Honey Product Uses & Exhibits!

Mangoes at war in US market!

Press Trust of India, Washington,21 Aug 2011.

Three years after the Indian alphanso landed in the US to the delight of diehard mango lovers, the popular chausa variety from Pakistan has entered American markets this month, leading to cheers from the fruit's fans. Traders involved in its import concede that this brings an element of competition between the mango varieties from two countries, though both are facing the problem of high costs and are presently quite far away from the reach of the masses and are not readily available in Indian and Pakistani grocery stores.

Jaidev Sharma, president of Mangozz.com, one of the largest importers of the fruit from India and Pakistan, says that generally mangoes from India have an edge over those from Pakistan.

After the arrival of the first commercial shipment of about 800 boxes of Pakistani chausa early this month, a box of six "chausa" mangoes was quickly taken at an unbelievable premium price of $ 60-$ 100.

In the last few years, the Indian alphanso has been the costliest variety in the US, with a box (weighing about 3 kgs and containing nine to 12 mangoes) being sold this year at $ 40 to $ 80 in the retail market.

Mango importers from Pakistan hope that as the volume of import of chausa increases in the coming years, they would be able to give a stiff challenge to the mangoes from India.

"We hope to give a tough competition to the Indian mangoes," said a Pakistani-origin shopkeeper in the Greater Washington Area, who was one of the lucky few to sell from the first commercial consignment.

All eyes are now set on the second commercial consignment of the variety from Pakistan, scheduled to arrive at the Chicago airport – the port of entry for mangoes – on Thursday, which will be taken to the radiation facility in Illinois a day later.

The consignment is being eagerly awaited by traders here as the import of Indian mangoes this season has ended, giving a field day to chausa for carving its place among those who relish the fruit.

American importers of mango from India were left disappointed when the inspector from US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), who processes mangoes at the facility near Nasik and issues certification for their export, left India in the third week of June, even before the peak of the mango season in the northern and eastern parts of the country.

Indian exporters had been apparently told by the USFDA inspector that they could not export varieties of mango other than "alphanso."

This was immediately brought to the notice of APEDA (Agricultural and Processed Food Export Development Authority) in India and FDA in the US.

By the time the issue to remove restrictions was sorted, the inspector had left the Nasik facility leaving requests from American importers and Indian exporters, that other popular varieties from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and West Bengal be allowed, to no avail.

Besides alphanso, importers could import the kesar and bangapalli varieties in small quantities.

"Last year we had imported Langra, Chausa and Dussehri Mangoes from India to the US.

But this year, we could not," Sharma, who is now trying to compensate by ordering the import of Pakistani chausa said.

Eagerly waiting for the arrival of the consignment from Pakistan, Sharma, who has been receiving queries from people across the country, said that there is a lot of demand for mangoes from India and Pakistan.

After year of negotiations, the US had lifted its import restrictions on Pakistani mangoes last year and the first shipment arrived this summer.

While the alphanso variety lasts for about a month in April-May, those from Pakistan are available till September end.

In between is the peak time of other variety of mangoes from India like langra, dussehari, kesar and banganpalli.

"So this gives a wide variety and time range to mango lovers in the US," Sharma said.

However, traders from both India and Pakistan face the hurdle of high prices, making it tough to beat the much cheaper mangoes from Mexico, which capture more than 95 % of the American market.

Celebrating India's 64th Independence Day!

Wishing every Indian a Happy Independence Day and remembering our Heroes and martyrs of the nation who brought freedom 65 years ago.

