US-INDIA AFFAIRS: The Indian Mango Arrives in the U.S.

!PLEASE LET US KNOW IF YOU SPOT THESE MANGOES IN STORES AROUND THE U.S.!

UPDATE, May 3: The following quotes about the arrival of the Indian mangoes were given to SAJAforum.org this morning (be sure to scroll down to the comments section below, too).

Fareed Zakaria, editor of Newsweek International, who grew up in Mumbai: "I'm thrilled. It's been one of the things I miss most from India. The Alphonso Mango is just delicious, the best in the world. Americans have been deprived on this delicacy for too long!"

David Davidar, author of "The House of Blue Mangoes: A Novel" and publisher of Penguin Canada: "The broader implications of the move aside, the decision by the US to start importing Indian mangoes simply means residents of the States will now be able to start enjoying the finest mangoes in the world not just the insipid varieties from elsewhere that were the only option available to them until now."

Shashi Tharoor, whose "The Great Indian Novel" features one of the best descriptions of India's love affair with the mango: "After years of penury, where what passed for mangoes in American supermarkets was a travesty of the term, we at last have the real thing! I used to believe that true mango lovers could sue American groceries for false advertising -- the tasteless, fibrous, tart and flavor-challenged fruit they sold did not deserve the name of mango. Now we should urge every American we know to try a real Indian mango.
They'll never think of mangoes the same way again."
(reporters/bloggers: feel free to quote from these, crediting SAJAforum)

THE ORIGINAL POSTING: The photo on the right (by Jay Mandal/On Assignment; jay@jaymandal.com; he has more pix) shows India's Ambassador to the U.S. Ronen Sen, US Trade Representative Susan Schwab and  U.S. Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns watching Ramesh Kaundal, executive chef of Bombay Club, cutting mangoes at the Commerce Department in Washington on Tuesday, May 1, 2007. Nothing special about that - after all, you can easily get mangoes in the U.S. But it is noteworthy because those are mangoes made in India and they are now available for the first time in America.

From the New York Times:

The first legal shipment of Indian mangoes to the United States (US) in decades landed at New York's Kennedy International Airport on 27 April, probably the most eagerly anticipated fruit delivery ever. “If we can get them at good ripeness," said Suvir Saran, executive chef of the Indian restaurant Devi in Manhattan, "people will go mad for the beautiful, supple flesh and intense flavour." Some Indian-Americans have spent hundreds of dollars at an auction in Miami for rare Florida-grown Indian mango varieties; flown home specially for the season; or tried to smuggle illicit fruit past airport inspectors, striving to recapture rapturous memories of their homeland's luscious, incomparable mangoes. Until now, though, most could only crave and dream.

It took years of high-level government negotiations - and low doses of irradition - to make this possible. Read  the excruciating details of the deal, and its, well, fruits. See the US Department of Agriculture and US-India Business Council  press releases below.

See SepiaMutiny posts and comments. Siddharth Mitter points out:

On less sweet a note, it seems that between production and transportation costs and the stranglehold exercised by Mexican mangoes (how dare they!) on U.S. distribution channels, Alphonsos may cost up to 10 times more than the plebeian mangoes currently available at your local yuppie food mart, tropical store or bodega. The pleasure of the Indian mango, it seems, shall be known by elite mouths only.

Also see SM item about the new Oxo Mango Slicer - it's not for you if you think cutting and peeling the skin and having the juices drip all over your hands is part of the mango's charm.

Since the deal was announced in 2006, I have been harassing my friendly neighborhood fruitwallah (who's from Bangladesh), asking him about Indian mangoes. I am hoping he'll get some soon. What we usually get, from Mexico, are stringy and leave you needing to floss - nothing like the best quality Indian ones.

My family has experience trying to bring mangoes in during the bad old days. When my wife was on bed rest while expecting our twins, my mom came to visit from Vienna and brought a dozen Indian mangoes. The customs agent at JFK stopped her and told her she couldn't bring them in. When she explained they were for my wife's cravings for the good stuff, he said simply that his daughter had been pregnant and she didn't get - or need - any mangoes. My mom was given the choice of sitting there and eating them all in the customs area or dumping them...

What do you think? Excited or couldn't-care-less? Post your reax in the comments section below - lots to read there. Share your mango stories.

UPDATE from SAJAer Lavina Melwani:

With all the excitement of our Indian mangoes arriving in the US, I thought I'd pass you the link to the essay Once Upon a Mango that I did for Little India. It was very well received by readers and I had also quoted SAJAer Kirit Desai quite extensively - he had some great mango memories of growing up in India.
http://www.littleindia.com/news/142/ARTICLE/1167/2006-07-15.html

USDA Release: FIRST SHIPMENTS OF INDIAN MANGOES ARRIVE IN UNITED STATES
http://www.usda.gov/2007/05/0123.xml

Melissa O'Dell (301) 734-5222
Keith Williams (202) 720-4623

FIRST SHIPMENTS OF INDIAN MANGOES ARRIVE IN UNITED STATES

WASHINGTON, May 1, 2007-U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns on Tuesday welcomed the first shipments of irradiated Indian mangoes arriving through U.S. ports-of-entry, initiating mango trade with the United States.

