The export of mango is in full swing as several airlines including PIA have added more cargo flights to their last year's schedule from Pakistan this year, exporters said here Monday.
President of Fruits and Vegetables Processor and Exporters Association (FVPEA) Abdul Mateen Siddiqui said that PIA has added two additional cargo flights to its last year's schedule while German airline Lufthansa has also attached two more flights.
Now PIA and Lufthansa were flying four cargo flights a week from Pakistan to various destinations in Europe and Middle East and Gulf countries.
PIA was taking mango to Oslo, Paris and UK while Lufthansa was carrying mango to London and Stockholm in addition to Frankfurt.
He said that Pakistani mango has always been considered as the hot cake in Europe and Scandinavian countries and this year too, its export will he higher in this region.
Similarly, export to short distance destinations like Middle East and Gulf area will also be increased as mango can be shipped through sea routes at economical rates.
Mateen said that Emirates has also increased its cargo flights from three to four per week from Karachi to Dubai, Manchester, Birmingham, London, Frankfurt, Oslo, etc.
In addition, Italian airline Alitalia has started its cargo flight from Karachi to Rome and other destinations of Europe, he added.
"This year we would be able to ship an additional quantity of 4,000 metric tons of mango with the help of additional cargo flights to Europe where we get better prices," he observed.
He said that last year mango export was estimated at 67,000 metric tons amounting to more than 17 million dollars.
This year, the volume and value of mango export would surpass 20 million dollars, he added.