Totapuri Trouble: Why A Mango Price Crash Has Sparked Protests And Panic

Two southern states, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, recently had a tiff over the entry of Totapuri mangoes.

The row stemmed from an order issued by the Collector of Andhra’s Chittoor district to not allow entry of the fruit from the neighbouring state. This was because it was felt that the crop from there would further reduce prices in Andhra, where farmers were already unhappy with the low prices being offered for the fruit.

This protective measure, while in Andhra’s interests, hit farmers in Karnataka hard. Chittoor is where most of the mango pulp processing units are located. The proximity, along with the very low number of such industries in Karnataka (only three or four operational out of eleven) had shaped this dependency over the years.

This long-standing reliance made Andhra’s decision particularly disruptive. So, when the Collector banned the entry of mangoes, it was not just an administrative decision. It unsettled a well-established supply chain.

Andhra’s Issues and Efforts to Minimise Losses, Stabilise Prices

Open market prices in Andhra for the Totapuri variety are hovering at a very low price of around Rs 5–6 per kg. Because of that, the state government has mandated pulp producers to procure the crop at Rs 8 per kg. It has also announced a support price of Rs 4 per kg, effectively making the price for Andhra farmers Rs 12 per kg.

The state is also exploring the establishment of a Mango Board to address long-term farmer welfare, though its timeline remains uncertain.

How Has Karnataka Reacted?

Farmers in Karnataka have protested against the restriction. Mango growers in Kolar district’s Srinivaspur, which has the state’s highest amount of mango cultivation, called for a bandh and dumped mangoes on the streets in protest. They urged the state government to declare a support price on the lines of Andhra.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah wrote a letter to his Andhra counterpart, Chandrababu Naidu, urging him to revoke the ban. “Actions of this nature, taken without prior consultation or coordination, run contrary to the spirit of cooperative federalism,” he wrote, adding that it would cause “significant post-harvest losses” in his state.

The Andhra Pradesh government has, however, not eased restrictions.

Therefore, there is a stalemate right now and mangoes are going to waste. Farmers this writer spoke with in Karnataka said that it is futile to take the produce to the factory or market.

“We are letting the fruits fall to the ground,” said Sreenivas Reddy, an organic farmer from Kolar district.

The crisis has also spread to Tamil Nadu, where similar oversupply issues have impacted farmers. Expressing solidarity, the opposition All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) held protests demanding support prices for the crop.

In this piece, we examine the causes of the price crash, Karnataka’s lack of pulp industries, the challenges of pulp production, and potential solutions to this regional crisis.

Oversupply Due To Simultaneous Flowering In Three States

The Totapuri variety, which is predominantly used for pulp, is grown in three states: Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, in close proximity.

Owing to differences in weather, flowering of mango trees occurs in each state with some gap. N R Chinnappa Reddy, who is the head of the mango growers association in Srinivaspur, said, “Flowering in our area usually happens in December to January. Chittoor and Krishnagiri have it one month later in February to March. This time flowering in all areas took place in February to March. So, the crop from all states came to the industries at the same time, creating a situation of oversupply and a drop in prices.”

Prices, which were around the Rs 15,000 per tonne mark last year, have plunged to Rs 3,000 per tonne.

Chinnappa adds, “Along with late flowering, our crop also suffered due to excess rainfall. When rainfall is more, the water content in the fruit increases, leading to a corresponding decrease in sugar levels. Less sugar makes our produce less attractive for pulp industries, making them look towards fruits from Andhra. Therefore, it is a double whammy for us. On one side, we have excess supply and on the other side, the suitability of our fruit for the industry has reduced.”

Why Does Karnataka Not Have More Mango Pulp Industries?

This oversupply has been exacerbated by Karnataka’s limited pulp processing infrastructure. The state has significant cultivation: 1.5 lakh hectares statewide, with 50,000 in Kolar and 30,000 in Srinivaspur, yielding 15 lakh tonnes, 10 lakh tonnes, and 5 lakh tonnes respectively. These figures are for this year and were provided by Chinnappa.

Farmers this writer spoke with attributed the issue to a lack of government initiatives and corruption.

“A pulp unit costs Rs 40–50 crore on average. It is not a small amount. Compared to neighbouring Andhra, corruption is huge here. There is a saying that goes around in these parts: 'a conductor in Karnataka makes as much ill-gotten money as a Collector in Andhra'. At every step, we have to shell out lakhs, starting from an electricity board connection to plot registration if we have to set up an industry,” said a farmer when asked whether they could pool resources together and establish a unit of their own.

Another farmer blamed the MLAs of the region.

“K R Ramesh Kumar (former Speaker and Health Minister) and G V Venkatashiva Reddy have been in power during the last 50 years. Did it never occur to them to do something for the farmers?” he asked.

“Now, after sustained agitations by us demanding a support price, they are saying they will take it up with the chief minister.” The government, he added, is only interested in mauj-masti, referring to the title-winning celebrations of Royal Challengers Bangalore.

