Ecuador pineapple growers cut production - FreshFruitPortal.com

Ecuador pineapple growers cut production

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Ecuador pineapple growers cut production

A global oversupply of Gold Extra Sweet pineapples, a fall in prices and rising production costs have led Ecuador’s growers to cut back production, according to newspaper El Universo.

Producers told the newspaper that between 16% and 27% of the country’s registered pineapple fields have been left unplanted, while Ecuador’s agricultural industry contribution to GDP has fallen for the last three trimesters.

Industry insiders expect the situation could become more complex this year as wages have risen by 10%, which could contribute significantly as labour makes up 30% of production costs.

The president of the nation’s pineapple union, Jamen Brown, told El Universo that the international oversupply of pineapples has negative repercussions for the sector.

“People are not consuming as much as expected, there isn’t a high demand, but there is a greater supply from a large production that comes from Central America, and this has affected us,” Brown was quoted as saying.

One businessman told the newspaper he would potentially substitute his crop with African palm trees, as there were periods when a pineapple cartons scheduled at US $6 each were sold for US $2.

Other businesses such as Agroeden have been able to maintain their crops due to contracts with fixed prices.

Photo: Flickr Commons, ECohen

Source: www.freshfruitportal.com

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