Agriculture.ph Blog

I am not a mango expert or anything but as all Filipinos will say, Philippines has probably the best tasting mango variety in the world. Yes, the carabao mango which is the export mango variety of the Philippines really taste good specially when processed or made into fresh mango shake. But as good as it taste, it is probably the most complex fruit crop to cultivate. I guess thats the irony of things when something is that good probably then its hard to produce. Yes, some may not know but from our research almost 20%-30% and even maybe higher of Filipino farmers who venture in Carabao Mango farming haven’t got there investment back in growing these crop. Mango farmers spend money the first year and up to the fourth year just to find out that they will be out priced by smart mango contractors and traders.

Some Reasons:

1. Some farmers fail even at the start of planting the trees buy buying not accredited or unreliable carabao mango varieties. That alone can jeopardize your total operation in the beginning.

2. Yup, the old farming practice of “Bahala na system” of farming which farmers plant and leave the trees alone to nature and taken care of them. When the trees are ready for flower inducement, they won’t fruit well because of the bad condition of the trees are because of the neglect for many years.

3. Proper cultivation and proper planting distance of mango are not followed. I believe mango growing has now evolved that they are new emerging practices that we should follow because of trees characteristics. And mango farmers are not following it thus low production yield and sometimes no yield at all.

4. For me, this is the most important matter mango farmers neglect why they fail to produce and make a profit in the mango venture. They don’t even study the carabao mango tree fruiting characteristics and its physiological growing concept from growing to fruiting. And I will explain why carabao mango is a complex fruit crop to grow.

Carabao mango characteristic:

1. Carabao mango are biennial bearing in nature. Bi means two or it fruits EVERY 2 years only. The irony of this is that this variety should have not been considered a superior variety if pottasium nitrate wasn’t invented. A mango variety should be voluntarily fruiting so that we won’t be using flower inducers. Also they should fruit every year.

2. Carabao mango are prune sensitive. The variety cannot be pruned in the middle of the flower inducement season and can be only prune after harvest to rejuvinate leaves. Another inferior characteristic of a mango variety. Mango variety should fruit even if it was pruned.

3. Carabao mango by nature are prolific and large growing mango varieties. So they should be planted farther apart each other. In Mindanao by some experts are recommending 15 meters by 15 mters or as high as 20 meters by 20 meters because of the rain distribution there. Mango variety should be dwarf in stature or semi-dwarf for high density planting.

4. No. 1,2,3 are the reason why our mango farmers are having a miserable time thinking what to do every year with the trees.

Effects of this problems:

1. Operating expense is very high. Chemical inputs are very high. Less profits. Equals break even margin of profits.

2. With global fruit industry demanding less chemicals in the fruits like Japan, mango exporters have hard time exporting mangoes to comply with standards. Looking back at No. 4, its possible not to use pesticides in carabao mango because of No.4 problem of characteristic of carabao mango. Pesticide problem issue with Japan:

In 2006, the Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW) imposed a maximum residue level (MRL) of 0.05 parts per million for chlorpyrifos and cypermethrine, which are active ingredients in insecticides, in all mango shipments to Japan. The former MRL for these chemicals was 0.5 ppm, Mr. Amores said.

“Regrettably, the Philippine government authorities did not file any comment on these MRLs prescribed by Japan for mangoes, unlike other foreign countries which submitted proper data for the revisions of MRLs,” he said.

3. We cannot grow organic carabao mangoes. Those people who say they can are hypocrites. If we don’t use pesticides its impossible to export our mangoes because we need them to produce blemish free mangoes. With lots of pest incidence in flower set to harvesting the fruit there are probably 5-6 pests we should contain or control. Now how can you do that without the use of pesticides?? And with a year round rain distribution in Mindanao, how can you control anthracnose? not to get your fruit to blemish. With these problem with excess chemical residue of certain chemical ingredients in pesticide, this what happened to our mango exports to Japan the last past years:

Fresh mango exports to Japan, excluding Okinawa, dropped 20% from 9,955.802 MT in 2004 to 7,964.421 MT in 2005, and by a smaller 18% to 6,516.456 MT in 2006, before snapping back to a bigger 20.35% drop to 5,190.406 MT in 2007, Bureau of Agricultural Statistics (BAS) data show.

Fresh mango export earnings dropped to $12.652 million last year from $13.509 million in 2006, $15.497 million in 2005 and $17.917 in 2006. Mr. Amores said that “our mango export to Japan is threatened to extinction as it has become extremely difficult to source mangoes that are within the present MRLs of 0.05 ppm.”

In the first quarter of the year, 21.89%, or 2,503.340 metric tons, worth $934,178, of the total 11,433.934 MT ($2.21 million) fresh mango exports were shipped to Japan, BAS data showed. Last year, 19.71% or 5,190.406 MT, valued at $12.625 million, of the total 26,337.819 MT fresh mango exports went to Japan. The same data showed total fresh and processed mango exports in the first quarter this year stood at 16,879 metric tons worth $2.87 million.

4. Headaches because of No. 4 problem of characteristic of mango. From growers to exporters. Yes the irony of growing mango in our country, the most delicious mango probably in the world is the hardest variety to grow. I have no solutions for this but if someone has a brilliant idea on how to curb this problem, please help our mango growers specially the Mindanao Mango Growers. They have the capability to fruit mangoes all year round but with lots of chemicals being used which is a necessity in growing mangoes we will never compete with other mango exporters like Taiwan and Thailand.

Solution:

1. Breed a new carabao mango variety that fruits voluntarily, dwarf in stature, and are not prune sensitive and has an attractive skin color

2. To research a way to fruit the carabao mango organically to reduce residual chemicals in the fruits

3. To research on new ways to cultivate and manage mango orchard like new pruning technique or ways to dwarf the trees to make them manageable for farmers

4. Bag the mangoes for pest protection.

For my conclusion, the only industry who are walking tall are the dried mango processors, there product has a long shelf life and are accepted in other countries because of its unique taste. With a steady market of hi value products to other countries which are steadily growing, mango dried mango processors should expand in other provinces so that they could buy excess carabao mango fruits not being bought by traders. Some mango growers are now using there trees for charcoal. We should invest in Breeding a new carabao mango variety with less hassle to grow. If someone can breed a new variety with the same taste, the breeder and growers will be millionaires I tell you. Lastly, patent the new breed of variety for protection.

Source: www.da.gov.ph, www.bworldonline.com