Bumper mango harvest in Spain's Andalucía region thanks to abundant rains

After almost five years of drought two years that many in the industry prefer not to remember, the mango sector is back in business in the Axarquía area of Malaga province and on Granada's Costa Tropical, thanks to the abundant rainfall over the last year.

The harvest, which has started with the earliest varieties, Tommy Atkins and Irwin and the main variety, Osteen, is expected to be historic, with three times the volume of 2024 and could eventually reach around 35,000 tonnes.

This is the opinion of the main sellers and growers in the area, who are predicting a "historic" season, with one of the biggest harvests in Spain in living memory. Practically all of Spain's mangoes are grown in the Axarquía and on Granada's Costa Tropical. Mango production is recovering this year in the country compared to the previous season, with an initial forecast of between 30,000 and 35,000 tonnes, thanks to the abundant rainfall in the last year, especially last autumn.

With more than 3,000 grower members on the Iberian peninsula, the Vélez-Málaga cooperative Trops produces around 50% of Spain's mangoes and is expecting a production of between 15,000 and 17,000 tonnes this year. That is double the previous season and three times that of two years ago, according to information from the company.

"As usually happens in seasons with high yields, although we will have availability in all sizes, there will be a greater concentration of medium sizes," said Alejandro Clavero, Trops' sales manager for Spain and Portugal. According to the cooperative, the mango has a "particularly intense colouring this year, which will make it a very eye-catching fruit on the shelves".

According to Martina Otten, commercial director of Trops, "We are coming from an off-season campaign complicated by delays in European ports due to logistical problems, with times of shortage and moments of oversupply due to the difficulty in planning. But now, with the new Spanish mango season, retailers can be sure that there will be no gaps in the supply chain."

Due to low harvests in Spain in recent years there has been a greater reliance on imports from overseas. This year, with the recovery of Spanish production, there will be less space for fruit from Brazil in European markets. "Mangoes from Malaga are a local product for European consumers. We can reach any corner of Europe in between two and three days, offering greater reliability due to logistical advantages," Alejandro Clavero explained.

Trops sells around 20,000 tonnes of mango annually and around 55,000 tonnes of avocado, counting both domestic and imported mango, mainly supplying European countries, although they also operate in the domestic market. For this mango season, the cooperative is once again reactivating the promotional campaign for its 'Trops mango', which not only motivates consumers to buy the brand, but also to consume national mango, "the mango of the season".

The harvest of the Osteen variety of mangoes began with the first greenhouse crops at the end of July and continued in August with auctions in the wholesale markets, with prices for the farmers ranging between one and two euros per kilo at source, depending on the size of the fruit.