Though the Indian mangoes are among the costliest in the US, the biggest importer of the fruit with the annual consumption 250,000 tons, officials says the cost of a box of 12 Indian mangoes which costs between 30 and 35 dollars could be brought down to around 15 dollars.

After lifting of the 18-year ban on the import of the fruit from India, mangoes worth USD one million were exported to the US last year and the figure is likely to go up to around USD seven million this year, Asit Tripathy chairman of Agricultural and Processed Food Export Development Authority (APEDA) said.

He told mangoes are irradiated before being exported to the United States as per the requirements of the regulators and that adds to the cost - around USD 150,000 per year.

He expressed the hope that as the volume increases, the cost would come down. Tripathy said that APEDA, the apex body of exporters which is spearheading efforts to popularised mangoes, is discussing with regulators the possibility of the fruits being tested on arrival in the US and of random checking rather than each batch being certified separately. Also some laboratories in India could be authorized to certify that the mangoes are safe