The lychee season in Madagascar is enjoying a record early start.
According to industry observers, good levels of rainfall and warm temperatures have been ideal for the fruit’s development, boosting volumes and bringing crops on early. As a result, producers, not just in Madagascar but also in South Africa and Réunion, have made this the earliest start for four seasons at least.
Some plantations have been affected by high winds and hurricane activity, but overall production capacity has not been dented.
Mauritius kicked the season off with airfreighted volumes in the very last week of October, followed swiftly with sendings from Madagascar, before South Africa and Réunion came on stream in mid-November.
Volumes have built steeply, catching out markets in Europe, to the extent that a lot of fruit has been making its way to wholesale outlets. But some industry observers believe the lychee season has also fallen victim to the global economic downturn.
A spokesperson for French research body Cirad said: “The season started against the background of the international economic crisis and this encouraged consumers to focus their food purchases more on staples. The accumulation of arrivals soon resulted in the forming of stocks and this was not good for fruit quality. Given this situation, many European importers slowed or provisionally halted their supplies and tried to clear the fruit they had already received.”
But, ironically, the outlook may improve as the airfreight season gives way to larger volume arrivals by sea. The Cirad observer said: “The increase in volume and the decrease in price inherent in fruits imported by sea may perhaps stimulate demand that has been very sluggish so far.”
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