Up To 100 Boxes A Day As Mango Season Peaks In Yorkshire

Mango season is delivering one of the biggest seasonal trading periods of the year for South Asian retailers across Yorkshire, with supermarkets in Leeds and Bradford shifting produce by the box rather than the piece and roadside vans operating alongside them.

At Abu Bakr supermarket in Leeds, sales assistant Javed estimates the store was selling 60 to 100 boxes a day at the peak of the season, with some customers taking two or three boxes at a time and returning every other day.

Chaunsa is the most popular variety as the Pakistani peak season enters its final few weeks. The Indian peak season ends in July; the Pakistani season runs to September.

A season retailers plan months ahead

Satvir Meen of the Yorkshire Asian Business Association said the period is a crucial one for South Asian supermarkets and food businesses.

"Mango season is hugely important, and across Yorkshire for a lot of retailers it's one of the biggest seasonal trading periods of the year," she said. "They often prepare months in advance because they know customers are waiting for specific mango varieties from India and Pakistan. It definitely drives footfall and spending."

Buyers are, she said, "extremely knowledgeable and particular". "They're not just buying a mango. They're looking for a specific variety from a particular region, with the right flavour, texture and ripeness."

The commercial benefit extends beyond the fruit fixture. "People buy mangoes, but then do a wider shop at the same time," Meen said. "Retailers benefit from increased basket spend as well as higher customer numbers." Importers, wholesalers, drivers, independent grocers, restaurants, cafes, dessert shops and caterers all share in the seasonal spend, she added.

UK imports of mangoes, guavas and mangosteens worth some £223m in 2024.

Much of the demand is rooted in cultural memory and family heritage, she said, with the emotional connection translating into strong commercial demand and many customers buying entire boxes rather than individual pieces of fruit.

The import picture

In 2024 the UK imported almost 87,000 tonnes of fresh or dried mangoes, guavas and mangosteens, with a recorded import value equivalent to about £223m, according to World Bank WITS data drawn from UN Comtrade.

Pakistan and India supplied nearly 15,000 tonnes between them, worth approximately £44.5m — roughly one fifth of the UK's import value for that combined category.

Globally, exports of mangoes, mangosteens and guavas reached about 2.5 million tonnes in 2024, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation, 3% up on 2023.

Roadside trade under the spotlight

Vans stacked with crates of mangoes have become a fixture of the summer on Bradford roads including Toller Lane and Leeds Road. Questions have been raised in recent weeks about the authorisation of such fruit vans, reported locally by the Telegraph & Argus.

Bradford Council said it has not identified persistent problems with roadside fruit trading and that previous complaints have not revealed breaches of highway legislation. It said it can act where there is evidence of an obstruction, safety risk or traffic offence.

One seller, Jagseer, who spoke off camera, said he has sold fruit for two years and thousands of mangoes during the season, with between 100 and 200 customers stopping to buy on busy days. "Wherever you are from, you like mangoes. Everyone likes them," he said.

Meen does not see the two channels as being in direct competition. "Many customers will use both. They're different parts of the same seasonal mango economy, serving slightly different customer needs," she said.

Vans can concentrate on a few premium varieties and generate excitement around fresh arrivals, she noted, while supermarkets offer a broader shopping experience.

Demand across communities

The category's pull is not confined to South Asian shoppers. Haji Kamara, a Gambian customer at Abu Bakr, said: "I like them. Simple as that. My favourite is Gambian mangoes. I peel a mango and then make it into juice. It's sweet."

Across African, Caribbean and other diaspora communities, mangoes carry their own tastes, traditions and cultural associations.

In Bradford, businessman Imran Khan has built a Mango Day festival around the fruit, with visitors making and sampling dishes from mango trifle and lassi to spicy mango salad and cakes. "We only have a few months of summer, and mangoes come out at that time," he said.

"Mango season demonstrates how cultural traditions shape consumer behaviour, support local businesses and create economic activity across an entire supply chain," Meen said. "It's not just about fruit. It's a visible example of how South Asian communities have helped shape Yorkshire's food culture and local economy."

Reporting and quotes sourced from BBC News, "The fruit crossing continents and cultures", by Aisha Iqbal.