Guatemalan mango exports are set to grow by 10-15 per cent this year due to strong demand from markets like Europe and North America.
With around 5,000ha, the country is the fifth mango producing country in Latin America, exporting almost 18,000 tonnes of mangoes in 2018 with a value of US$10m.
Guatemala’s production window runs for three months from March to May. The season kicks off in the department of Retalhuleu where Ataulfo is the main variety grown, before moving on to Tommy Atkins in areas like Escuintla, Zacapa and El Progreso and finally the Kent and Keitt varieties which are harvested in April and May.
Eddy Martínez of the Guatemalan Mango Committee and general manager of DFT-Agrotropic told Prensa Libre that Keitt was most popular variety for new plantations due to its high productivity and suitability to the local climate.
He added that the Ministry of Agriculture needed to do more work to improve yields in order to convince growers that mango was a profitable crop.
