Brazilian mangoes go global: EU, USA, China

Published Aug 25, 2021

As mango season begins in Brazil, the outlook for mango production remains positive as the area under mango plantation continues to increase. The country mainly produces Tommy Atkins, Kent, and Palmer varieties of mangoes which are very popular in the US and UK. In this season, Brazil’s mango exports to the US would require a hydrothermal process which would be an extra cost to the suppliers. In the upcoming season, Brazil is planning to expand its mango exports across the world - China. However, they need to work on coming up with a premium variety to penetrate the Chinese market.

Mango season in Brazil began in the last week of July and is expected to run until the second week of December 2021. The South American country has a favorable climate and soil for mango growth and production with large areas of land devoted to mango cultivation. Within Brazil, a large share of production takes place in the North- East region of the country. About 86% of the mangoes produced in Brazil are of Tommy Atkins variety followed by Kent (6%), Palmer (3%), and other varieties like Keitt, Espada, and Rosa. In 2019, Brazil produced 2 million metric tons of mango with a share of 3.5% in global production. The outlook remains positive for 2021 as the area under mango plantation continues to increase in Vale do São Francisco (main mango producing region) due to increasing export opportunities.

Brazil exported 270 thousand tons of mango worth USD 412 million during 2020. During 2020 the volume of mango exports increased by roughly 25% over the previous year despite the ongoing pandemic and COVID-19 restrictions. European countries like the Netherlands, Germany, and Spain were amongst the largest mango importing countries. The USA and UK also had a significant share in Brazil’s mango exports during 2020. As of June 2021, Brazil has already exported mangoes worth roughly 80 million. In April 2021, Brazilian mango exports rose to an all-time monthly high of 18.3 thousand tonnes. The volume is 38% higher than the volume recorded in the previous month or any other month setting a historic record in the country.

Source: Tridge.

Brazilian Mangoes to the US: Approachable but not the major

In terms of the US exports, Alexandre Couto Augusto, Sales manager at Sebastiao de Manga, mentioned that the market is totally approachable for Brazilian mangoes and many exporters would like to expand their business. However, he added that mandatory hydrothermal processes required for US exports can be a bottleneck for Brazilian mangoes. Since the majority of exporters send mangoes to EU countries that do not require hydrothermal processes, exporting to the US market can charge an additional cost to rent a processing facility. On top of that, the exporters should keep an eye on the seasonality and export timeline as the prime export season for Brazilian mangoes in the US market lasts only 2 months, during the off-season of Mexican, Peruvian and Ecuadorian mangoes. From November to December, Ecuador’s Kent variety dominates the US market, and Peruvian mangoes start coming in from early January and last until April, followed by Mexican mango season.

Brazilian Mangoes to China: Diversification strategy?

China mainly imports mangoes from Indonesia and Thailand due to its proximity, and recently increasing import volume from Vietnam as well. Since 70% of the total export volume heads to EU countries, Brazilian suppliers try to diversify destination countries to China, where the importing value has been increasing dramatically since 2014. However, since Peruvian Kent mango is leading the Chinese market during the low export season of Indonesia and Thailand from September to April, Brazil needs to come up with more premium variety to penetrate the Chinese market.