Indian mangoes are the first fruit irradiated at an overseas site and approved for importation into the United States. Irradiation became an approved treatment on all pests for fruits and vegetables entering the United States in 2002. Last year, a generic dose was recognized for a wider range of commodities, including Indian mangoes. The use of irradiation provides an alternative to other pest control methods, such as fumigation, cold and heat treatments.

"This is a significant milestone that paves the way for the future use of irradiation technology to protect against the introduction of plant pests," said Secretary Mike Johanns. "India and the United States began talking about shipping mangoes 17 years ago. Irradiating Indian mangoes safeguards American agriculture while providing additional choices for U.S. consumers in today's global marketplace."

APHIS, the Animal Plant Health Inspection Service, approved the importation of precleared, commercial shipments of fresh mangoes from India, provided certain conditions are met. To ensure that plant pests of quarantine significance do not enter the United States though the importation of this fruit, the mangoes must be treated with specified doses of irradiation prior to export at an APHIS-certified facility. Each shipment must also be accompanied by a certificate issued by the national plant protection organization of India with additional declarations certifying that the treatment and inspection of the mangoes was made in accordance with APHIS regulations. In addition, inspectors with the Department of Homeland Security's Customs and Border Protection may further inspect precleared commodities at the port of first arrival.
USDA News
oc.news@usda.gov
202 720-4623

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Contact:    Nivy Mehra
202-463-5886
nmehra@uschamber.com

U.S.-India Business Council Hails Arrival of Indian Mangoes

Supports Successful Doha Conclusion and Deeper U.S.-India Trade

May 1, 2007 - Washington, D.C. - At a “Mango Celebration” today hosted at the Washington-headquartered U.S.-India Business Council (USIBC), just opposite the White House, U.S. Trade Representative Susan Schwab and U.S. Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns each received from Indian Ambassador Ronen Sen the first gift baskets of ripe Indian mangoes seen in the U.S. Capital in 18 years.

Smiles and joyous applause erupted at the USIBC mango tasting event as an Indian chef, Mr. Ramesh, from the nearby-famous Bombay Club of Washington, DC cut into the first alphonso mango. Indian Ambassador Ronen Sen shared cubes of the golden fruit with the two Bush Administration Cabinet officials credited for enabling access of Indian mangoes to the U.S. market.

 

India’s Commerce Minister, Kamal Nath, remarked upon the first consignment leaving India last Friday: “America for too long has denied itself the taste of delicious Indian mangoes.” For Indian mango growers, the American market holds significant promise.

India is the world’s largest producer of mangoes - at 12 million metric tons harvested each year - but it accounts for less than 1% of the global mango trade. America’s taste for mangoes is growing - with U.S. demand 99% dependent on imports - mostly from Mexico and South America - at 250,000 metric tons annually, valued at $156 million. By contrast, in 2005-06, India exported 58,000 metric tons of mangoes to neighbors in Asia and to Europe.

This breakthrough of opening mango trade is highly emblematic of a push by both the U.S. and India to deepen two-way trade from $30 billion to $60 billion over the next two years.

“U.S. willingness to purchase Indian mangoes is another important step towards deeper engagement and more robust U.S.-India trade,” said Ron Somers, President of the U.S.-India Business Council. “As our commercial and strategic partnership deepens, two-way trade will soon reach new levels, creating hundreds of thousands of jobs in India and thousands of jobs here at home,” said Somers.

“USIBC salutes India’s farmers and the Indian agricultural community, and extends its heartfelt congratulations on this joyous occasion of the first mango consignment reaching Washington D.C.,” Ron Somers said. “USIBC congratulates the Bush Administration for making this happen, and welcomes U.S. Trade Representative Susan Schwab’s sincere efforts to successfully conclude Doha and deepen Indo-U.S. trade,” Somers said.

USIBC recently issued an RFP for its “Free Trade Initiative”, calling for proposals to prepare a “roadmap” charting the course for enhanced trade and investment between the world’s largest free-market democracies.

USIBC celebrates its 32^nd Anniversary in Washington this summer, holding its “Global India” Summit on June 27th, which will feature Boeing’s Jim McNerney, Reliance’s Mukesh Ambani, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, India’s Union Commerce Minister Kamal Nath, U.S. Trade Representative Susan Schwab, and U.S. Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez, among others. 

The U.S.-India Business Council (USIBC) is comprised of the top 250 companies investing in India, joined by India’s global companies, whose purpose is to deepen commercial ties between the U.S. and India. For more information, please contact nmehra@usibc.com

!PLEASE LET US KNOW IF YOU SPOT THESE MANGOES IN STORES AROUND THE U.S.!