With mango growers looking for alternatives, Dharwad may lose its ‘Alphonso capital of Karnataka’ tag

With the area under Alphonso mango cultivation having shrunk from 25,000 hectares in 2017 to 8,890 hectares this year, Dharwad might soon lose its ‘Alphonso capital of Karnataka’ tag.

Around 95% of mango grown in Dharwad district is the Alphonso variety (locally called Hapus or Aapus). Interestingly, mango is Dharwad’s flagship produce under ‘One District, One Product’ scheme under the Prime Minister’s Formalisation of Micro Food Processing Enterprises (PMFME).

The decline in the area under cultivation started in 2017. Steep fall in yield (some years the yield dropped by 80%), extreme weather events and fluctuating market price have forced mango growers to look for alternatives and as a result, guava, arecanut, cashew nut and banana cultivation is picking up in what were once mango orchards. A table fruit, considered the ‘king of mangoes’, is not preferred by the processing industry.

The district got a yield of 1.37 lakh tonnes two years ago. Horticulture department officials say that this year the yield will not cross 60,000 tonnes.

Interestingly, mango is Dharwad’s flagship produce under ‘One District, One Product’ scheme under the Prime Minister’s Formalisation of Micro Food Processing Enterprises (PMFME).

Alphonso, mainly grown in Dharwad and parts of Belagavi district in Karnataka, has a great export potential. This is exported to Europe, USA, Australia and some Asian
countries.

Horticulture Department Deputy Director Dr Kashinath Bhadrannavar told DH that heavy rains in the month of November and December have delayed the flowering. Rise in temperature during the fruit setting stage further affects the yield.

Hence, there is a steep decline in the yield this season.

Every year, the ‘King of Fruits’ would arrive in the market in the second week of April, but this year, there will be a delay of 45 to 50 days in getting the fruit.

Low yield and delayed harvest can be seen in other mango growing belts like Kolar, Chikkaballapur and Ramanagar districts as well. These regions grow a variety of mangoes.

When the yield is good, the farmer should get an optimum of six tonnes of fruit per hectare of land. But this season, the yield is less than two tonnes per hectare.

Mango grower Devendra Jainar of Kelgeri in Dharwad said both farmers and those who have taken the groves on lease for harvest are finding it difficult to manage.

Basavaraj Hiremath, who owns a mango grove in Amblikoppa, said that red soil is suitable for cashew cultivation and hence there is a shift in the cultivation pattern.

The mango lovers are also feeling the pinch. Last year, two dozen mangoes cost Rs 900 in Dharwad market while this year a dozen costs no less than Rs 1,100.

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