Prices for papaya are high across the global market, but there are different reasons for this in different locations. For many, the increase in price is due to the rising cost of air freight, which many importers of the exotic fruit rely upon. This is the case in the Netherlands, Germany, France and North America. South Africa has recorded higher than usual prices due to a lack of volume caused by a number of issues related to weather conditions during the growing season, an issue noted by other markets is there appears to be a lack of good quality, well-coloured fruit. Despite these high prices, there are no reports of a decline in demand for papaya, and most markets even note a continued rise in purchasing of the fruit. Both Mexico and Australia appear to be capitalising on this, and are currently focused on improving the quality and safe production of the fruit through investments in research.
Netherlands: 'Despite higher prices, no declining demand for papaya'
Papaya prices are a lot higher than a few years ago, according to a Dutch importer. "This is mainly due to the high air freight costs recently, which make the product a lot more expensive. Fortunately, we see that demand is not decreasing because of the higher prices, it remains the same or even increases slightly. We see that papayas are mostly frequently sold to customers with Eastern European origins. The sales are fairly stable. We have our regular customers who return every week, it has increased slightly over the past year but that is also because we were able to leave the COVID period (temporarily) behind," the importer said. He says the peak in papaya sales is still around the European holidays. "You have to think of Christmas, Easter and 3-Kings."
Germany: Prices on the rise due to increased freight costs
The situation in the countries of origin for papaya is tense at the moment, as the fruits are hardly getting any colour due to the current weather conditions. The papayas are relatively green in colour, but still rare and relatively expensive compared to last year. This is certainly also due to the increased freight prices, which is still a large problem for importers. An easing is only cautiously in sight in the coming weeks.
France: High prices due to cost of air freight
Currently, the French papaya market mainly features Brazilian origin, as well as Spanish and African papaya, but in very small quantities. Like many importers who rely on air transport, one French importer is facing logistical difficulties: "We mainly deal with Formosa papaya, which we transport by air. Since COVID, we have experienced some rather chaotic moments due to the hazards of loading, the increase in transport costs and the availability of air freight. Today, even if the situation remains difficult, it is still better than it was once. And the advantage is that it generates relatively high and constant prices."
As for consumption, it is currently rather stable. "We have moved upmarket in recent years, especially with regard to the Formosa papaya, a fruit weighing around 1kg, which is stronger in terms of taste than its smaller counterpart, the Golden papaya, which is generally around 600g. People consume more and more papaya all year round. There is no real spike in sales, they are currently quite level.”
Italy: Lack of good quality fruit puts pressure on papaya market
According to a wholesaler in northern Italy, the papaya market continues to be very difficult: there is a lack of adequate fruit in quality, good-looking and colorful; prices are too high. "The few who manage to get good quality fruit are also getting attractive prices despite the fact that there is a contraction of markets globally. Keep in mind that papaya is not part of the food staple basket, so if prices are too high, the interest in buying drops. An average sale is currently around 20 euro for a 4 kg box, coming by air from Brazil." The wholesaler expects an improvement in quantities from mid-November.
"Papaya does not have significant volumes and, the current historical period, are relegated to an even more marginal role among exotic fruits," confirms a trader from northern Italy, who also points out price increases. In recent months, due to logistics costs, papaya has been more expensive. "For a 4.5 kg case of Formosa variety, you pay at least 18 euro. However, this is a very good quality product imported by air from Brazil. Other kinds of product, for example papaya shipped from Africa, have no market in Italy and are not imported."
According to statistics, the percentage of households out of the total number (26 million) of those living in the Italian territory that buy papaya is growing. This testifies that this fruit belongs to that category of products that are often tried for the first time. In the year ending August 2020 there were 660 thousand households that had purchased it, two years later there are as many as 679 thousand.
South Africa: Unusually low volumes push up papaya prices
Papaya volumes coming out of the Lowveld are unusually scarce and the reasons for the sharp drop in volumes since February are not clear: a market agent notes that a hail event in November last year reduced volumes and now, after last week’s heatwave, sunburn is becoming a problem.
Overcast conditions from November to February are also mentioned as a possible reason for the low crop.
“After February production died down and March was very difficult with extremely low volumes,” says a papaya marketer. “It has been a difficult papaya year.”
"For the past three years the weather hasn’t been normal,” remarks a Lowveld papaya grower. “Our winter was about two weeks long, and we even had light rain during winter, which is unheard of in the Lowveld.”
Demand is quite good at the moment and prices are, relatively speaking, higher than normal this time of the year, which is purely volume-related.
Others, however, note that papaya demand and prices are under heavy pressure. South African consumers are having a hard time, but with summer temperatures come the urge to make fruit salad.
Prices for a 6kg carton of large fruit is an average of R100 (5.6 euros) to R110 (6.2 euros) while a 4kg carton of small loose fruit goes for R50 (2.8 euros) or R60 (3.9 euros). At the Johannesburg market prices for papayas in smaller pack sizes go as high as R46 (2.6 euros) per kg, but on 11kg cartons the papaya price is currently R13.27 (0.75 euro) per kilogram.
North America: Higher costs allow higher prices to hold
Supplies of papayas are ample right now, though demand for the fruit has slowed slightly. “There are quite a lot of papayas available--the majority of fruit is out of Mexico,” says one shipper. “Central America has a fair amount too and there’s also a little bit that comes out of South America. But it’s very small.”
