Solomon2
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Good idea.
Pakistani mango enters US
- Thread starter ghazi52
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Solomon2
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Most stuff is picked before it's ripe, that's why - though I have trouble believing that you can't find good citrus fruits in Illinois.
The closer you are to the source the more time the farmer can leave it on the tree or vine to ripen. So in D.C. we get fine peaches, berries, and pears during the local harvest season, especially if you can buy them from farmers themselves at their roadside stands in the country; there they sell the stuff that is too ripe to endure truck travel to the supermarket.
Pears are difficult. And everybody knows it is best to grow your own tomatoes.
sparklingway
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Clinton Adds to Curious History of Mango Diplomacy
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESSPublished: July 25, 2010
ISLAMABAD (AP) -- When U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton offered Pakistan help last week in exporting mangoes to the U.S. in a bid to dampen anti-American sentiment, it marked the latest chapter in the fruit's curious history of diplomacy and intrigue.
Clinton's offer came three years after the Bush administration opened up the U.S. market to Indian mangoes in exchange for allowing Harley-Davidson to sell its famed motorcycles in India -- a deal that generated goodwill as the two countries finalized a civilian nuclear agreement.
Washington's mango-powered diplomacy this time around is part of a broader $7.5 billion aid effort that is meant to improve the image of the U.S. in Pakistan, a move officials hope will provide the Pakistani government with greater room to cooperate on turning around the war in Afghanistan.
''I have personally vouched for Pakistani mangoes, which are delicious, and I'm looking forward to seeing Americans be able to enjoy those in the coming months,'' Clinton said during her visit to Islamabad last week.
The prominence of mangoes in South Asian diplomacy should come as no surprise since scientists believe the sweet and fleshy orange fruit originated in the region before Buddhist monks and Persian traders introduced the plant to other areas of the world.
Pakistan and India recognize the mango as their national fruit, and summer in both countries is defined by the sights and sounds of vendors hawking piles of soft, sweet-smelling mangoes or pureeing them to create refreshing drinks that cut through the scorching heat.
Officials from both countries have exchanged crates of mangoes over the years in an attempt to soften tensions between the nuclear-armed rivals that have fought three wars since the partition of British India created the two nations a little over 60 years ago.
Former Pakistani President Zia ul-Haq may have begun the tradition when he swapped mangoes in the early 1980s with the Indian prime minister at the time, Indira Gandhi. The exchange took place several years before ul-Haq was killed in a plane crash that conspiracy theorists blame on a crate of mangoes placed on board moments before takeoff that was supposedly sprayed with a poisonous gas that killed the pilots and other passengers.
But like almost everything else, mangoes have also been a source of tension between Pakistan and India since the two countries view each other as competitors in the export market. Indians and Pakistanis argue over who grows the best mangoes -- a debate that resembles the tussle between Lebanon and Israel over who can claim the mashed chickpea dish hummus as their own.
If all goes to plan, Americans will get a chance to conduct their own taste test once Pakistani mangoes break into the U.S. market. The U.S. plans trial shipments later this year and has pledged to support a three-year program to promote the export of Pakistani mangoes by sea to America, the world's largest importer of the fruit. The initiative is part of a $21 million program to boost Pakistan's agriculture. The U.S. will help finance hot water treatment facilities, sorting and grading machines and cold storage facilities.
India, meanwhile, is the world's largest mango producer with about 13 million tons each year, far exceeding all other countries, including Pakistan, which comes in fifth place with about 1.6 million tons. But both countries have struggled to build the necessary infrastructure to really boost exports.
''Farmers are very grateful for the U.S. help,'' said Muzaffar Khan Khakwani, the owner of a mango farm near the central Pakistani city of Multan that is benefiting from American aid. ''It's not just the financial help. It's the capacity building and the exposure of farmers to well managed orchards.''
But it remains to be seen how quickly Pakistan can benefit from Clinton's recently announced initiative. India had trouble with logistics and pricing when it first tried to export its mangoes to the U.S.
It is even more uncertain whether U.S. aid will really dent anti-American sentiment in Pakistan and motivate the government to step up support for the Afghan war, a move the Pakistanis have resisted for years.
As an Indian proverb says, ''You can't hurry a mango tree to ripen its fruit.''