Additionally, such a problem, of not being able to transport the produce across the border, has never occurred before. Prices had hit rock bottom in 2018 but there was no ban then.

Seasonal Nature Of The Industry: Fruits Are Available For Three Months, What To Do After That?

Another reason people are hesitant to set up these industries is that the nature of work is seasonal. There is a lot of activity for a certain period, while the rest of the year is only about sales and marketing.

Describing the situation, Sreenivas said, “These factories run for about 90 days during the season. Out of these 90 days, there is a peak period of around 15 days. During this time, they need a lot of manpower, who would work day and night to process the stock. Finding skilled workers who can handle the increased workload for such a short period becomes tough.”

Capital Crunch Due To Inability To Clear Old Stock

These infrastructural challenges are compounded by financial constraints in the pulp industry. As the price of the Totapuri changes, so does the price paid for pulp.

“Usually there is a difference of about Rs 20–30 per kilogram of fruit and pulp. So, if we are purchasing mangoes at Rs 5–6 per kg this year, we will sell pulp at Rs 25–30. Last year, the price of fruit was around Rs 25 per kg and we were selling pulp at Rs 50 as a result. Sixty to seventy per cent of the stock of last year is still remaining with us because we were not able to sell it,” said Ramana, a manager with Sunsip Agro, one of the few pulp processing companies in the state.

Asked about the inability to sell the pulp, he said, “That is because of the wars that are going on in the Middle East. This has reduced demand. Also, there is competition from other countries.”

Summarising the situation, he added, “Now that prices are low, we would love to procure as much mangoes as we could, but we unfortunately do not have the capital to invest as we have not been able to sell the previous year’s stock.” If stored well, pulp lasts about 18 months to 2 years.

The Process: From Farm To Frooti

These financial and infrastructural constraints directly impact the pulp production process, which is critical to both states’ mango economies. While pulp is not a complicated product to make, it still takes a few weeks to reach the customer, namely the juice and beverage-making factories.

Walking me through the process, Ramana said, “We get raw but mature mangoes from farmers. These are then kept in a ripening chamber for six days. Once ready, they are taken up for processing. For every 100 kg of mangoes, we get about 50–55 per cent quantity as pulp. Some industries require ‘concentrate’, which is pulp minus the water content. Concentrate quantity is about 25–30 per cent of the amount of mangoes.”

The taste of concentrate is different from that of pulp. While pulp has a more natural flavour, texture and colour, concentrate is thicker and has a more intense flavour.

After production, the packed pulp or concentrate is stored for a week and sent for quality checks. Once certified, they are transported to factories or exported abroad.

“Each company has its own formula. While some use only Totapuri, others use a mix of Alphonso and Totapuri.” Mass-market mango-based drinks like Frooti, Maaza and Slice contain 11–19 per cent of mango pulp.

Companies also procure raw mango pulp, which is used for Aam Panna, but the market for it is smaller than that of the sweet drinks.

Can Something Be Done In Srinivaspur Itself?

According to Sreenivas, the town itself can be made a processing centre.

“The government has about 100 acres of land here. It can be demarcated as an agro-industry zone and then units to make pulp, pickles, slices, etc. should be set up along with a cold storage.” He added that the possibility of setting up a cooperative like Amul or Nandini should be explored.

Situation For Andhra Farmers Is No Better

While Chinnappa and Sreenivas’s accounts show us the bleak situation in Karnataka and the need to explore local solutions, the condition of mango farmers in Andhra is almost the same.

The order of the state government to procure mangoes at Rs 8 per kg is not being followed, said Babu Naidu, who grows mangoes on his 25-acre farm in Chittoor.

“Factory owners have formed a syndicate and are paying farmers only Rs 5–6 per kg. So, along with the government subsidy, we are able to make Rs 9–10 per kg, not the Rs 12 that was announced,” he explained.

A few others alleged that this was allowed to go on because many of these pulp industries are owned by politicians or those backed by them. Further, the subsidy does not work out for everyone or for the entire crop of a farmer.

Explaining the nitty-gritty, Anand Naidu, a large mango farmer from Pileru in Chittoor district, who has about 100 acres under cultivation, said, “Factories are only accepting mangoes brought in tractors. But what do large farmers like us do? We have large quantities that need to be sent by lorries. How many tractors do I send? I would not be able to recover the cost of taking them to the factory. So, I am letting the fruits remain on the trees. The subsidy only works for smaller farmers, who can send their crop in a few tractors.”

Babu added, “The subsidy is given only up to a yield of five tonnes per acre. What do farmers like me who had a bumper yield of 15 tonnes per acre this year do? Even usually, I have a yield of 10 tonnes per acre.”

The process of selling the fruit to the factory is tedious.

“After you reach the factory, you do not know when your mangoes will be accepted. The queues are 1–2 kilometres long. Sometimes it takes two or three days to give the crop to the factory. Within that time itself mangoes may be damaged or get ripened, making them useless,” said Karthik Chandra, a nephew of Babu and a mango garden owner himself.

