A mild winter, dry spring and delayed storm season have meant the current mango season in the Australian state of Queensland is running at full throttle.
But while the flood of mangoes has been welcomed by consumers after a few low-yield seasons, the high volumes of fruit available on the domestic market from backyard and hobby growers is reportedly putting pressure on commercial producers, with fruit being sold on roadsides for as little as A$0.50 per piece.
“There’s an issue that smaller growers don’t understand what the true price of production is,” Australian Mango Industry Association development manager Trevor Dunmall told the Weekly Times.
“They’ll take whatever price they can get, whereas the larger, more commercial grower knows what he needs before he puts it in a tray to sell.
“Unfortunately, when production is high, the prices you get at times don’t match returns.”
Kensington Pride, the largest variety by volume in the Australian mango industry, is naturally a biennial barer, said Mr Dunmall, and with big production this year the 2010/11 season is likely to be lighter.
