April was marked by a premature end to the Peruvian campaign, with shipments largely dominating the European supply since the beginning of the year. In the course of week 11, Peru was ravaged by torrential rains, causing massive material damage and the death of several people. The damage to the communication routes put an end to the possibility of sea-freight mango exports. Furthermore, the shipment volumes were already dwindling, after the campaign had started early. Brazil partially offset the reduction in the Peruvian supply, while demand was intensifying for the Easter holidays. This resulted in prices maintaining a high level for a sustained period, in spite of qualitative deterioration of the produce. The phenomenon intensified after Easter because of the fall in import volumes, with the West African campaign only getting started. Some Amélie containers from Côte d’Ivoire were received, selling under good conditions in this context of under-supply.
The air-freight market remained fairly lively, with high prices in the first half-month with the Easter holidays. Rates of the last batches from Peru remained very high, with African mangoes selling at lower prices depending on the varieties and quality of the fruits, overall with little coloration and sometimes insufficiently mature. Kent remained the most sought-after and best valued.
In May, the supply was tumbling with the end of the Peruvian campaign and the late start by the West African origins. In the first half-month, demand was still lively, and the quantities available limited, helping rates maintain a high level for Brazilian and Ivorian fruits. From the second week of the month, revolts in Côte d’Ivoire heavily disrupted mango transport from the production region, located in the north, to the port of Abidjan in the south. These events were aggravated by failure of loading machinery at one of the port’s fruit terminals. This disrupted the “docking windows”, leading to numerous containers being stored for various durations, under more or less satisfactory conditions. The restoration of calm and repairs to the machinery enabled maritime transport to gradually recover, while export companies closed their shipments. Ten to fifteen days later, the crisis shifted to the European markets where numerous containers were received damaged or with fruits of lower quality, heavily and sustainable hindering sales. Rates rapidly declined, and at the end of the period, clearance sales were made at very low prices.
The air-freight mango market was just as difficult. Only the last batches from Peru earned satisfactory value. West African fruits exhibited average quality overall, with some lacking coloration and maturity. For sure harvested early, they rapidly crumbled, with an unattractive appearance, and suffered from comparison with the last batches from Peru. These qualitative defects, probably due to the fear of infestation by fruit fly larvae, were particularly harmful to marketing. At the end of the month, prices strengthened slightly due to a widening under-supply. Some shipments from Brazil, India, Vietnam and Thailand provided purchasers with an occasional alternative.
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