Panama Canal Zone Import will export 3,000 boxes of pineapple to Europe
Panama exports pineapple throughout the year, but this Thursday, the company Panama Canal Zone Import, S.A. manufactured the first container of a total of two destined for Europe. It involved 3,000 boxes of pineapple of the MD-2 variety.
Source: America Retail
Agribusiness after the pandemic has registered a 30% recovery, in addition to the emergence of companies that offer alternative services.
The packed pineapple was grown in the province of Panama Oeste by PAISA, International Agricultural Production, S.A., reported the Ministry of Agricultural Development (MIDA) through social networks.
Tomás Solís, director of Agribusiness at MIDA, explained to La Estrella de Panamá that due to the pandemic, many businesses were affected. However, so far in 2022 a positive upward trend is reflected, since when comparing the figures to August 2022 with 2019 there is a recovery of 30%.
According to MIDA data, pineapple exports in Western Panama have represented, from February to May, the sum of US$3 million.
The MD-2 variety is grown throughout the year in the country and is widely accepted worldwide. Also known as “Golden Sweet” or “Superdulce”, its main characteristics include: Golden-colored skin, extra-sweet flavor, high content of vitamin C and low acidity. The fruit has a more symmetrical and uniform shape.
In Panama, the pineapple reaches a brix or sweetness level of 15 to 17 degrees, which has led it to be considered one of the sweetest in the world at international fairs. Its sweetness is obtained by the amount of time it is exposed to light (action of the sun's rays). It is usually produced in the region of Azuero, Capira, La Chorrera, Coclé and Chiriquí.
Exports to the European market
In the period from January to December 2021, Panama sent US$3,338,174 of fresh pineapple to Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, Ukraine, Belgium, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Greece, and Portugal.
Spain became the European country that received the most exports of Panamanian pineapple, and in 2022 there are already companies making important shipments to this market, reported Eric Dormoi, National Director of Export Promotion of the Ministry of Commerce and Industries (MICI).
Last year, some 2,347,444 kilograms of fresh MD-2 pineapple with an FOB value of US$1,106,311 were exported to this destination, generating a positive increase compared to 2020, when 1,113,246 kilograms were shipped.