Mangoes Bring Community Together at Pakistan Embassy in Washington
By Elaine Pasquini
Photos by Phil Pasquini
Washington: Masood Khan, Pakistan’s ambassador to the United States, hosted a Mango Festival at the Pakistan embassy in Washington on July 20, 2023.
The eclectic guests included members of the Pakistani diaspora, journalists, scholars, diplomats and American lawmakers, who all enjoyed not only delicious mangoes but a sumptuous barbeque of South Asian specialties.
In opening remarks, Ambassador Khan emphasized the special relationship between the United States and Pakistan over the past 75 years, which continues strong today through education, security, trade, investment, and climate-related issues.
Rep Michael McCaul (R-TX), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, noted: “Through trade and economic investments in Pakistan, the two countries become closer partners and bring peace to our nations.”
Pakistan Senator Irfan Siddiqui from Punjab province, one of the country’s main mango-growing regions, also spoke, stressing the importance of the longtime relationship between the United States and Pakistan.
The mango, Pakistan’s national fruit and the country’s second-largest fruit crop after citrus, was the centerpiece of the evening reception. Production of mangoes for last year was an estimated 1.84 million tons. Along with other crops, however, mango production has suffered due to devastating floods in the country last year. Exports of the popular fruit were over 125,000 tons in 2022, at a value of $72 million.
Popular in the United States, particularly in Northern California which boasts a large South Asian population, the different varieties of the fruit include Chaunsa, Sindhri, Lal Basha, Sunehra, Anwar Atol, Langra, Dussehri and Fajri. Nutritionally, mangoes are a “super fruit,” providing an abundance of vitamins A, B6 and C, along with healthy fiber.
While politics is always a hot topic at Pakistani gatherings, with varying views and opinions, discussions of the mangoes and sumptuous barbeque, including other Pakistani specialties, were preeminent during the boisterous gathering.
(Elaine Pasquini is a freelance journalist. Her reports appear in the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs and Nuze.Ink.)