Production out of these regions is year-round, though volumes fluctuate somewhat at times. “Usually in the summertime, it’s easier to produce papaya because the weather conditions are better so more fruit comes off,” he says, noting that volume is slightly up right now compared to this time last year.
However, another shipper bringing in papaya out of Mexico reports that the papaya growing regions in both Guatemala and Mexico are dealing with two consecutive weather events, causing lots of issues with the supply. Tropical Storm Julia brought an excessive amount of rain to the region, including some destruction at the farms. Flights and ocean vessels that were scheduled to leave during the weekend were delayed or cancelled. In addition to Tropical Storm Julia, there is also a tropical disturbance that may affect the same area throughout this week so large papaya orders may have to be delayed, reduced or cancelled.
Meanwhile, demand for the tropical fruit is fair. “The markets have been kind of slow across the board on all fruits and vegetables. But it’s steady,” says the shipper. “We’ve felt this for the last six to eight weeks.” As the holiday season approaches, papaya demand continues to taper off somewhat though it picks up again at the start of the New Year. “That’s when demand is strong again because everybody’s New Year’s resolutions start and everyone wants to eat healthy again,” he says.
At the same time, he says that the Mexican papaya industry’s efforts towards guaranteeing good quality and safe fruit has been paying off to increase general papaya consumption. In 2020, the Texas International Produce Association (TIPA) and the then-United Fresh Produce Association created the “Food Safety Best Practices Guide for the Growing & Handling of Mexican Papaya, First Edition” guidebook. It was accompanied by virtual training which targeted growers and handlers of Mexican papaya to “bring the entire industry up to a higher base-line for food safety and minimize the potential of a future outbreak” noted TIPA.
The shipper does say that the way demand has been though, the market is holding. “I think it’s because the cost to produce has gone up significantly. The producers can’t have low prices like before because they’d be producing in the negative. So prices are holding because of higher costs,” he says.
Mexico: Papaya industry betting on safety in its production systems
In Mexico, 1,118,000 tons of papayas are produced annually, according to official figures from the Mexican Government, in an area destined for the production of this fruit that borders on 20,000 hectares. The main producing states are Colima, Veracruz, Chiapas, Oaxaca, Michoacán and Nayarit, and to a lesser extent San Luis Potosí, Tamaulipas, Campeche and Yucatán.
"The main variety that is planted and produced in Mexico for national consumption continues to be the Maradol, however for the export market the growth due to the production of hybrids has been increasing, currently being the main option for companies that are dedicated to exclusively for export,” explains a representative from the organization of exporting papaya producers in Mexico.
“This transition has been driven mainly by the resistance of the hybrids to some pests and/or diseases, in addition to better adaptability and resistance to weather phenomena, not least because many hybrids have better characteristics for the consumer such as their sweetness, flavour, consistency or even the format, with more individual sizes.”
According to the latest data for 2020, Mexico is the fourth largest global producer of papayas, only behind India, the Dominican Republic and Brazil, but it is the largest global player in the export of this fruit. "The main destination for Mexico's exports is the United States, where around 150 to 180 containers of 20 tons each are sent per week."
“The papaya industry in Mexico is committed to safety in its production systems, we have implemented self-regulatory systems that allow us to differentiate ourselves in the market, seeking to guarantee safe, nutritious and healthy papayas for the market. Today that people's health has become more relevant and the trend is towards the consumption of healthy foods, we have prioritized safety so that consumers can be sure that not only the requirements stipulated by the regulatory authorities are implemented, but additional measures to guarantee the care of all the processes for the safety of papayas. It has been an important challenge that has led us from educating all levels of the industry to implementing verification systems for each stage of the process.”
In the January-April period of this year alone, foreign sales of fresh papaya, along with watermelon and melon, increased by 14.25%, compared to the same period in 2021, totalling 184 million dollars, according to data.
Australia: Focus on improving papaya cultivation
The Australian papaya industry is undertaking a number of key research and development projects to assist growers in decision-making, as well as breeding. One of those is the levy-funded ‘Papaya market supply data capture and analysis’, which is tasked with collecting, collating, and publishing weekly industry production figures. This data will then support papaya growers in making more informed decisions regarding their in-season and longer-term production and marketing. It will show the production numbers of yellow and red, and the split between the main growing areas of North Queensland. Given a lot of industry data is not recent, the focus of the reports will estimate the weekly production volume in pallets by asking transport companies to report the total pallets sent to the main eastern seaboard markets. Another project involves new papaya genetic lines, developed through the ‘National Papaya Breeding and Evaluation Program’ that are agronomically superior with improved flavour, shape, size and eating quality through research from Griffith University’s Centre for Planetary Health and Food Security.
According to statistics, for the year ending June 2021, 18,331 tonnes of papaya/pawpaw were produced and valued at $40.7million, and while there was a seven per cent drop in production, the value was up 28 per cent. Export-wise, only a very small amount of the fruit was shipped internationally, with five tonnes. At a consumer level, 18 per cent of Australian households purchased fresh red papaya and yellow pawpaw, buying an average of 900g per shopping trip.
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