Pakistan News - Breaking World Pakistan News - The New York Times
somebozo
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I have a few american friends who picked up taste of Pakistani mango during their stay in Saudi Arabia. It will be a great news for them. There is no mango like Pakistani mango 
Alphonso is good for making juice.
Alphonso is good for making juice.
Nahraf
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Americans flock to Toronto to buy coveted Pakistani mango - thestar.com
Americans flock to Toronto to buy coveted Pakistani mango
Published On Wed Jul 28 2010
Noor Javed Staff Reporter
It was an impulsive act of love, almost bordering on obsession, which led Waseem Haider to do the unthinkable: smuggle a harmless, yet forbidden, substance across the U.S.-Canada border.
The goods two cases of sweet and juicy Pakistani mangoes of the chaunsa variety didnt get very far.
Haider hid the tropical fruit, banned in the United States due to restrictions on agricultural imports, in his luggage in the trunk of his car. He knew it was a risky move, but one he was willing to take, so his family in Virginia would also have a chance to taste the coveted fruit.
But when he reached the border, the aromatic delicacy was sniffed out, confiscated and thrown out.
I got busted, said Haider, a federal government worker. They didnt even tell me they took them away. I only realized when I went back to the car.
It was really quite upsetting and my family was really sad.
It is difficult for some to understand the obsession that drives those in mad pursuit of the Pakistani mango. Two popular varieties, chaunsa and anwar ratol, are often described by mango connoisseurs as a sweeter version of its popular Indian cousin alphonso, commonly available in the U.S. But for those who have an acquired taste for the former, the difference between Pakistani mangoes and those from India and Mexico is like apples and oranges.
You cant even compare the taste. If you really have a knack for mangoes, you wont like anything but Pakistani mangoes, said Haider, who made the 12-hour drive last weekend from Virginia to Toronto, his third trip this summer, just to eat the seasonal delicacy. After his past failed smuggling attempts, he brought his family along this time for a weekend binge.
The U.S. has banned Pakistani mangoes for decades because the fruit doesnt meet United States Department of Agriculture requirements for pest management at the orchard and postharvest level. So, like Haider, a number of mango-crazed Americans, mostly of Pakistani descent, make the trek to Toronto where Pakistani mangoes are found in abundance in ethnic groceries from the beginning of May until mid-August.
Its a national obsession that the American government has also gotten a whiff of. In a move toward sweetening diplomatic relations between the two countries, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton recently offered Pakistan help with exporting mangoes to the U.S., part of a $21-million program to boost the countrys agriculture industry.
During a visit to Islamabad last week, Clinton enthusiastically endorsed the mango considered to be the countrys national fruit and said Americans could get a taste of the Pakistani mango as early as this winter when the first trial shipments are planned.
Shahzad Shahid, who runs a home delivery mango company through buymangoes.ca in the GTA has been profiting from the U.S. ban on mangoes for the past four years. Many of his clients are Americans desperate to get their hands on mangoes from the homeland. So incessant were their demands that a few years back he too tried to smuggle a few crates across the border.
I was getting a lot of response from U.S., so I tried to take some boxes over. But I got caught, so I never tried again, said Shahid, who gets a shipment of 600 to 700 crates of mangoes every Tuesday directly from Pakistan. He charges $11 for half a dozen and sells out in two days.
Since he cant get the mangoes to them, his American clients preorder the crates and drive north to eat the coveted fruit a few times a season. Two weeks ago I got a call from a guy in Chicago who was coming to Ottawa and wanted me to send four boxes through a courier service so he could have them when he arrived. We somehow got them there by road instead. I dont think they would have been in good state if they went by mail.
This isnt the first time mangoes have influenced politics on the subcontinent. Three years ago, the Bush administration bolstered relations with India when it opened up the U.S. market to Indian mangoes just days before the two countries finalized a civilian nuclear agreement.
Within the region, the two nuclear-armed rivals, India and Pakistan, have also used mangoes to soften tensions in the past, although they still argue over whose mangoes are better. Former Pakistani President Zia ul-Haq is believed to have started the tradition when he swapped mangoes with Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in the 80s. And in an ironic twist, conspiracy theorists say it was a crate of mangoes sprayed with a poisonous gas placed in Zias plane before takeoff that led to the crash that killed the military general in 1988.