GITANJALI

Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high;
Where knowledge is free;
Where the world has not been broken up into fragments by domestic walls;
Where words come out from the depth of truth;
Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection;
Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way into the dreary desert sand of dead habit;
Where the mind is led forward by thee into ever-widening thought and action--
Into that heaven of freedom, my father, let my country awake.
-Rabindranath Tagore

 

We owe a lot to the Indians, who taught us how to count, without which no worthwhile scientific discovery could have been made!-Albert Einstein

If there is one place on the face of earth where all the dreams of living men have found a home from the very earliest days when man began the dream of existence, it is India!-Romaine Rolland, French scholar

India is the cradle of the human race, the birthplace of human speech, the mother of history, the grandmother of legend, and the great grand mother of tradition. Our most valuable and most astrictive materials in the history of man are treasured up in India only!
-Mark Twain

She (India) has left indelible imprints on one fourth of the human race in the course of a long succession of centuries. She has the right to reclaim ... her place amongst the great nations summarizing and symbolizing the spirit of humanity. From Persia to the Chinese sea, from the icy regions of Siberia to Islands of Java and Borneo, India has propagated her beliefs, her tales, and her civilization!
-Sylvia Levi

Go Guava Season !

Courtesy: Hundekar Home Garden,Bengaluru.

 Guava is a tropical fruit that is like the shape of pear, with green rind and pinkish or white flesh and small seeds. Some people say Guava is better than orange because guava contain more Vitamin C than orange and guava is a lot cheaper than orange.
Guava Contains :

•Vitamin C the skin of guava contains more than 5 times Vit C than that of an orange.
•Vitamin A and B
•Calcium
•Nicotinic Acid
•Phosphorus
•Potassium
•Iron
•Folic acid
•Fiber

Nutritive Values of Guava : Per 100 gm.

•Vitamin A : 250 I.U.
•Vitamin B : Thiamine .07 mg.;
•Niacin : 1.2 mg.
•Vitamin C : 302 mg.
•Calcium : 30 mg.
•Phosphorus : 29 mg.
•Carbohydrates : 17.1 gm.
•Protein : 1.0 gm.
•Calories : 70

Guava is Beneficial in the following cases :

1.Prolonged menstruation
2.High blood pressure
3.Poor circulation (strengthen the heart)
4.Congestion of the lungs
5.Acidosis
6.Asthma
7.Catarrh
8.Obesity
9.Scurvy
WORLDWIDE ETHNOMEDICAL USES 

• Amazonia     for diarrhea, dysentery, menstrual disorders, stomachache, vertigo.
•  Brazil          for anorexia, cholera, diarrhea, digestive problems, dysentery, gastric  insufficiency, inflamed mucous membranes, laryngitis, mouth(swelling), skin problems, sore throat, ulcers, vaginal discharge.
•  Cuba           for colds, dysentery, dyspepsia.
•  Ghana         coughs, diarrhea, dysentery, toothache.
•  Haiti           for dysentery, diarrhea, epilepsy, itch, piles, scabies, skin sores, sore throat, stomachache, wounds, and as an antiseptic and astringent.
•  India           for anorexia, cerebral ailments, childbirth, chorea, convulsions, epilepsy, nephritis.
•  Malaya         for dermatosis, diarrhea, epilepsy, hysteria, menstrual disorders.
•  Mexico for deafness, diarrhea, itch, scabies, stomachache, swelling, ulcer, worms, wounds.
•  Peru  for conjunctivitis, cough, diarrhea, digestive problems, dysentery, edema, gout, hemorrhages, gastroenteritis, gastritis, lung problems, PMS, shock, vaginal discharge, vertigo, vomiting, worms.
•  Philippines  for sores, wounds, and as an astringent.
•  Trinidad  bacterial infections, blood cleansing, diarrhea, dysentery.
•  Elsewhere  for anorexia, aches, bacterial infections, boils, bowel disorders, bronchitis, catarrh, cholera, chorea, colds, colic, convulsions, coughs, diarrhea, dysentery, dyspepsia, edema, epilepsy, fever, gingivitis, hemorrhoids, itch, jaundice, menstrual problems, nausea, nephritis, respiratory problems, rheumatism, scabies, sore throat, spasms, sprains, stomach problems, swelling, tonic, toothache, ulcers, worms, wounds, and as an antiseptic and astringent.