Buying a little over a kilo of fresh mangosteens in the United States can set you back nearly $80. This delicate fruit needs specific environmental conditions to grow. Picking the mangosteens at the perfect moment is crucial to ensure optimal flavor and texture, adding to the complexity of harvesting. The US banned imports of mangosteens from its largest producers — countries like Thailand and Indonesia. Even though the commercial supply of mangosteen has spiked since then, it still doesn't meet today's demand. We went to Kerala, India, to see how mangosteen is grown and discover what makes it so expensive.
Category
🤖
TechTranscript
00:00This is a mangosteen.
00:04If you're unfamiliar with this tropical fruit, that might soon change, because the
00:09demand for its flavor is skyrocketing.
00:12Just look at one of the 44.7 million TikTok posts with the hashtag mangosteenfruit.
00:20In India, the largest producer of the fruit in 2022, a kilo of mangosteen costs $4, but
00:28in the U.S., just one fruit can go for $6.
00:33Even the saplings the nursery grows from the seeds of unsellable mangosteens are flying
00:37off the shelves.
00:39The global demand is so high that farmers in India are doing everything they can to
00:44grow more, including wiping their farms of other produce to plant more mangosteen trees.
00:51Or for a fruit that couldn't be legally imported into the U.S. from Asia until 2007.
00:58But stateside vendors told Business Insider they've been finding ways to get their hands
01:03on the fruit for decades.
01:06So does demand go beyond TikTok-worthy visuals?
01:10And why is this purple fruit so expensive?
01:15Some describe mangosteen as sweet and tangy, with notes of lychee, peach, and strawberry.
01:22Others can't quite figure out how to describe it.
01:25It's an emotion.
01:26If you eat, you will understand.
01:28I can't explain the taste.
01:32Street vendors in New York City, like Li, have been selling mangosteen for decades,
01:38even when it was contraband.
01:46In the early 2000s, a kilo could cost about $120 in New York, a little over $9 for a single fruit.
02:00Part of the reason for that staggering rate was a total ban on mangosteens grown outside
02:05of Central America and the Caribbean.
02:09Mangosteens are mainly grown in Southeast Asia, but until 2007, the USDA restricted
02:15imports fearing pests like the Asian fruit fly would harm U.S. agriculture.
02:21Even so, Li says he found ways to get a hold of some.
02:25He used to come from Thailand.
02:27He used to come here when he was very young, but he sold out very quickly.
02:30You couldn't see him, right?
02:32Now you can see him every day.
02:36Thanks to the lift on the import ban, more mangosteens are reaching the U.S.,
02:41which has lowered the price.
02:43Today, Li is selling a kilogram for $22, but other vendors charge as much as $78.
02:52And as more mangosteens have made their way to the U.S., vendors have also seen demand grow.
03:14It's not just an American phenomenon.
03:17As global demand keeps rising, mangosteen farmers in Asia are doing everything they
03:22can to increase production.
03:27One way farmers are trying to meet that demand is by simply growing more.
03:37Murlin Muthithar Nursery in Kerala, South India, decided to cut down its other fruits
03:42in favor of mangosteens.
03:45Right now we are cutting all coconuts.
03:47We are only promoting this mangosteen because we have profit in this.
03:51That much demand we have right now.
03:54Mangosteens currently make up 50% of the farm's profits,
03:58so Manu says it's the right investment.
04:01The future is fruitful.
04:03Hey, I feel like that.
04:10Other farmers like Shaju are catching on, too.
04:15Even the saplings the nursery grows from the seeds of unsellable mangosteens
04:20are flying off the shelves.
04:22This year I have just one plant which gave me fruit for almost 10,000 rupees worth fruit.
04:28About 40 kilos I sold.
04:30So I thought, why not? I'm taking 120.
04:34I want to plant these saplings the best possible way,
04:37and I want to make it for a commercial purpose.
04:41He won't be able to capitalize on mangosteens from those trees any time soon.
04:47It takes up to 10 years for a mangosteen tree to bear fruit.
04:52They need a warm, tropical climate with high humidity and slightly acidic soil.
04:58That's why they're mainly produced in South and Southeast Asia.
05:02Once the fruit does grow,
05:04the farm tries to ensure pickers don't miss a single ripe mangosteen.
05:15Badu has been picking mangosteens at the farm for 35 years.
05:21During the peak season of June and July,
05:24harvesters like Badu climb 40-foot trees
05:27in hopes of finding the best mangosteens,
05:30considered first-grade.
05:33First-grade mangosteens are 4 to 8 centimeters in diameter,
05:38and can grow up to 3 to 4.5 feet in length.
