Mango festival opens amid climate impact concerns
The two-day event at a hotel drew large crowds, including tourists, farmers, agricultural experts, students and professionals from the food and hospitality industry.
The festival offered a mix of traditional dance, folk music, handicrafts and a wide array of mango-based dishes, turning the event into a celebration of agriculture, culture and culinary creativity.
Provincial Tourism Secretary Fareed Ahmad Tarar and Tourism Development Corporation of Punjab (TDCP) Managing Director Dr Nasir Mehmood opened the festival. On the occasion, Tarar described the festival not just as a celebration of mangoes but also as a tribute to the hardworking farmers and the rich agricultural and cultural heritage of the province. Dr Mehmood emphasised that the event would serve as a platform for promoting tourism, hospitality and local industries alongside agriculture.
Agricultural expert Rana Asif Hayat Tipu highlighted that five tonnes of export-quality mangoes were made available at farm-gate prices to address public concerns that high-grade fruit is rarely accessible in retail markets.
He warned, however, that climate change, intense heat, dust storms and water shortages had severely affected this year's crop, causing an estimated 40 per cent decline in production in some areas.
Experts noted that Pakistan typically produces around 1.8 million tonnes of mango annually, with Punjab contributing 70% of the national output, Sindh 29% and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa about 1%.
Due to adverse weather conditions, 2025's output is projected to drop to approximately 1.4 million tonnes. Nonetheless, the government has ambitiously raised the export target to 125,000 tonnes for this season, aiming for $100 million in foreign exchange earnings.
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