The Peru’s mango harvest has begun slow, with very little volume because of a cold winter which resulted in very low flowering and fruits to harvest. In the words of Fernando Hidalgo, from Grupo Cultivemos, a company in Peru The effects from El Nino are very serious to their business: “As for our first delivery of Edward mangoes it was a bit of a struggle. The beginning of the season is never easy and this year it has been even more difficult. Even with the harsh circumstances, production is quite minimal.”
Due to lower production, the picking of the initial mangoes has turned out to be more difficult. “Harvesting is more complex. We need to put together smaller teams to harvest and then do smaller harvests at the same time to reach the quantity. Costs for transporting the fruits from the fields to the plant are also increasing dramatically. There was a time when we used the truck of a tiny size to bring 300 crates from the fields to the plant. Today, we are able to transport 50 – 100 crates for each harvest. The cost is higher. The plant’s situation is complex, which means that you must be extremely exact in the coordination of schedule. The area generally speaking, has a very little production, and consequently there is little work available for workers, they move to different areas. We also are a small team, so we must coordinate with them in order to make sure they arrive on the days of packing. This was a process that was full of surprises and challenges However, we have managed to conquer them and the next step is to begin our Kent mango harvest.” says Hidalgo.
The CEO says that despite the challenges, Grupo Cultivemos will continue offering its international customers. “We have a strong commitment to our clients However, we’re worried with how the market will respond to pricing of the box because of these costs enhance what the box is worth.”
Cultivemos’ latest packaging specifically designed for customers from Canada as well as Dubai.
Avocado harvest looks promising
Hidalgo claims that the conditions for their avocados have seen an opposite impact on the trees as compared to mangoes. “Regarding avocados What we’ve seen in the regions of production such as the La Libertad in La Libertad and Ancash is that, contrary to mango and mangoes, the conditions of the weather have favored blossoming and the fruit to set on the trees of avocado. They give us an hope of producing a large quantity. It is our hope that the hot weather during this time doesn’t affect the ripening of our trees. For now we’re seeing good results.”
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Fernando Hidalgo
Cultivemos
Tel: +51 982 541 535
Email: exportaciones@cultivemos.pe
www.cultivemos.pe
Source: The Plantations International Agroforestry Group of Companies