Mangoes are still one of the most popular exotic fruits in the UK, even in the face of production challenges, fluctuating exchange rates and mounting concerns that the economic downturn would turn consumers away from a fruit often thought of as an expensive treat.
The market is, in fact, shaping up better than first feared last year, when the financial crisis took hold and caused UK consumers to collectively tighten their belts and stop spending on perceived luxuries. The collapse of sterling made imports expensive and the UK became less attractive for growers and exporters, which did not bode well for supply or demand.
But growers and exporters have worked hard to navigate their way through the downturn to continue to supply a range of mango varieties to the UK market, maintaining their position as one of the UK’s favourite exotics. The last 12 weeks has seen some evidence of the green shoots of recovery, with mango values returning to some sort of normality and giving the opportunity for some deeper-cut and consumer-focused promotional activity on the high street. The signs for growth are looking increasingly positive as consumer confidence improves and disposable income is balanced against outgoings, while sterling continues to strengthen.
This may be the first sign of a turnaround, following a year in which higher cost structures led to a virtual shutdown of any aggressive promotional activity and saw most retailers turn to background promotions in an attempt to maintain some focus on the category.
But TNS figures show that, overall, the market has declined over the last 52 weeks, with value falling by 20 per cent and volume declining almost at the same rate, down 19 per cent.
Nevertheless, the UK remains an interesting market for mango growers and exporters. The supply of a range of varieties, from long-standing offer Tommy Atkins to non-fibrous types such as Kent, Keitt, Maya and Shelly, comes from a number of different sources to provide the UK with year-round supply of top-notch fruit.
Wealmoor Ltd is one of the UK’s largest importers and packers of mangoes, supplying a number of major retail customers, key processors and wholesale accounts. The supplier works in close partnership with family firm Miriam Shoham, which grows and packs a range of mango varieties from Maya, Shelly and Kasturi to Tommy Atkins around the Sea of Galilee in Israel.
Danny Grover, senior national account manager for Wealmoor, confirms that the last 12 months have been tough, with “high value driven by currency exchange and increases in freight costs, short seasons and general quality very challenging”.
“But the mango category is now experiencing year-on-year growth, with good signs for strong sales growth during the Israeli season, which runs from July to October,” he continues. “Crop forecasts are very good, with availability and values much improved on last year. Our target is to grow sales of premium-eating mango varieties by more than 50 per cent and deliver a high level of customer satisfaction this year.
“There has been strong retailer interest and the premium varieties are set to focus very heavily in retailers’ promotional plans this summer. Consumers are still recovering from a period of very low confidence. However, with the right offers and a good-quality product, loyalty and sales will return.
“Suppliers have a responsibility to be involved in marketing their product, both with their retail customers and nationally to ensure consumers are more aware of the versatility of mangoes.”
The mix of varieties on the market is growing and new varieties, especially non-fibrous ones, have been central to introducing new shoppers to the category. The market for premium-eating mangoes is still a niche one, but the major players are confident that it will continue to grow. This summer, promotions will be crucial across the board to get sales moving.
These days, Tommy Atkins is considered by many as the “poor relation” of the mango offer, says Grover, with many retailers only choosing to stock it in their entry-level ranges. However, it looks as if the tide could be starting to turn at the multiple retailers, where Tommy Atkins is now being restocked in standard ranges at certain times of the year. Much of this year’s growth has been driven through promotions on Tommy Atkins, as the lower values have allowed retailers to continue strong promotion plans. The variety still enjoys very strong demand on the wholesale markets, with customers preferring its blushed skin colour.
“Kent and Keitt smooth-fleshed varieties still only form a fairly small proportion of the mangoes grown globally,” says Grover. “Demand for Kent and Keitt has been driven by UK multiple retailers but delivering a full programme of availability throughout the year is still very much in its infancy. There are times during the year when the humble Tommy Atkins is the best-eating mango available, with high brix and great flavour and texture. This is not a mango to be written off.”
On the wholesale side in particular, a real mix of varieties is still to be found, with both fibrous and non-fibrous fruit finding a market. Mark Drake, exotics salesman at wholesaler Mack Bristol, has been dealing with the category for 16 years and he admits that while a range of varieties are proving popular, he has not seen the larger, five- or six-pallet deliveries that once arrived on the market. For now, he says, the mango market appears to be facing a temporary blip. “Over the last six weeks, mangoes have been difficult to procure because even though they are available year round, there are times when they are not as plentiful and we have had to get them from the continent,” he says. “This week, we have had some Israeli Shelly in under the Carmel brand and they were absolutely gorgeous - but they are not cheap, selling for around 1100-1200p for 20s. There is fruit from the Ivory Coast on the market, as well as Brazilian Tommy Atkins, which is lacking in colour and making about 500-800p for 12s.”
Across the world, a number of sources provide the backbone of mango supply to the UK. This makes the market competitive, as growers and exporters battle it out to provide the best offer and better meet the strict specifications of the UK market.
The first arrivals of Israeli mangoes reached the UK last week, starting with Tommy Atkins, then Kent and Keitt, followed by ready-to-eat varieties Maya and Shelly.
