"This is the worst mango season ever because prices have never been so low. We always started the season with high prices and then they went down. This time, however, prices were low throughout the entire season," stated Milton Calle Cueva, vice president of the Peruvian Association of Mango Producers (Promango) in an interview with the Service for Integral Rural Development (SEDIR). The harvest in Piura began in October and will end no later than the first week of January.
Photo: Sedir
The price per kilo of mango exported by sea was 12 Soles for a 20-kilo jaba. However, it only lasted two weeks because it fell to 6 Soles. Meanwhile, producers were paid an average of 1.5 Soles per kilo of mango exported by air, i.e. 30 Soles per jaba. So far, 90,000 tons have been exported.
Calle believes prices were low because Peru brought forward its harvest, due to the cold weather caused by La Niña, so it coincided with Brazil's and Ecuador's production. "In Europe, we have clashed with Brazil's production and in the United States with Ecuador's. We have invaded Brazil and Ecuador's commercial windows, which has generated a low price," he said.
The director of Promango also remarked that producing a 20-kilogram mango jaba costs 12 Soles and that by selling it at 6 soles, the lowest price, they had lost 50% of their investment. He also said mango production had decreased by 40% due to the water crisis affecting the northern coast of Peru. Last season, production had decreased by 75% due to the lack of flowering.
Moro and Casma
He also said that prices in Piura will be similar when the season starts in Casma and Moro in Áncash. SEDIR has noted that producers in Moro and the Nepeña Valley have also had difficulties in managing the mango crop due to the drought in the fruit setting phase.
In the face of these adversities, producers will be indebted. The State needs to provide facilities to access loans or to pay debts, the vice president of Promango stressed. In Piura, alone, there are more than 34,000 hectares of mango.
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