Mexican Mango Exports Drop in 2024 Amid US Restrictions

Mexican mango exports to the United States will decrease by 5.33% by the end of 2024 compared to the previous year. The decline in sales is attributed to US government restrictions and drought conditions that affected crops.

At year’s end, Mexico will have exported approximately 62.4 million boxes of mangoes to the United States, reflecting a yearly reduction of 3.5 million boxes. According to the Export Mango Packers Association (EMEX), Mexico’s diverse range of mango varieties, including Haden, Tommy, Kent, and Keitt, allows for nearly year-round production. The export season starts in January and ends in September with the Ataulfo mango, the association noted.

José Ángel Crespo, President, EMEX, pointed out that the drop in mango exports is mainly due to lower production, driven by restrictions imposed by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA). Crespo emphasized that the USDA banned packing facilities from operating on Sundays, reducing mango packing operations by a day and a half each week. As a result, exports declined by 10% to 15%. 

Additionally, mango exports were briefly halted in June following a suspension of mango and avocado imports from Michoacan due to an incident involving USDA personnel. However, activities quickly resumed after Mexico and the United States agreed on a security protocol for phytosanitary inspections in the southern state, as previously reported by MBN.

Another significant factor impacting the sector's productivity was drought. Sergio Roberto Márquez, Researcher at the Department of Plant Science, Universidad Autónoma de Chapingo, stressed that climate change is the primary threat to mango and other food production, noting its acceleration over the past six decades. “Unfortunately, all models predict that climate change will continue to worsen, especially affecting crop areas along the Pacific Coast,” he said. He added that any reduction in production would mainly impact the domestic market, posing a serious challenge.

However, with the arrival of the rainy season in the second half of the year, there is hope for improvement. CONAGUA reported that, as of Sept. 10, 57.32% of the country was free from drought, marking a 7.68% improvement since January. Crespo highlighted that the late-season rains would benefit next year’s mango production, especially in states like Oaxaca, Chiapas, Nayarit, and Sinaloa.

Mexico ranks as the sixth-largest mango producer in the world, with an annual output of 2.18Mt, as of 2020. Over 80% of this volume is exported to the United States, followed by 12% to Canada, 1% to Japan, and the remainder distributed across markets such as the Netherlands, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Germany, Spain, France, Belgium, Italy, New Zealand, Guatemala, Norway, Australia, Sweden, Russia, and the United Arab Emirates. In the Latin American region, Guatemala, Costa Rica, and Peru are Mexico’s main competitors for mango exports to the United States.