Oded Yacovson, general manager of Agrexco UK, is upbeat about the season. “The situation looks good at present,” he says. “It is going to be a reasonably big season in terms of volume. The fruit sizes will be small and the quality is looking excellent. Harvesting has just started, but we have not had any problems during production.
“We have not seen any reduction in interest this year,” he continues. “Even last summer, at the downturn of the economy, demand for our fruit was so high that we had problems just trying to meet and cover it.”
Agrexco is grafting Tommy Atkins onto Shelly in order to get a more fibreless product, which it is hoped will compare favourably to Brazilian fruit.
“New product development is continual,” says Yacovson. “Our plan is basically to provide good service and good-quality fruit to our customers and growers.”
Brazilian growers and exporters are expecting good mango production in their second season, from September to December, following heavy rain in the biggest mango-producing areas in the country first time round. Tommy Atkins, Palmer, Kent and Keitt are the main varieties produced in the South American country.
Moacyr Saraiva Fernandes, president of the Brazilian fruit institute (IBRAF), says the industry is working hard to maintain momentum in the marketplace. “For the UK and Europe, in general exporters are facing a retraction of demand and a strong pressure on prices,” he says. “However, the consumption of mangoes in Brazil has not been affected.
“Mangoes in Europe are known as an exotic fruit, so it can have a high price compared to traditional fruits. To increase consumption in the UK, we are doing promotional activities to show the nutritional benefits and the special flavour of mangoes from Brazil, which are produced following the international standards in terms of quality and food security.”
The Ecuadorian mango offer comes between the Brazilian and Peruvian seasons, beginning in October and stretching until mid-January. The South American country, which grows mainly Tommy Atkins, Kent, Keitt and Hadens, started supplying the UK market with mangoes around five years ago and since then, volumes have been increasing gradually.
The Ecuadorian Mango Foundation controls 98 per cent of the growers, packers and shippers from the country. Bernardo Malo, chairman of the board of directors, has watched the market develop and is convinced that there is still potential for increased consumption in the UK. He admits, however, that the global economic crisis has had a “significant” impact.
“Non-fibrous varieties are certainly growing in popularity in the UK as I believe that the typical consumer has become very cultured, taste-wise,” he says. “Therefore, people in the UK are not only looking for high-colour fruit; they want tasty mangoes with the right texture. Based on this premise, Kent and Keitt are in high demand in the UK.
“We believe that mangoes are not being considered as speciality or exotic items any more because consumers are eating them on a consistent basis. We have still not reached ideal levels of consumption but, nevertheless, mangoes have a great potential in that direction.”
However, Malo acknowledges that the challenges facing growers and exporters are many and varied, not least caused by the effects of the economic downturn on the category.
“Ecuador is somehow more affected by currency exchange factors than other countries, since eight years ago we adopted the US dollar as our local currency,” he explains. “Sterling has been weaker for the last year or so, which is definitely not working in our favour.
“But the Ecuadorian Mango Foundation is working constantly on issues that will encourage growers to ship more volumes to Europe and specifically to the UK. One of our main goals is to create enough awareness among exporters, in the sense that the UK is a very demanding market and in order to succeed commercially, their product must achieve certain levels of reliability, aside from good quality. This is when GlobalGAP, Field to Fork, Nature’s Choice and a couple of other certifications become a must. Our target is to have at least 75 per cent of our growers certified to GlobalGAP in the next five years.
“The fresh-cut market growth is certainly motivating growers and shippers towards the idea of doing more business with the UK,” he adds. “Despite this, issues such as traceability, pesticide application records and good agricultural practices must be achieved in order to reach the next level.”
A more speciality offer comes from India, where the mango season comes on stream in March and stretches until August, including mainstays Alphonso and Kesar, as well as upcoming alternatives such as Neelam, Ratna, Rajapuri and Payri.
Kay Bee Exports is a leading exporter of fruit and vegetables from the country, which has just underlined its commitment to its mango offer by setting up a new mango processing facility in Maharashtra. Kaushal Khakhar, chief executive officer, confirms that this year has been tough but maintains that India has carved itself a long-term niche as a supplier of speciality mangoes and as such, the outlook is positive. “The extended winter season and untimely rains during the summer season delayed and shortened the mango season this year,” he explains. “Production was a record low for a few varieties, especially Kesar.
“The Alphonso season had an unprecedented gap this time and even though it started with good volumes, the unseasonal rains created a gap and prices increased.
“But this year, we have introduced Neelam, which is very promising and has been very well accepted by our customers.
“India is largely a speciality mango supplier. With the diverse and special mango varieties available from India, it is without doubt the best source of speciality mangoes for the UK.
“Indian mangoes are very popular in the wholesale sector because of the strong presence of the ethnic Asian communities in the UK. But in an effort to attract these communities to shift purchases from Asian grocery stores to mainstream retail, the retailers are also keeping Indian speciality mangoes on the shelf regularly.”
Across the majority of the major sources, it looks as if the mango market is, in many cases, faring better than expected. The industry as a whole is determined to defend its market share and actively grow the market, not least in the UK, where there is still good potential for growth.
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