Haider says news of the thaw in mango diplomacy and the arrival of the first shipment will be closely monitored by thousands of Pakistanis in the states.
In the meantime, he might make another trip to Toronto just before the season ends to satisfy his craving despite questions from co-workers and friends who still dont quite get it.
My friends always say to me, whats wrong with you man, its just a fruit. I tell them its not just a fruit, its the mango.
Americans flock to Toronto to buy coveted Pakistani mango
Published On Wed Jul 28 2010
Noor Javed Staff Reporter
It was an impulsive act of love, almost bordering on obsession, which led Waseem Haider to do the unthinkable: smuggle a harmless, yet forbidden, substance across the U.S.-Canada border.
The goods two cases of sweet and juicy Pakistani mangoes of the chaunsa variety didnt get very far.
Haider hid the tropical fruit, banned in the United States due to restrictions on agricultural imports, in his luggage in the trunk of his car. He knew it was a risky move, but one he was willing to take, so his family in Virginia would also have a chance to taste the coveted fruit.
But when he reached the border, the aromatic delicacy was sniffed out, confiscated and thrown out.
I got busted, said Haider, a federal government worker. They didnt even tell me they took them away. I only realized when I went back to the car.
It was really quite upsetting and my family was really sad.
It is difficult for some to understand the obsession that drives those in mad pursuit of the Pakistani mango. Two popular varieties, chaunsa and anwar ratol, are often described by mango connoisseurs as a sweeter version of its popular Indian cousin alphonso, commonly available in the U.S. But for those who have an acquired taste for the former, the difference between Pakistani mangoes and those from India and Mexico is like apples and oranges.
You cant even compare the taste. If you really have a knack for mangoes, you wont like anything but Pakistani mangoes, said Haider, who made the 12-hour drive last weekend from Virginia to Toronto, his third trip this summer, just to eat the seasonal delicacy. After his past failed smuggling attempts, he brought his family along this time for a weekend binge.
The U.S. has banned Pakistani mangoes for decades because the fruit doesnt meet United States Department of Agriculture requirements for pest management at the orchard and postharvest level. So, like Haider, a number of mango-crazed Americans, mostly of Pakistani descent, make the trek to Toronto where Pakistani mangoes are found in abundance in ethnic groceries from the beginning of May until mid-August.
Its a national obsession that the American government has also gotten a whiff of. In a move toward sweetening diplomatic relations between the two countries, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton recently offered Pakistan help with exporting mangoes to the U.S., part of a $21-million program to boost the countrys agriculture industry.
During a visit to Islamabad last week, Clinton enthusiastically endorsed the mango considered to be the countrys national fruit and said Americans could get a taste of the Pakistani mango as early as this winter when the first trial shipments are planned.
Shahzad Shahid, who runs a home delivery mango company through buymangoes.ca in the GTA has been profiting from the U.S. ban on mangoes for the past four years. Many of his clients are Americans desperate to get their hands on mangoes from the homeland. So incessant were their demands that a few years back he too tried to smuggle a few crates across the border.
I was getting a lot of response from U.S., so I tried to take some boxes over. But I got caught, so I never tried again, said Shahid, who gets a shipment of 600 to 700 crates of mangoes every Tuesday directly from Pakistan. He charges $11 for half a dozen and sells out in two days.
Since he cant get the mangoes to them, his American clients preorder the crates and drive north to eat the coveted fruit a few times a season. Two weeks ago I got a call from a guy in Chicago who was coming to Ottawa and wanted me to send four boxes through a courier service so he could have them when he arrived. We somehow got them there by road instead. I dont think they would have been in good state if they went by mail.
This isnt the first time mangoes have influenced politics on the subcontinent. Three years ago, the Bush administration bolstered relations with India when it opened up the U.S. market to Indian mangoes just days before the two countries finalized a civilian nuclear agreement.
Within the region, the two nuclear-armed rivals, India and Pakistan, have also used mangoes to soften tensions in the past, although they still argue over whose mangoes are better. Former Pakistani President Zia ul-Haq is believed to have started the tradition when he swapped mangoes with Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in the 80s. And in an ironic twist, conspiracy theorists say it was a crate of mangoes sprayed with a poisonous gas placed in Zias plane before takeoff that led to the crash that killed the military general in 1988.
