Integrated crop management practices to enhance value chain outcomes for the mango industry in Pakistan and Australia

The project, ‘Integrated crop management practices to enhance value chain outcomes for the mango industry in Pakistan and Australia’ (HORT/1201/006) is the second phase of the mango production component of the Australia/Pakistan Agriculture Sector Linkage Program (ASLP). The project that ran from 1 October 2010 to 30 September 2015 and followed the ASLP Phase 1 project ‘Development of integrated crop management practices to increase sustainable yield and quality of mangoes in Pakistan and Australia’ (HORT/2005/135). The overall aim of the project was to enhance the profitability of small landholder mango growers in Pakistan by sustainably improving their yields and fruit quality through improved orchard production, pest and disease management. This was achieved by the coordinated engagement of over 30 researchers from 10 research and extension institutions with guidance from Australian researchers who worked with 41 smallholder mango grower clusters in villages across Punjab and Sindh to address several key issues in mango production that were having significant impact on the livelihood systems of the rural poor in Pakista

The Queensland Mango Genomics Initiative

Mango is an important industry for Queensland, Australia, with an annual value exceeding $80 million. The Kensington Pride cultivar, prized by consumers for desirable taste and colour characteristics, commands 60% of the domestic market though this market share has declined in recent years as new varieties, such as Calypso™, get established with consumers. In 2005, the Queensland Government's Department of Agriculture and Fisheries commenced the Mango Genomics Initiative. This project brought together multidisciplinary teams of breeders, pathologists, sensory scientists, flavour chemists and molecular biologists to develop a suite of tools and inter-related data sets to support the accelerated development of new commercial mango varieties. An overview of the Mango Genomics Initiative will be presented here culminating in the generation of a draft Kensington Pride mango genome sequence