Bangladesh targets mango exports to Malaysia, Japan as VHT facility addresses pest concerns
Officials remain optimistic that improved infrastructure and international inspections will facilitate trade with both nations.
BANGLADESH – Bangladesh is working to expand mango exports to Malaysia and Japan. A Malaysian delegation is expected to visit in early June to inspect mango-growing areas, packaging facilities, and export preparations. Japan requires Vapour Heat Treatment to eliminate fruit fly pests.
First, several specific requirements must be met by Bangladesh to export to Japan, including strict food safety standards, limits on pesticide residues, controls on production systems, quarantine protocols, and soil quality assessments.
Japanese authorities require involvement across the entire supply chain, and a key export requirement is Vapour Heat Treatment (VHT), which eliminates fruit fly eggs, larvae, and other pests from mangoes before export.
On the other hand, the Department of Agricultural Extension has already established a VHT facility in Gabtoli, the capital. Additionally, Japan requested scientific information on 16 potentially harmful pests not included in the 2023 Pest Risk Analysis, and Bangladesh has sought technical assistance from CABI to prepare the required evidence.
Mango export volumes have fluctuated over the past decade, with Bangladesh beginning exports in 2016. According to DAE data, the country exported 2,188 tons of mangoes in 2025, compared with 1,321 tons in 2024, though exports remained below the 3,100 tons recorded in 2023.
This fluctuation indicates that while production capacity exists, consistent market access and meeting importer requirements remain challenges. Officials remain optimistic that improved infrastructure and international inspections will facilitate trade with both nations.
Japan’s requirements, compared with Malaysia’s export standards, are significantly stricter. Malaysia is viewed as a priority market, in part due to the large Bangladeshi population living there. “If every Bangladeshi living in Malaysia buys even just one kilogram of mangoes, the potential volume becomes significant. This market is extremely important for us,” said Arifur Rahman, project director of the DAE’s Exportable Mango Production Project.
Malaysia requires inspections of growing areas, packaging facilities, storage systems, and export preparations.
By contrast, Japan requires complex, multi-layered controls, including VHT technology, pest risk analysis for 16 specific organisms, soil quality assessments, and involvement across the supply chain. “It is quite a complex process,” said Mohammad Monsur, general secretary of the Bangladesh Fruits, Vegetables and Allied Products Exporters Association.
Bangladesh has moved from theory to negotiation, and that progress, measured not just in tons but in institutional capability, is worth recognizing. With that in place, the mangoes will follow.
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