Cold storage for mango to be established at airports and shipping ports

ISLAMABAD, Dec. 14 (Gwadar Pro) - The Government and the Representatives of Fruit and Vegetable Exporters have agreed to establish cold storages at airports and shipping ports across the country.

 

The Ministry of Commerce hosted a consultative session on the issues pertaining to the export of mango via video-link. Advisor to Prime Minister for Commerce and Investment, Abdul Razak Dawood, Chairman of Pakistan Fruit and Vegetable Exporters, Importers and Merchants Association (PFVA), Waheed Ahmad, farmers, and exporters of mangoes attended the online meeting. The officials of the Ministry of Commerce (MOC), Ministry of National Food Security and Research (MNFSR), and Department of Plant Protection (DPP) were also present.

 

It was agreed that efforts will be made to establish cold storage areas at airport and shipping ports, and the Ministry of Aviation and the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) will be approached for reserving a dedicated area for mango consignments. The CAA will also be approached to install bigger scanners for scanning the consignments instead of loading and unloading small crates.

 

The main issues identified during the meeting were the compliance requirements, high freight charges, lack of cold storage facilities at the airports, and insufficient water and vapor treatment facilities.

 

The Ministry of Commerce has informed that the export of local mango increased to $104 million in 2019-20 from $78 million in the previous year 2018-19. The main markets for Pakistan’s export are United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, Afghanistan, Oman, and Saudi Arabia, informed a press release issued by the Ministry of Commerce.