Currently, pineapples account for about 20% of the world’s tropical fruit production. It is the second most cultivated tropical fruit after the banana. Globally, the fresh pineapple industry has grown about 6% per year since 2000.
In 2019, West Africa earned about US$66.9 million from fresh pineapple exports to the European Union. Nigeria is the region’s largest producer, followed by Ghana, Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, and Togo.
Global pineapple markets shifted to the variety MD2 in the late 1990s and early 2000s: this variety is preferred for export because of its long shelf life. It meant that exports from West Africa almost collapsed, as growers there produced sweeter but much more perishable varieties.
In 2014, the MD2 variety accounted for roughly 90% of all pineapples grown in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), although traditional varieties have regained some popularity in local and regional markets.
Now, there is an increasing demand for fresh pineapple and pineapple products in regional and international markets. There is also a growing market for certified processed foods. Development partners are involved with the pineapple sector in Benin, and processors can tap into this network to upgrade their processing units, develop business networks that include all value-chain actors, get trained and certified, and as a result, seize market opportunities.
Regardless of the scale of processing, one key challenge is the lack of fresh product supply throughout the year. Other challenges include the lack of availability of varieties suitable for processing, high production costs and low productivity, a lack of well-organized cooperatives and access to loans, limited market information, and a lack of processing and packaging equipment as well as of refrigerated storage and transportation.
Source: howwemadeitinafrica.com