Costa Rica: expecting a better pineapple market
“In two to three weeks our natural flowering season starts. This means we will have more volumes a…“In two to three weeks our natural flowering season starts. This means we will have more volumes again, which hopefully result in lower prices for our pineapples as well. We know that the first part of the year is always difficult, but with these expectations, we hope to recover from our losses again,” says Sonia Alvarado from Hispacori a pineapple exporter from Costa Rica.
Hispacori, already existing for 8 years, is located in San José, but the farms are located in the production area San Carlos. They produce and export pineapple the whole year and work with some seasonal products, like for example mango and watermelon. All production is meant for export, focused on the European market.
Sonia explains that the pineapple market is in a difficult situation, due to several factors. “Last year some new initiatives started, as industrial companies in the market. These companies only sell processed pineapple, as in juice and frozen for example. The downside is, these companies buy their pineapples directly from the fields and pay good prices. As a result, the producers decide to sell their production to these industrial players, since it saves them many expenses such as certification, quality investments, operations, packaging etc.”
“This is not the only factor influencing the pineapple market,” continues Sonia. “As well the El Niño phenomenon has been affecting the production. As we had to deal with a lack of rains, it has negatively affected the pineapple production. The result of these factors influencing the production, means to say Costa Rica has up to 35% less export of pineapples this year. As less supply increases the price of our pineapples, we have a hard time competing on the European market.¨
According to Sonia, the European market is a difficult market for pineapple export from Costa Rica at this moment. “Costa Rica is known for their pineapples and the importers know the quality we deliver. However, due to the market prices we have to compete with other producing countries such as Panama and Ecuador for example. European importers might decide to source their pineapples from other countries, because these are offered at a lower price level. We try to distinguish ourselves as Hispacori, by offering our clients a complete package. This means that we arrange all that’s necessary to get our pineapples to the importer.”
Luckily Sonia has high hopes for the second part of this year. She explains: "we know the first half of the year is always the most difficult part of the year. The expectations for the second half of the year are much better. Although the natural flowering is very controlled here, we expect good volumes in a few weeks. Resulting in lower prices for our pineapples, which should give Costa Rica again a stronger position on the market."