Pakistani fruits and vegetable being sold at throwaway prices in Dubai

Dubai market has of late become a dumping place for fruits and vegetables where quality Pakistani products are sold at throwaway prices.
This was stated by Fruits and Vegetable Processors and Exporters Association (FVPEA) Chairman Mateen Siddiqui, who has just returned from a visit to the Gulf at the head of a six-member sale mission organised by the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB).
He said that the Dubai market was totally dominated by the Indians, who ranged from owners of big supermarkets and chain stores and salesmen.
"They all promote Indian fruits and vegetable, though inferior in quality as compared to the Pakistani products," he said.
Citing an example, he said that a carton of five kilograms of mangoes from India was selling at 50 dirham against the quality Pakistani mango, which hardly fetched two dirham for a kilogram.
Mateen pointed out that there were a large number of fruit and vegetable importers of Pakistan origin, who told the visiting delegation that they did not bother about the quality, but were interested in quantity and cheaper price because they worked on commission.
"The more will be quantity the more will be their commission," they argued.
He said these importers selected quality fruits from a carton or a wooden crate and supplied these to the big markets, while the balance was sold in the open market and proceeds sent to the supplier.
Mateen said these importers used their own packing to supply fruits to big super markets.
In Dubai and Bahrain markets, fruits and vegetable were generally sold in auction and hence the importers did not quote any price, he said.
He said Pakistani importers dumped their green stuff in these markets and received export proceeds after the goods had been sold in auction. However, in other countries like Saudi Arabia, the importers placed orders and negotiated the rates with the exporter, he said.
The exporters sales mission was sponsored by the EPB to explore the possibility of export of 200,000 tonnes of surplus potato.
Mateen said that the delegation received some orders, while a few countries had expressed interest in buying Pakistani quality potato.
The delegation, during its visit, held meetings with big importers, who said that they would try to sell the commodity in the local market.