100:61 in Kesar’s favour during the same period.
Buoyed by strong demand and support from exporters, Kesar has reshaped the pecking and plucking order of India’s mango exports—both glob - ally and in the US. With its golden hue and rich aroma, it has established itself as the new royalty of the Indian mango trade.
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