How Ratnagiri farmers are ensuring you don't fall for fake alphonso mangoes

Ratnagiri farmers' organisation seeks to prevent people from purchasing poor-quality produce being peddled as the real deal from their district

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Pune: Farmers from Devgad in Ratnagiri, a region known for producing the best quality mangoes in the state, do not want the aam aadmi to be cheated by sellers giving out fake alphonso mangoes. They are travelling from city to city to create awareness about the authentic king of fruits that they produce.

Three hundred farmers from the Devgad Taluka have formed the 'Devgad Taluka Alphonso Bagayatdhar Ani Vyapari Sangh', which was recently in Pune's Market Yard, a wholesale marketplace, to educate customers about their produce.

Not the real deal
Vidhyadhar Joshi, director of the organisation said, "We are all mango farmers and we are unhappy with the way some mangoes are being sold at higher prices by sellers, who claim that they are the variety from Devgad and Ratnagiri. The 'Devgad mangoes' in the city aren't the real ones, as our mangoes will arrive on April 1, and will be tentatively sold for Rs 300 to Rs 700 per dozen. Our mangoes are yellow and red on the outside and saffron inside."

He added, "We have made special boxes under the name of our organisation, with a unique code for the farmers and a helpline number for an authorised salesman, who customers can reach out to if they receive damaged product."

About selling their product in Mumbai, Joshi said, "We are hoping to enter the Mumbai market, but are presently focusing on selling our product in Pune, Solapur, Kolhapur and Karad."

Real and the fake
According to the farmers, an authentic Devgad Alphonso is a saffron-coloured fruit, grown on the red soil of the Konkan region, surrounded by the salty sea breeze.

The mangoes being peddled as Devgad Alphonsos in the market are actually a variety from Karnataka, visually similar to Alphonsos, but are grown on flat terrains with no seashore nearby and are thick-skinned with less pulp.

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