05:42The best mangosteens can be harvested in the summer,
05:45and the best mangosteens can be harvested in the winter.
05:49They're 4 to 8 centimeters in diameter,
05:52with a purple or nearly black outer shell,
05:55and a bright white, fleshy fruit underneath.
06:01It's a delicate dance as the climbers race against the clock to pick mangosteens,
06:06before they overripen or fall, ensuring no fruit goes to waste.
06:19Pickers rotate through sections of the grove quickly
06:23to control the quality of their product
06:25and prevent mangosteens from falling in between harvests.
06:32And if one falls, it will quickly lose its sought-after,
06:36sweet and tangy taste, and become inedible.
06:41This one is a fell-down fruit.
06:43I think fell down before 2 or 3 years.
06:47Even if a fruit on the ground isn't rock-hard,
06:50they still won't sell it.
06:52Mangosteen can spoil within days of harvesting,
06:55so there's a chance it'll go bad before reaching the customer.
07:00But every mangosteen they do pick has a predetermined destination,
07:04according to Manu, whose father started the mangosteen farm.
07:08The destination guides harvesters in choosing which mangosteens to pick.
07:15Nearly a third of the harvest is reserved for direct customers
07:19who come to the farm to buy their mangosteen in smaller quantities.
07:25The darkest, ripest mangosteens are sold to them
07:28because they're the most expensive.
07:31The price of mangosteens varies,
07:34The darkest, ripest mangosteens are sold to them
07:37because they need to be eaten immediately.
07:41Another third is purchased wholesale by other retailers.
07:45They pay 350 rupees a kilogram, or around $4.17.
07:51These buyers seek less ripe, lighter purple mangosteens
07:55that can withstand transport times.
07:57The final third goes to middlemen,
07:59including exporters who sell to other countries.
08:03The further Manu has to send the mangosteens,
08:05the more expensive they get.
08:13Shipping the mangosteens by air
08:15is five times as expensive as ground transportation,
08:19which factors in to the final price.
08:22While only certain climates are suitable
08:24for farming prolific mangosteen trees,
08:26farmers can't depend on high yields every year.
08:30If a tree produces lots of fruit one year,
08:33it will produce less the next,
08:35causing production to vary in cycles.
08:39Last year, Manu's family farm made 10 million rupees,
08:43or about $100,000.
08:46Last year, Manu's family farm made 10 million rupees,
08:50or about $119,000 in revenue from its harvest.
08:55This year, Manu expects a third of that.
08:59He says, regardless of fluctuating profits,
09:02his family continues to benefit
09:04from mangosteens' surprising success.
09:07While Merlin Mutadhar Nursery
09:09doesn't have an export license yet,
09:11other farmers in Asia who do
09:13have to irradiate their mangosteens
09:15before they reach the U.S. market.
09:18Irradiation is when the fruit is exposed
09:20to ionizing radiation
09:22to eliminate harmful bacteria or microorganisms.
09:27But irradiation doesn't come cheap.
09:29The fruit must be shipped
09:31to either a local irradiation agency
09:33or one in the United States,
09:35adding to transportation costs.
09:38From farm to table, the expenses stack up.
09:41Mangosteen aficionados like Stephan Lin
09:44bear the brunt of that cost.
09:46I'd say it's more of like a treat.
09:48It would be more like a once-in-a-while thing,
09:50maybe like once a month or whatnot.
09:52If it was cheaper, I'd probably go out of my way
09:54of work to get it,
09:55but I do wish it was like $1 or so per fruit.
09:59People are willing to shell out
10:00for treats like mangosteen,
10:02especially in the United States,
10:04where 57% of fruit consumers
10:06are interested in trying exotic fruits.
10:09Mangosteens are known as the queen of fruit
10:12after a rumor that Queen Victoria
10:14loved them so much,
10:16she offered knighthood
10:17to anyone who would bring some to her.
10:19Today's consumers agree.
10:21The global market for mangosteen
10:23is growing at an annual rate of 3.6%,
10:26and is projected to reach
10:28up to $658 million by 2030.
10:33But this growth is relatively new.
10:35When Manu's father, Merlin Muthadhon,
10:37grew up eating mangosteens
10:38from a tree his grandfather planted
10:40over 100 years ago,
10:42it wasn't a viable business.
11:05He didn't make much money from it initially.
11:36But last year, his mangosteens sold
11:39for almost 18 times that amount.
11:43Merlin started off with 80 mangosteen trees,
11:46and now he and his sons
11:48look after 1,000, and counting.
12:05And if you have a good marketing skill also,
12:08you can get a huge success from this.