Muscat – Oman aims to more than double its mango production to nearly 44,785 tonnes by 2030 as it seeks to capture a larger share of a domestic market that currently imports more than 46,000 tonnes of the fruit annually.

Under the 2026-2030 mango production localisation plan, the area under cultivation is targeted to rise to around 10,300 acres, with annual production valued at approximately RO17mn.

The expansion comes against a sizeable import bill. Oman imports around 46,211 tonnes of mangoes worth RO18.7mn, providing what officials see as a ready market for increased domestic production and investment.

Dr Hamdan bin Salem Al Wahibi, Director General of Agriculture  Development at the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Water Resources, said the figures demonstrate the scale of local demand and opportunities available to producers.

Oman currently has around 3,907 acres under mango cultivation, producing more than 17,123 tonnes in 2025.

According to Al Wahibi, increasing output would require more than simply expanding the area under cultivation.

Higher productivity, better fruit quality and efficient water use would be critical, alongside the selection of commercially viable varieties and greater use of modern irrigation and farm management technologies.

The government is also seeking to develop mango production into a wider economic value chain rather than treating it solely as a farming activity.

That chain would stretch from seedling production and cultivation to sorting, grading, packaging, marketing and food processing, allowing more economic value to remain within the country while replacing part of current imports.

Research is playing a central role in identifying varieties suitable for commercial expansion.

The Agricultural Research Station in Suhar is conducting work on mango varieties and seedling production while transferring research findings to farmers and agricultural investment projects.

Its mango genetic bank contains 252 varieties and 708 trees collected from different governorates of Oman and 23 countries.

Research and field trials have identified more than 30 promising varieties based on productivity and fruit quality.

Investment opportunities being offered in 2026 extend beyond mango farms themselves. Al Wahibi said opportunities were available in agricultural inputs, irrigation technologies and farm services, as well as sorting, grading, packaging, cooling, storage, transport and food processing.

The development of these activities could provide opportunities for small and medium enterprises and entrepreneurs while generating business across agriculture, logistics, marketing and manufacturing.

Al Wahibi stressed that closer coordination would be required between research institutions, farmers, investors, financing bodies and marketing organisations to turn promising varieties and research results into commercially viable projects.