U.S. awaits Pakistani mangoes

TORONTO, July 28 (UPI) -- U.S. mango enthusiasts said they are closely watching the progress of the government's announced plans to bring coveted Pakistani mangoes to the country.

Mangoes from Pakistan, most prominently the lauded chaunsa and anwar ratol varieties, have long been banned in the United States because of U.S. Department of Agriculture regulations regarding pest management at the orchard and postharvest level, but Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said last week during a visit to Islamabad, Pakistan, that the country's mangoes could hit U.S. retailers by the winter.

Waseem Haider of Virginia told The (Toronto) Star he has tried to bring Pakistani mangoes back to his family across the Canadian border, but the cargo was confiscated and destroyed at the border crossing. Haider said he and thousands of Pakistanis in the United States are closely watching the progress of the attempts to bring the mangoes to stores.

Shahzad Shahid of Toronto, who runs a home delivery mango company through buymangoes.ca, said he receives a lot of interest about the Pakistani fruit from the United States, and many people place orders and cross the border to receive them. He said he expects U.S. interest to be high if the fruits are brought over.