The 2010/11 Ecuadorean mango season is running ahead of historical norms, which could see the first arrivals entering the US this week ahead of the Peruvian deal, according to industry sources.
“Right now, the first shipments of Ataulfos should arrive during the week of 4 October, with some Tommy Atkins the following week,” Chuy Loza of Freska Produce International told Fruitnet.com.
“Overall, it looks like the peak volume will start during the last week of October and run through November. If so, that should be good timing for the start of the Peruvian deal, which typically kicks off in early December.”
This season Ecuador is coming off a relatively strong production year (in 2009/10), when it shipped 89 per cent of its mango crop to the US and Canada last year, compared with just over 4 per cent to Europe.
But following some cold weather early in the season, which affected flowering, the industry expects to export less fruit in the coming season.
“We are anticipating a 15 per cent reduction in volume compared with the 2009/10 season,” said Bernardo Malo, president of the Ecuador Mango Foundation.
Read the full report on p60 of Americafruit Magazine’s October/November issue.
