Drought crisis
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Eugenio Cabezas
Axarquía
Tuesday, 13 August 2024, 12:35
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The extreme drought affecting the Axarquia continues to push the hitherto booming subtropical sector into the abyss. For the second year in a row, the mango harvest, which has already started, has been greatly reduced, with a 70 per cent drop forecast, to barely 12,000 tonnes in Malaga province, according to estimates by the Spanish tropical fruit association (AET).
The situation is a consequence of the water difficulties that continue to weigh down the sector in the eastern part of Malaga province, as well as various incidents during the key flowering periods, which have affected the fruit setting. To try to alleviate the situation, the organisation, which brings together more than 500 growers, has launched the 'Mango de Málaga' brand, to promote consumption and marketing, highlighting the excellent quality of the mangoes grown in the province, compared to those that are imported.
The brand's governing board, headed by Prudencio López, head of the company Natural Tropic, has pointed out that the harvesting season will last until the first third of next autumn and he predicted "a good valuation of the fruit as a consequence of the lower supply". López is confident that there will be an upturn in demand in the domestic markets as well as in the final sales destinations in the European Union, facts that will have a positive effect on prices at source, "at least on paper", he added.
In this way, the Mango de Málaga brand is moving steadily towards the third campaign since its launch, a recognition at origin that has meant one of the most significant advances in the recent history of the subtropical sector. Operators, producers and processing companies came together in 2022 under the umbrella of this label that recognises the quality at origin of "a unique fruit in terms of its flavour and organoleptic properties; distinctive characteristics derived from the climatic singularities and special conditions of the territory in which more than 85 per cent of all the mango produced in the European Union is grown".
After its launch and development with notable success in the 2022 and 2023 seasons, the Mango de Málaga brand's latest campaign aims to consolidate and continue to stimulate demand in European markets, mainly France, Germany, Belgium, Switzerland, Italy and Portugal, as well as new niches in Eastern countries, destinations in which the Spanish mango from the Axarquía "is one of the most appreciated and valued products", according to a statement from the AET.
For his part, Álvaro Palacios, president of the AET, has also pointed out that in the context of the 'brand', the steps towards the recognition of the protected geographical indication (PGI) continue; since the registration of the seal is the first step in a process that must continue towards the achievement by the competent community institutions of this PGI, which is one of the quality regions of the European Union.
"Its significance is of the utmost importance as it distinguishes, in regulatory terms, a food product that originates from a specific place - region or country," said Palacios. The PGI also confirms its specific quality, reputation or other characteristics that can essentially be attributed to its geographical origin, and at least one of its production, processing or preparation stages within the defined geographical area. In this sense, the president of the AET said that this is a process "that involves a long and painstaking administrative process, but progress is expected to be made during the year 2025".
The president also announced that the necessary steps have been taken to apply for various grants to open research programmes related to flowering processes, given the incidents that occurred in the behaviour of the crops last spring, an action that will be carried out in collaboration with researchers from the IFAPA institute, which depends on the Andalusian regional government.
The Mango de Málaga committee, the governing body of the brand, which met last week and which brings together producers, operators and marketing companies, will once again be the body in charge of supervising and managing all the operations of the campaign that is now beginning. Its main objective will once again be to distinguish in the end markets a product that is unique due to its unique organoleptic properties and the marked character conferred by the climate, as well as the growing conditions in the main producing area on the European Union, with more than 4,000 hectares under cultivation of mango, mostly of the Osteen variety.
"It is a local product, in which organic cultivation continues to gain weight and with a minimal carbon footprint, given the limited space and time that elapses between its collection at the place of origin and its arrival at the final destination, whether in Spanish points of sale or in European markets. These are conditions that are highly valued by the end consumer and which contrast with fruit arriving from other transoceanic countries," the AET stated.
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