More than a month before the start of the mango campaign in Malaga and Granada, the main production areas in Spain, early forecasts indicate that production volumes will be lower than expected.
Producers expected an increase in production, not only because of an increase in surface and the entry into production of new plantations but also because they expected this would be an On year; a year in which mango trees have an abundant production cycle. However, the fruits have had problems setting because of the abundant rains in February and March, and the atypical temperature changes.
"We expected to harvest twice the amount of mango that we had two years ago, when we experienced the last On year. Now, the industry expects to produce some 20,000 tons," said Oscar Ramirez, manager of the Tropico Spain company in Malaga.
Jose Linares, the new president of the Spanish Association for Tropical Fruits, said that, even though many flowers were aborted in the two mango blooms, they still had to determine the results of a third flowering that surprised the sector. "We'll have more accurate results about this unexpected bloom in late July, however everything points to a crop forecast of 20,000 tons and large commercial sizes."
According to Linares, although production will be high, market conditions are very good for the mango, as its demand is increasingly higher. "There's usually more competition in summer with other summer fruits so consumption and prices decrease a little. However, we expect sales will be good in Europe, given the added value that Spanish mango has because of its proximity to these markets and their freshness in comparison to oversea mangoes," he said.
The situation is similar in Granada's tropical coast, where producers remain positive. "We anticipate there will be a good harvest, despite the sudden changes in temperature that have affected the trees' flowering on the coast of Granada. We expected to have a spectacular harvest, but production will still be above the previous season's average," said Fernando Martin, manager of the Procam company.