The general manager of the Peruvian Association of Producers and Exporters of Mango (APEM), Juan Carlos Rivera Ortega, said that, even though it is too early to quantify the production of mangoes in the 2017/2018 season (as flowering occurs in August-September), production would be affected by the damage that the Coastal El Niño phenomenon has caused to the irrigation systems.
According to Rivera Ortega, the channels, floodgates and water intakes suffered deteriorations by the rains, which have resulted in irrigation restrictions in some fields.
"While it is true that the Government is making efforts to fix all the irrigation infrastructure it won't be able to fully rehabilitate it this year, which will affect the irrigation of the fruit," he said.
He said the water was very important for the mango crops to have a good flowering and for the fruit to grow in size. He also said that the mango plantations needed the most irrigation in July and November.
Suitable temperature
However, the general manager of APEM said, there are positive signs regarding the climate, as the temperatures being recorded are between 15 and 30 degrees, which is beneficial for flowering. "It is almost certain that there will be flowering because the cold hours are important to induce flowering."
He said that the plantations had not suffered any great damage from the Coastal El Niño phenomenon because the mango was a tropical crop that has deep roots in the earth.
In the last campaign (2016/2017) Peruvian mango exports achieved a record 158 thousand tons exported (7,900 containers of 20 tons each).
Source: agraria.pe