“The price that is being offered is just about enough to cover the cost of taking the mangoes to the factory and unloading it,” he added.

The Cost Of A Totapuri Mango

These challenges reflect the high economic pressures faced by farmers in both states.

“While the cost per tonne varies from farmer to farmer owing to differences in the inputs used and the scale of cultivation, a figure of Rs 10,000 to 12,000 per tonne is the bare minimum to make ends meet,” said Srinivasa.

According to him, the per tonne figure for the input cost, i.e. the cost of irrigation, pesticides, ploughing and maintaining the farm throughout the year, comes to Rs 7,000 to 8,000.

“At the time of harvesting, tractors need to be rented, which cost about Rs 1,500 to 2,000 for a day. Labour rates have gone up because of simultaneous demands in both states. Those who used to work for Rs 300 a day earlier now charge Rs 550 to 600. If I have, say, eight labourers working for me, they will have to be paid Rs 4,800. That comes to about Rs 7,000 for a tractor load of mangoes, which is roughly three tonnes. The per tonne cost of loading itself thus comes to around Rs 2,300. After that, we need to add fuel costs.”

Across the border in Chittoor, Chandra’s story is similar.

“We spend around Rs 4,000 per tonne to take our fruit to the factory,” he said.

Is It Not Consumed In Homes As Fresh Fruit?

While not all of the Totapuri mango is used for pulp and some of it is used for consumption as fresh fruit (called table fruit in industry parlance), the two differ in their characteristics. The table version of the Totapuri still commands a decent price in the market, and retail prices in faraway markets like Delhi range from Rs 80 to Rs 100 per kg.

Explaining the distinction between the two, Chinnappa said, “The table variety has a slightly darker shade of green with a tinge of red and their weight is less compared to that of the ones grown for pulp. The latter has a paler colour and a single fruit weighs about 750 grams to 1 kg.”

Even then, a majority of the farmers have geared their production towards pulp and not the table fruit variety.

Asked why that is so, Anand said, “That is because people thought that it would be easy to sell the crop due to the presence of pulp industries. This year’s scenario is an exception (only the second since 2018).”

According to him, the larger issue is that mango farmers in the region have increased by a lot in the last decade or so.

“The ready market, subsidies, industries in proximity and a lesser amount of labour required made it attractive for people—irrespective of their land holdings. People with one acre, five acres, or even 100 acres, all have entered mango cultivation, taking production volumes up.”

Trying Their Hands At Export

While Totapuri is primarily grown for pulp, some farmers have explored exporting other varieties, such as the Banganapalle. Of the farmers this writer spoke with, only Babu and Anand have had some experience on that front. But they did not have any idea about the processes after traders procured the fruit from them, showing that there is a lack of awareness when it comes to the needs of the international market.

“I sold Banganapalle at Rs 60 per kg to a trader last year. I was told that the fruits were to be sent to the US. These sales happen at the farm itself. Once we have received the amount, we hand over the consignments. All further processes like vapour treatment, shipping etc. are taken care of by the traders. We do not have any role in it. The only extra thing we did was to get packing covers from Vijayawada,” said Babu.

Agreeing with Babu, Anand said, “I had sold to exporters a few times. Sometimes they used to give good prices, sometimes not. For the last few years, I have been selling in the domestic market only. Buyers from places like Mangalore, Kerala, Maharashtra and Bangalore visit our farm. We sell to them.”

Middle East Is The Biggest Market

Due to reasons like proximity and a large Indian and subcontinental diaspora, it is the Middle East that has emerged as the major destination for mango pulp from India.

While demand has reduced because of the region being ravaged in wars (Israel-Gaza followed by Israel-Iran and a longstanding conflict in Yemen), it is also a venue for global competition as suppliers from Africa and South America also ship their produce there.

Farmers Unhappy But Hopeful

While one of the solutions to the issue seems to be growing other varieties in larger quantities, it is not easy to do that. The transition would take time.

“New trees would take a few years to give fruits, and old trees would continue to yield during their life cycle,” said one of the farmers.

Commenting specifically about the Banganapalle, Sreenivas said, “We can grow it in our farms too but the quality will not be the same as that of the ones in Kurnool. Similarly, the Totapuri can be grown elsewhere but they may not achieve the same standards that we have. The soil and climate make a difference.”

Thus, Totapuri dominance is likely to stay. It is unlikely that the flowering season in the three states is going to coincide soon, which would lead to a more spread-out supply. Nor are factories going to procure other varieties, as the Totapuri is the most suitable variety for pulp.

The Andhra government’s proposed Mango Board offers hope, though its formation may take a while if one considers the time taken to establish a turmeric board in neighbouring Telangana, in spite of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party electorally benefiting from the issue.

Totapuri farmers remain optimistic that the tide will turn and they will see better prices for their harvest from next year.