The mango industry has shown considerable growth in the past decade. Since 2005, the year in which the National Mango Board was established, volumes have increased by about 50 percent. “The value of the industry however, has gone up by 91-92 percent during that time frame,” says Manuel Michel with the National Mango Board.
Mango value has gone up
“Mangos are valued more. They are an excellent fruit and as consumers have become more aware of that, demand has gone up,” shared Michel. Producers are responding by increasing supplies. “There is more production each year, but there are times when Mother Nature takes over and volumes come down,” admitted Michel. “That’s when we see price spikes.” Overall, across the board all countries have seen the value increasing.
Mexico is largest exporter to the US
During the past decade, the number of mango growing countries has increased. The list of countries that is requesting to export to the US is slowly growing. There is a lot of interest from South Asian countries. Recently, Australia came on board with different varieties. “We also receive requests from some Latin American countries that don’t have the phytosanitary controls in place yet with Colombia being an example.
Right now, about 20-22 countries supply mangos to the US market. Mexico is the largest exporter, responsible for about two-thirds of US mango imports. Mexico is followed by Latin American countries, including Peru, Ecuador, Brazil, Guatemala and Haiti. A few Asian countries like India and Pakistan are exporting to the US and Thailand will start exporting shortly. Australia has an interesting window of opportunity because of its counter-season.
Limited domestic mango production
Domestically, mango production is limited. There is some production in South Florida, near Homestead. There are a few farms in California’s Coachella Valley and maybe one or two in the Rio Grande Valley in Texas. Hawaii and Puerto Rico grow mangos as well. “A (semi) tropical climate is needed to grow mangos and the US doesn’t have a whole lot of that,” said Michel. “When you do find it, like in South Florida, the land is so valuable that it doesn’t make sense to farm.” Before 1992, the US mango industry was bigger, but a lot of farms stopped producing when hurricane Andrew hit.
