The Chinese Spring Festival [25 January, 2020] is approaching. Although the product quality of Southeast Asian mangoes has recently improved, the Chinese market price remained the same. The current price of Southeast Asian mangoes in the Chinese market is far below the level of recent years. Mr. Jin, a Cambodian mango exporter with Chinese investments, recently shared his view on current conditions in the mango market and on the latest news related to Cambodian permission for mango export to China.
"Many Cambodian mango companies recently underwent quarantine inspection before they began exporting small volumes of mangoes directly to Korea and Singapore. The export products received quite good market feedback. Most Cambodian companies still rely on Vietnamese plantations for export to the Chinese market. Data from Pingxiang port in Guangxi shows that more than 200 thousand tons of 'Cambodian mangoes' have a recorded production area in Vietnam," this is according to Mr. Jin.
"In the weeks leading up to Spring Festival, Cambodian companies have significantly increased the delivery speed of mangoes to Vietnamese mango packaging factories, to the extent that packaging factories can not handle the volume on time. As for the price, the market conditions of Cambodian mangoes are not good. Take Golden Brilliance mangoes for example, their price in Pinxiang port is less than 12 yuan [1.73 USD] per kg, while their price last year exceeded 14 yuan [2.02 USD] per kg. I think the main reason for this low price is the fact that conditions in the Chinese fruit market were less than ideal in the second half of 2019. The overall consumer demand for fruit is insufficient," said Mr. Jin.
When asked about the popularity of Cambodian mangoes in the Chinese market, Mr. Jin replied, "Chinese consumers love Cambodian mangoes. The two Cambodian mango varieties with the largest sales volumes are the Golden Brilliance mango and the Large Green mango. During the growing process some mangoes are covered in protective pouches, and these mangoes turn a golden yellow, which is why they are known as Golden Brilliance mangoes. Other mangoes are not protected and they are known as Large Green mangoes. There is more market demand for mangoes protected with pouches during the festive period leading up to Spring Festival, because the Golden Brilliance mango has a glossy and bright fruit skin with a color and luster that consumers find satisfactory. The Golden Brilliance mango makes an excellent gift. With Spring Festival on the way, sales figures for Golden Brilliance mangoes are expected to rise."