Mango production in Michoacan has had losses of nearly 25 percent in the recent season because of weather conditions that triggered the simultaneous maturation of orchards in different parts of the country, which, in turn, contributed to the saturation of the North American market and the collapse in prices, said Xavier Contreras Chavez, President of the Mango Product System.
According to Chavez Contreras, United States and Canada declined receiving mangoes prior to the conclusion of the season because their markets were saturated, which resulted in an average of 100 million pesos decline in the export goal, which affects 30 percent of the 4,200 fruit producers, as well as a reduction in domestic prices, as they decreased by 28.57 percent, from 3.50 pesos to 2.50 pesos per kilogram, and international prices, which fell by 70% from five dollars for a four kilogram box to $ 1.50,.
"We lost around 25 percent of the total production because the fruit matured and we couldn't export it; the markets in the United States and Canada were so saturated that they no longer wanted more fruit. All states produced mango at the same time because of the weather and this resulted in an oversupply that affected us all," reiterated Xavier Chavez.
He also said the United States had the capacity to absorb 2.5 million boxes of four kilograms of mango every season, and they had been offered 3.5 million boxes this year. He then added that they expected the sector to recover in February 2016, if the weather conditions permitted the states to have a differentiated flowering production.
This year, 80,000 tons of the 100,000 tons harvested in 20,500 hectares, concentrated in the area of Apatzingan, were exported.
