Plenty of Mexican mangoes though sizing is predominantly small
Overview of the Mexican mango season by Rodrigo Diaz of Diazteca, complemented by charts from Agronometrics. Original published on June 04, 2021.
Source: USDA Market News via Agronometrics.
(Agronometrics users can view this chart with live updates here)
“The largest percentage of mangoes available are Tommy Atkins. It’s the peak of the season,” says Diaz. “But prevailing sizes are smaller–12 counts in a 4 kilogram standard box. There’s very few large mangoes.”
The drought effect
The predominantly smaller sizing is due to colder temperatures in Mexico. However significant drought is also playing a critical role. “Approximately 90 percent of Mexican mango production is rain-based. The country’s production has about 10 percent on irrigation,” says Diaz, adding that Diazteca’s mango fields are 80 percent irrigated by micro-aspersion systems. “So when there are weather issues, it affects the size of the fruit and the price on the smaller sizes.”
Those weather conditions are also delaying the season by two to four weeks in harvesting, which in turn could affect the grower producer’s intent to produce flavorful–not just well-colored and good-sized–fruit. “Growers are having to harvest greener fruit because the cold weather has not allowed the fruit to ripen and develop on the tree. And we’re worried about the experience of consumers. Hopefully now that the warm weather has arrived, we expect to have better flavor for the next two months,” Diaz says.
Meanwhile demand has been unpredictable. “Demand is steady but it’s a roller coaster of ups and downs,” says Diaz, adding that foodservice reopening won’t affect mango demand much given it accounts for between three to five percent of mango demand.
Lower 2021 pricing
And where does all of this leave pricing? Lower than last year.
Source: USDA Market News via Agronometrics.
(Agronometrics users can view this chart with live updates here)
“On small fruit, it’s between $2.75-$4 for 12s and 14s and for larger fruit, which also is seeing lower pricing, it’s between $3.50-$4.50,” says Diaz.
Source: USDA Market News via Agronometrics.
(Agronometrics users can view this chart with live updates here)
Looking ahead, Mexico is moving into heavier production this month and next for mangoes. “We expect ads to take place to promote mangoes and for demand to grow,” says Diaz. “And as the summer heat comes on, hotter temperatures make consumers go out more often to retailers and that will help demand too.” He also hopes consumers will increasingly switch to buying more smaller fruit rather than the 9s and 10s sizing they prefer. “It’s not happened in
the past so we’ll see if they respond to switching over,” he says.
He also adds that soon the Kent and Keitt varieties, which are later and larger varieties, will come on and start approximately the week of June 20th.
The News in Charts is a collection of stories from the industry complemented by charts from Agronometrics to help better tell their story.
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