Haider says news of the thaw in mango diplomacy and the arrival of the first shipment will be closely monitored by thousands of Pakistanis in the states.
In the meantime, he might make another trip to Toronto just before the season ends to satisfy his craving despite questions from co-workers and friends who still dont quite get it.
My friends always say to me, whats wrong with you man, its just a fruit. I tell them its not just a fruit, its the mango.
Solomon2
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Q. Can I carry fresh mangoes from Pakistan to the
United States on my next flight?
A. No. The rule only applies to commercial
consignments of mangoes. Individuals traveling to the
United States cannot bring mangoes from Pakistan,
even if they have been treated, in their personal
baggage. The mangoes must enter the United States
via commercial channels (air or ship) where quarantine
security can be assured. Boxes of mangoes leaving
that chain of custody are prohibited entry into the
United States.
Q. Can I send mangoes from Pakistan to the
United States through the mail?
A. No. As stated above, mangoes can only be
commercially shipped to the United States. The fruit
must be sent directly from the country of origin via
commercial conveyance (air or ship) directly to the
United States. This ensures a strict chain of custody
in the event the imported fruit shows signs of pest
infestation.
Q. Why haven’t mangoes from Pakistan been
allowed into the United States until now?
A. APHIS [U.S. Dept of Agriculture Animal and Plant
Health Inspection Service] approved the use of irradiation as a
quarantine treatment for fruits and vegetables in
October 2002. Then, in January 2006, APHIS
published another rule approving a minimum generic
dose (400 gray) of irradiation for imported fruits and
vegetables. Until the availability of this generic dose,
certain pests associated with the mangoes could
not be mitigated with any other APHIS-approved
treatments.
After this treatment became available, APHIS
received a request from the Government of
Pakistan to allow the importation of fresh mangoes
into the continental United States. APHIS then
conducted a pest risk analysis to identify pests
of quarantine significance and phytosanitary
measures that could be used to mitigate the
risk of introducing or disseminating these pests
into the United States. Based on this analysis,
APHIS concluded that irradiation, along with other
safeguarding measures, can be used to safely
import mangoes from Pakistan into the United
States...
Q&A: Importing Pakistani Mangoes to the U.S.
United States on my next flight?
A. No. The rule only applies to commercial
consignments of mangoes. Individuals traveling to the
United States cannot bring mangoes from Pakistan,
even if they have been treated, in their personal
baggage. The mangoes must enter the United States
via commercial channels (air or ship) where quarantine
security can be assured. Boxes of mangoes leaving
that chain of custody are prohibited entry into the
United States.
Q. Can I send mangoes from Pakistan to the
United States through the mail?
A. No. As stated above, mangoes can only be
commercially shipped to the United States. The fruit
must be sent directly from the country of origin via
commercial conveyance (air or ship) directly to the
United States. This ensures a strict chain of custody
in the event the imported fruit shows signs of pest
infestation.
Q. Why haven’t mangoes from Pakistan been
allowed into the United States until now?
A. APHIS [U.S. Dept of Agriculture Animal and Plant
Health Inspection Service] approved the use of irradiation as a
quarantine treatment for fruits and vegetables in
October 2002. Then, in January 2006, APHIS
published another rule approving a minimum generic
dose (400 gray) of irradiation for imported fruits and
vegetables. Until the availability of this generic dose,
certain pests associated with the mangoes could
not be mitigated with any other APHIS-approved
treatments.
After this treatment became available, APHIS
received a request from the Government of
Pakistan to allow the importation of fresh mangoes
into the continental United States. APHIS then
conducted a pest risk analysis to identify pests
of quarantine significance and phytosanitary
measures that could be used to mitigate the
risk of introducing or disseminating these pests
into the United States. Based on this analysis,
APHIS concluded that irradiation, along with other
safeguarding measures, can be used to safely
import mangoes from Pakistan into the United
States...
Q&A: Importing Pakistani Mangoes to the U.S.
GentlemanObserver
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I remember i "accidently" brought back some fish jerky from Thailand... They took it off me and gave me a stern warning... They threw it in the bin... All that lovely fish
Damn you Red Lane... I should have said "Nothing to Declare"
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