Pakistan is one of the very fortunate countries that is gifted with abundant natural resources and fertile terrain. Some of the most popular fruits in Pakistan are produced locally and are also exported to other countries.
Given that fruit is a wonderful source of vitamins and minerals, it helps to prevent vitamin A and C deficiency which is why fruit remains a popular food in almost all regions.
Graana.com, Pakistan’s smartest property portal, brings you a list of popular fruits in Pakistan. Let’s take a look.
Popular Fruits in Pakistan: Production and Ratios
The majority of horticulture produce in Pakistan is consumed domestically. The local demand for fruits increases proportionally with the increase in population and their standard of living.
Approximately 91% of the fruit is consumed domestically and 6% is exported. The remaining 3% is processed into value-added products such as pulps, juice, concentrates, frozen, and preserved items like beverages, jams, jellies, and pickles.
The top five commodities now exported from Pakistan are citrus, dates, mango, potato, and tomato, which account for nearly 80% of the horticulture sector’s overall exports.
| Popular Fruits in Pakistan | Export value,% | World market share,% |
| Citrus | 23% | 1.5% |
| dates | 17% | 5.8% |
| Mangoes | 11% | N/A |
| Banana | 3.4% | 0.2% |
| Pine nuts | 22% | N/A |
Pakistan exports fruits and vegetables to every country globally, primarily to the United States, Europe, the Middle East, the far East, the United Kingdom, Sri Lanka, and India.
Locally Produced Popular Fruits in Pakistan:
The most common fruits that are produced in Pakistan include mangoes, citrus(kinnow), grapes, guava, apples, bananas, and plums. In addition to this, some other fruits that make it to the list are cherry, peach, pear, apricot, jammon, lychee, papaya, and pomegranate.
Not only are these produced in premium quality, but they also have a rich taste which is why these are the most popular seasonal fruits in Pakistan.
Pakistan is also well-known for the vast availability of dry fruits as well. Dates, almonds, pine nuts, walnuts, and coconut are some of the dry fruits in Pakistan that are part of the list.
Popular Fruits and their Families in Pakistan:
| Sr. no | Fruits Name | Family |
|---|---|---|
| 1- | Mango | Anacardiaceae(sumac family) |
| 2- | Date | Arecaceae(palm family) |
| 3- | Banana | Musaceae( banana family) |
| 4- | guava | Myrtaceae(myrtle family) |
| 5- | Apple | Rosacea(rose family) |
| 6- | Orange | Rutaceae( rue family) |
| 7- | grapes | Vitaceae(grape family) |
| 8- | Pine-nut | Pinaceae family |
| 9- | Almond | Rosaceae (rose family) |
| 10- | Sugar apple | Annonaceae(custard-apple family) |
Mango- Sumac Family
Mangoes are a delicious fruit that belongs to the genus Mangifera. It is also known as the king of fruits in Pakistan. It includes a variety of tropical fruiting trees cultivated primarily for their edible fruit. The majority of these species are found as wild mangoes in nature.
Mango is a widely popular fruit in the country, and because of its popularity and richness in taste, it is referred to as the ‘King of fruits’. It is one of the most popular summer fruits in Pakistan and it is a very popular element of desserts and summer drinks in Pakistan. Around 250 species of mangoes are found in Pakistan, among which the most popular varieties are Chaunsa, language, Anwar Ratul, Sindhri, Dasehri, Malda.
Mangoes are typically grown in tropical climates in Pakistan, and the leaves, wood, and even the skin provide several health advantages. Pakistani mangoes are renowned for their sweet taste across the world. They make up one of the biggest exports of Pakistan. In the last year, an estimated almost 1.75 million tons of mangoes were grown and shipped around 77,000 tons.
Pakistan is the world’s fourth-largest producer of premium quality mangoes, with hundreds of varieties produced in-house. Mango trees are very easy to grow, however for trees to produce mangoes can take years. Because of the ease of their plantation, they can easily be found in the backyards of many homes in Sindh and Punjab.
This is because the climate in our country is suitable for mango trees to flourish and bear fruit. You may also use your homegrown mangoes to make delicious juices, smoothies, and sorbets to share with your friends and family.
Orange-Rue family
Pakistan has several citrus fruit species and a brilliant variety of oranges. Kinnow (a popular combination of orange with easy-peel) is one of the most popular easy-peeling varieties, so the demand for it is highest among other varieties.
The export figures for kinnow fruits increase by leaps and bounds every year. They are highly nutritious and have a high water percentage. Every 100ml of kinnow juice contains almost 20-25 mg of Vitamin C.
Major areas of growing citrus in Pakistan are Punjab (Sargodha, Multan, Sahiwal, Lahore, Gujranwala, Sialkot, and Mianwali), Sindh(Sukkur, Nawabshah, Khairpur), NWFP(Peshawar, Mardan, Hazara, Nowshera, Swabi) and Balochistan(Sibbi, Makran, kech).
The highest cultivation of citrus fruits is in Punjab due to favourable temperature and environmental conditions. The total production is estimated to be 1.8 tonnes per year on an estimated area of 194,000 ha, with a per Acre yield of 4.6 tonnes.
Citrus harvesting season begins in November and ends in March. Pakistan is currently listed 20th in the world for citrus export. Brazil, China, the United States, Mexico, and India are the other major citrus fruit-producing countries.
Dates–Palm Family
Pakistan is the only commercial date-growing country with a wide range of fruits and vegetable exports almost every year. Pakistan ranks third in date production and is one of the major exporters of dates. Because of its export of the best quality dates, Pakistan earns a handsome amount from other countries which adds to the economic standing of the country.
