Gelephu is leading the exports with 107,943 boxes, worth USD 1.357million

YK Poudel

Since the start of the mandarin export season on November 30, Bhutan has exported 185,703 boxes of oranges to Bangladesh, generating USD 2.384 million in revenue as of yesterday.

According to the Department of Agricultural Marketing and Co-operatives (DAMC), 27 exporters are using five key gateways—Gelephu, Samdrupjongkhar, Samtse, Phuentsholing, and Nganglam—to facilitate the shipments.

A total of 525 trucks have been employed this season.

Gelephu is leading the exports with 107,943 boxes, worth USD 1.357million, with 15 exporters using 303 trucks. Samdrupjongkhar follows with five exporters shipping 23,929 boxes valued at USD 302,000. Samtse has exported 22,460 boxes worth USD 289,000 through three exporters.

The Nganglam export gateway has shipped 16,241 boxes using 47 trucks, while Phuentsholing exported 15,130 boxes. These two gateways each have two exporters.

Exporters are offering Nu 1,400 for large mandarins (meel) and Nu 1,200 for small mandarins (keel) per box. In Bangladesh, these prices increase to USD15 and USD 12 per box, respectively. However, the final rates fluctuate depending on the USD rates offered by Bangladeshi importers.

Unlike in previous years, where exporters leased private lands, Gelephu Thromde has relocated its orange export depot to state-owned land in Namkhailing, near the Bhutan-India border gate. Each exporter contributed Nu 50,000 for the depot construction, with costs to be reimbursed by orange suppliers at the end of the season.

The funds have been used to enhance facilities, including water supply, road access, and electricity, as well as to construct trenches to prevent wildlife intrusion and reduce road dust with water tanks.

According to Bhutan Trade Statistics 2023, the country exported mandarins worth Nu 50.86 million totaling 13,382,788 kilograms.

Harvested mainly for export to Bangladesh and India, Bhutan produced approximately 21,170 metric tonnes (MT) of mandarins in 2023, a sharp increase from 2,703 MT in 2022.

Except for Bumthang, all 19 dzongkhags grow mandarin—there are a total of 26,963 growers across the country.

Dagana leads in production, harvesting 4,690.77 MT from 2,907 growers. Samdrupjongkhar is the second-largest producer, with 2,653.67 MT from 1,916 growers.