Carnarvon mango season shaping up to be fruitful

The mango season in WA’s Gascoyne region is still a few months away, but local growers in Carnarvon are getting excited about a potentially big crop.

Eddie Smith said after a strong flowering his trees were now littered with baby mangoes, which would hopefully hang on until harvest starts in late December.

“It should be a very good crop this year,” he said.

“Looking at the number of fruit in the trees right now is telling me it will be a good year, even if we suffer from some heat events, I think we’ll still be right.”

If the crop comes to fruition it will be a much needed turn-around for the local mango industry in Carnarvon, which last year suffered through Cyclone Olwyn.

“Last season we ended up [with] under 50 per cent of what we normally produce, directly attributable to the cyclone,” Mr Smith said.

“You can still see damage in the trees, but they are getting over it.”

Mr Smith grows a wide variety of mangoes on his farm including R2E2, Calypso, Heidi, Valencia Pride and Keitt.

“The different varieties help to extend our season, makes it a bit longer, and it’s catering to people wanting different mangoes,” he said.

Mangoes in short supply at Perth markets

Mangoes from the Northern Territory and Kununurra (WA) are trickling into the Perth markets, but the supply is tight and wholesalers aren’t expecting any large volumes until next month.

John Mercer from WA Farm Direct said the information he was receiving about WA’s mango season, was that it was “mixed”.

“There’s a little bit of fruit trickling in from Kununurra but the flowering there has been very sporadic,” he said.

“So overall I think the fruit will generally be lighter in quantity this year, but from what we’ve seen so far, the quality is very good.

“From the consumer point of view, I’d say they’re going to get very good quality mangoes, but because supply is down, they’ll probably be a little bit firmer in price than last year.”

The Australian Mango Industry Association (AMIA) released its National Crop Forecast this week, predicting Australia will produce around 8 million trays this season.

Mr Mercer said he’d be surprised if the national crop was that big.

“I don’t think they’ll achieve those numbers this year. I just don’t believe the crops are there to the size they’re talking about,” he said.

“I think it’ll be a lighter crop. How light? No one knows.”

First grade mangoes are currently selling for up to $85 a tray in the Perth markets.