At the moment, the supply in the mango market is still limited compared to last year, as Peru, Brazil and Mexico have had lower productions. Nevertheless, Spanish exporters are confident that there will be a good domestic campaign this summer, as long as there are no setbacks. This is the opinion of the manager of Warakkó, a tropical fruit marketer in Spain.
"The Peruvian air mango season is now over. The quality has been exceptional, although with such limited volumes that it has been really difficult to obtain produce and to sell it at prices that would be profitable for the importers," says Verónica Fernández, manager of Warakkó. "We also have air mango from Mexico at the moment, but it must be said that Peru still stands out in terms of quality and know-how due to its vast experience in air shipments."
"This has been a year with a limited mango supply, especially from large producing countries such as Brazil, Peru and Mexico. The prices of air mangoes have been expensive, so the mangoes arriving by sea freight have been sold faster," says Veronica. "As long as there are no meteorological setbacks, this year we expect Spain to have a good mango production, which would make up for last year's scarcity."
This has also not been a year of abundant avocado productions. "We had a difficult Spanish avocado campaign because of the reduction in the harvest. At the moment, we are working with Peru, which I believe is the best source at this time of year, although the quality from Kenya appears to be improving every year," says the Manager of Warakkó.
According to Verónica Fernández, "the Peruvian season is characterized by an abundance of small sizes due to the influence of the El Niño climatic phenomenon. There is a great disparity in terms of prices; very high in the case of large avocados, which results in a slower demand, and much lower prices in the case of small sized ones."
"We want to consolidate our position thanks to the flavour of our fruit and our attention to detail in every process"
Warakkó, the young company from Malaga, is only two years old, but its manager has agriculture in her blood, instilled from a very young age by her parents, entrepreneurs in the sector, growers and marketers. "I studied Business Administration and Management and initially aspired to work in banking, but the fruit and vegetable sector has always fascinated me," says Verónica.
"After working for a few years as a broker in the tropical fruit and vegetable sector and opening a trading company with a partner, I eventually decided to create my own company to work the way I liked and in line with my perfectionist personality when it comes to the things I am passionate about. In other words, paying great attention to detail for each client," she says.
"Having my own packing plant was always my dream and it's not really an easy thing to do nowadays, taking into account the high costs involved and the difficulties in finding talent, but I considered it necessary in order to be able to provide value. We want to consolidate our position thanks to the flavor of our fruit and our attention to detail. This is our strength and it should allow us to continue growing in terms of volume."
The Warakkó brand is marketed all year round in the main wholesale markets in Spain, as well as in the hotel and catering sector. "We are consolidating our position in the Spanish market, but we are already considering the possibility of exporting in the near future. We may then start working in France," says Verónica Fernández. "We love what we do, we do what we love. Our genes, tropical. Our origin, Malaga," she says.
For more information:
Verónica Fernández
WARAKKÓ
Tel.: +34 661 487 863
[email protected]