Mangoes and some avocados are back to shipping following Saturday's halt in Mexico. This comes after Sunday's killing of Nemesio "El Mencho" Oseguera Cervantes, leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel by the Mexican army which subsequently set off unrest in Jalisco and other Mexican states in western Mexico. In turn, a shelter in place directive was put in place for U.S. government personnel, which included USDA inspectors, and their work at inspection facilities halted accordingly.
© Stonehill Produce Inc.
Avocados
"Shipments on avocados are going through, though only from those packing houses located in Uruapan and Morelia in a limited manner," says David Billings of Stonehill Produce Inc. "All the other municipalities are hopeful that they'll get the green light Wednesday."
On Monday, the company was awaiting a decision from the USDA regarding inspections proceeding again and indicated that packers were reporting that things are quieter already.
He also noted that the industry has enough avocado inventory to withstand a day or two of no harvest and this event was a good opportunity to give fruit that is in U.S. coolers a chance to get freshened up.
Mangoes harvesting again
© National Mango BoardMangos are another key commodity shipped from Mexico this time of year. Last week, mango volume shipped to the U.S. amounted to 1,267,000 boxes. While inspection services were suspended on February 22, EMEX was notified on Monday evening that inspection services resumed in the states of Chiapas and Oaxaca on Tuesday morning, February 23. "Just last night, confirmation was received that operations in Nayarit, Michoacan, and the City of Aguas Calientes (which is where the irradiation plant is located) will also resume, effective today February 25," says Ramon Ojeda with the National Mango Board. The states of Guerrero and Colima won't start up yet.
Over at Freska Produce International, Gary Clevenger said that on Monday afternoon, the USDA let the company know their inspectors would be returning to work. "Yesterday, we harvested and today, we'll be packing–we can't harvest and pack the same day," he says. "If this had lasted all week there would have been a gap in supply but it was only a couple of days so things are going to continue as they were." He also noted that this event happened in a region it wasn't packing mangoes in.
© Freska Produce International
Clevenger added that the company has been through other scenarios that sometimes impede the shipment of fruit. "It's things you don't always hear about–roadblocks, backups at the border and things like that. A lot of things that don't make news but are an everyday occurrence for us," he says.
For more information:
David Billings
Stonehill Produce Inc.
www.stonehillproduce.com
Ramon Ojeda
National Mango Board
[email protected]
www.mango.org
Gary Clevenger
Freska Produce
www.freskaproduce.com