Date harvesting season begins in July and lasts until September. Annual date reproduction in Pakistan is estimated at between 550,000- 650,000 metric tonnes. Sindh contributes roughly half of all dates produced in Pakistan, with Khairpur Mirs date palms accounting for 90%.
Pakistan is located in a vast agricultural region where dates can be grown on a large scale with high quality. There are almost 160 date palm varieties, but the most common are Aseel, Karbala, Fasli, Kupro, Muzawati, Japan, Swore, Kehraba, Rabai, Dhakki, Gulistan.
The biggest date-producing regions in Pakistan are Khairpur, Turbat( makran), D.I Khan, Muzaffar Garh, and Jhang. Pakistan ranks 5th in terms of dates production and is gradually making its way to the top in date cultivation.
Pakistan is working on supplying many fully processed dates in various styles and shapes. These include date chops, date paste, filled dates with peanut butter and chocolate-covered dates.
Banana—Banana Family
Banana is one of the significant cropped fruit in Pakistan. In Pakistan, traditional banana crops produce 5 to 6 tonnes of fruit per acre, whereas newly planted tissue-cultured banana crops will produce 30,000 to 40,000 tonnes per acre, with high export potential.
The new banana varieties were developed at the National Institute of the National Agricultural Research Centre, where 300,000 disease-free plants have been produced through tissue culture techniques. Cultivated banana has less sugar as foreign buyers like fruits have less sugar.
Pakistan has introduced two types of bananas.
- NIGAB-1
- NIGAB-2.
These two varieties will help Pakistan meet the domestic requirements and exports exchange. Bananas are the world’s most exported fresh fruits.
Apple–Rose Family
Pakistan is the 10th largest apple-producing country globally. December and January are the best seasons for apple production, yet some farmers also plant apple seeds in Moonsoon weather using T-blooding. However, the most predictable technique by Pakistani farmers is to cultivate apples is Tong and Clift drafting.
There are thousands of varieties of apples globally, but only some of them are really popular. These popular varieties include Granny Smith, Golden Delicious, Pink Lady, Red Delicious, Kalla Kaku, Mushadi, Kaja, Gacha, Amri, and much more.
Rain plays a major role in apple production because if it doesn’t rain, there won’t be enough water reaching all branches and the tree won’t be able to provide fruit. Most apple gardens occur in mountain regions like Balochistan, KPK, Punjab (upper areas like Muree, Potohar), and Azad Kashmir.
Each apple contains potassium and phosphorous in a rich quantity that helps maintain blood pressure and prevent heart diseases and potential kidney damage.
Guava–Myrtle Family
Pakistan cultivates and exports a large amount of guava globally. It is grown in all provinces and is available all across the country. There are various types of guava, but only a few of them are really popular i.e. Thadharami, Shamlo, Benazir, Hyderabadi, local Sindh. This aromatic and delicious fruit holds an excellent name for Pakistans fruit export.
The main cities involved in guava production are Kasur, Lahore, Sangla hills, Gujranwala, Kohat, Haripur, Bannu, Larkana, Hyderabad, and Shariqpur. Pakistan produces a large amount of guava but, unfortunately, a large quantity of guava goes to waste because of improper handling.
Grapes–Grapes Family
In Pakistan, only European grapes are cultivated. This species of grapes are primarily grown in mountainous and sub-mountainous areas like Quetta, also known as the fruit garden of Pakistan, Qalat, KPK, FATA, Malakand, etc. Grapes are cultivated over almost 40 acres, with an annual production of about 65,000 tons.
However, due to high humidity, grapes have many diseases like anthracnose, dead arm, botrytis, black rot, powdery mildew, and many more. For their production, grapes require special care and attention and are a delicate fruit among all popular fruits in Pakistan.
Pine Nuts—Pinaceae Family
Pine nuts are country-wide favourite fruit yet also the most expensive fruits of Pakistan. In addition to their popularity, their export has pushed Pakistan’s ranking to second place while China is standing first. There are five significant countries known for nuts pine production
- China
- Pakistan
- Korea
- Russia
- Afghanistan.
Pine nuts export is increasing rapidly because of their delicious taste. The leading buyers of pine nuts are Germany, France, and the middle east. Pine nuts have increased the export ratio to 22 % of total fruit exports.
Pine nuts(chilgoza) are commonly roasted or dried with shells. These are enriched with carbohydrates and protein to keep a body healthy. Most people who are conscious about their diet take pine nuts as they are a brilliant source of protein for the body.
Some of the other fruits that are gaining popularity are:
- Dragon fruit in Pakistan.
- Kiwi fruit in Pakistan.
- Berry fruit in Pakistan.
In a nutshell, these are a few popular fruits grown and exported from Pakistan to other countries. If you think something is missing from this blog, please share your thoughts in the Graana blog comment section. We will warmly welcome and acknowledge your reviews.
FAQs
What is Pakistan’s famous fruit?
Pakistan is known for producing a variety of delicious fruits. One of the most famous fruits in Pakistan is the mango, which is considered the national fruit. Pakistani mangoes are known for their sweet, juicy, and fragrant taste.
Which fruit is the king of fruits in Pakistan?
The king of fruits in Pakistan is also the mango. Pakistan is one of the top mango-producing countries in the world, and Pakistani mangoes are highly sought after for their unique flavor and texture.
Which is the No 1 fruit in the world?
The number one fruit in the world, in terms of production, is the tomato. Tomatoes are grown in almost every country and are used in various cuisines.
What are the major fruits of Punjab, Pakistan?
In Punjab, Pakistan, the significant fruits grown include mangoes, and citrus fruits such as oranges and grapefruits, guavas, pomegranates, and apricots. These fruits are not only consumed locally but also exported to other countries.
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